1st Bn 69th Armor
Glossary Of Vietnam Terminology
A, B, C, D,
E, F, G, H,
I, J, K, L,
M, N, O, P,
Q, R, S, T,
U, V, W, X,
Y, Z
A
- Agent Orange - Defoliant/herbicide containing 2,4,T Dioxin
- AK47 - Soviet/Chicom 7.62mm assualt rifle
- Albumen - a blood expander carried by medics to replace lost blood
- AN/PRS-4 - Mine detector used by combat engineers
- AN/PVS-2 - Smaller Starlight Scope for use on individual weapons
- AN/TVS-2 - Larger Starlight Scope for use on crew-served weapons
- AO - Area of Operations, your "neighborhood". Ours were Cochise-Green & Walker
- APC - Armored Personnel Carrier, usually an M-113
- APDS - Armor Piercing Discarding Sabot -The baddest antitank round on earth
- ARA - Aerial Rocket Artillery - gunships
- Arclight - Radio code for a 3 ship Cell B-52 Strike
- ARVN - collection of non-hostile South Vietnamese with weapons
- Ash and Trash - Administrative functions of HHC
- AVLB - Armored Vehicle Launched Bridge (usually on an M-60 tank chassis)
- AW - Automatic Weapons
B
- B40 - armor defeating shaped charge projectile fired by RPG2 and RPG7; origin unknown
- Bandaid Box - Radio code for the medic vehicle, usually an M-113 APC
- Bandaid - Radio code for the medic
- Baseball Grenade - Defensive Fragmentation hand grenade: explodes on impact
- Base Camp Commando - See REMF
- Base Piece - howitzer closest to the battery center, fired first round of fire mission
- BDA - Bomb Damage Assessment - we counted the craters
- Beaucoup - Many
- Beehive Round - 90mm cannon round containing 8,500 darts or "flechettes" called "Green Can"
- Bic - Vietnamese for "understand" "No bic" means "I don't understand"
- Big Boy - Radio code for a tank
- Black Can - 90mm Canister round containing 1,000 1/2x5/16 inch pellets
- Blivet - huge rubber tire-like container for water or diesel fuel: towed or airlifted
- Blue Legs - Infantrymen
- Blue Line - Radio code for a stream or river
- BMFIC - Big Mother F_____ In Charge (Usually the Division Commander or ADC maneuver)
- Boom Boom - sex with a prostitute
- Boom Boom Girl - A prostitute
- Box - Radio code for an M-113 APC
- Break Brush - To travel off a trail to avoid mines and booby-traps
- Break Squelch - To press the transmit button on the radio handset
without speaking: Twice for all-clear, once for enemy near.
- Broken Arrow - Radio code for a unit about to be overrun; diverts all Tactical air to support that unit
- Bug Juice - Insect Repellent
C
- C4 - Plastic Explosive in Claymores we used for heating coffee
- C and C - Command and Control Ship, usually a Huey, sometimes a Loach
- CAR-15 - Carbine version of M-16 with collapsable stock - Officers only
- C Rations - Dog food left over from WWII and canned for GIs in Nam
- Charlie - Viet Cong, from phonetic alphabet for VC, Victor Charlie
- Charles - Formal reference to Charlie
- Charm School - Initial training and orientation upon arrival in-country
- Cherry Juice - Hydraulic fluid in tank turret traversing system
- Cherry School - Initial training and orientation upon arrival in-country
- Chieu Hoi - Literally "Open Arms" - RVN Amnesty program for NVA/VC
- Chinook - a CH-47 cargo helicopter
- CIB - Combat Infantryman Badge (a mark of honor among grunts, justifiably so)
- CIDG - Civilian Irregular Defense Group - Usually Montangard tribesmen led by U.S. advisers, usually Green Berets
- Claymore - antipersonnel mine (from Gaelic "claidheamh mor" pronounced like "Claymore"
meaning Broad Sword)
- Class 1 - Rations, usually hot
- Class 2 - Individual equipment
- Class 3 - Fuel
- Class 4 - Barrier material and construction supplies
- Class 5 - Ammo
- Class 6 - Booze (hard liquor)
- Class 7 - Medical supplies
- Class 8 - Sundries; Coca-Cola, snacks, cigarettes, most common items found in a PX
- Class 9 - Spares
- Coax - the coaxially mounted M-73 7.62mm machine gun
- Cockadau - derivative of Vietnamese slang, meaning "to kill"
- Coke Girl - a Vietnamese woman who sold everything except boom boom to GIs
- Concussion Bomb - A bomb containing kerosene that was devastating
- Conex - Container, Explosive: used for housing in RVN
D
- Daisy Cutter - a 15,000 pound BLU-82 bomb dropped by C130 to clear an LZ
- Danger Close - an air strike or artillery mission within 100 meters of your location
- Dee-Dee - To leave
- Delta Tango - Designated Targets - Preselected artillery targets located in daylight for use at night
- Detcord - Explosive that looks like rope- used to daisy-chain claymores
- Dinky-dao - (pronounced "dinky dow") Crazy, Americanized Vietnamese
- Donut Dolly - Women from the American Red Cross
- Dragon Wagon - a tank transporter, also called Low Boy
- Dumbo - A C-123 Provider of the USAF
- Duster - an M42, an old M24 tank chassis with two 40mm AA guns in an open turret
- Dustoff - Medical evacuation helicopter, usually a Huey
E
- E8 - 35mm 16-tube disposable CS gas canister launcher. Had a nasty habit of firing by itself.
- E&E - Escape and Evade
- Elephant - Radio code for an M48-A3. Also the real thing: 'Nam was crawling with them
- Elephant Grass - tall, sharp-edged grass found in the highlands of Vietnam
- ELINT - Poor intelligence gathered electronically at great expense
- EOD - Explosive Ordnance Disposal
- ETS - Estimated Termination of Service - the day you got out of the Army
F
- FAC - Forward Air Controller, usually flying around in an O-1 Birddog
- Fast Mover - FAC radio code for an F100, F105, or F4C aircraft
- Fifty - the .50 caliber M2HB machine gun
- FNG - F______ New Guy, the term applied to everyone whose name you couldn't remember
- FO - Forward Observer, an artilleryman, usually an officer
- Fougasse - 55-gal drum filled with napalm and C4 used as defensive perimeter weapon (also "Phougas")
- Frag - Offensive Fragmentation hand grenade: five second fuze
- Friendlies - Other US or allied troops on the battlefield
- Friendly Fire - Officially called "Misadventure" by the DOD. See Short Round
- Fire Mission - radio request to the artillery to drop some HE on the bad guys
- Firecracker - M-449 round fired by artillery contains bomblets which go off in mid-air.
- Fox Four - FAC terminology for an F-4 Phantom in the ground support role.
- FSB - Fire Support Base: usually a battery (3 105mm howizters) of guns with a perimeter
- FTA - Fun, Travel, Adventure, from Army recruiting ad
- FTA - F___ The Army, the more common meaning
- FUBAR - F_____ Up Beyond All Recognition
- Funny Money - Military Payment Certificates, scrip issued in lieu of dollars
- Funny Paper - Radio code for a topo map
G
- Goofy Grape - Radio code for purple smoke
- GP - General Purpose bomb. Can kill troops or bust bunkers
- Green Can - 90mm cannon round containing 8,500 darts or "flechettes"
- Grunts - Infantrymen
- Guns - short for gunships
- Gunship - Usually a UH1B Huey, later a UH1G Hueycobra
- Gun Target Line - You don't want to be on it. See Short Round
- Gun Truck - Cargo truck with added armor and machineguns for convoy escort
H
- Hawk - Radio code for ambush team
- Hawkeye - Use varied 1) a US sniper or 2) an O-1 aircraft with a starlight scope
- HE - High Explosive
- HEAT - High Explosive Anti-Tank - fin-stabilized armor defeating projectile
- HEP - High Explosive Plastic (Composition B)
- HHC - Headquarters and Headquarters Company
- H & I - Harrassing and Interdicting artillery fire
- Hmong - The Montagnards of Laos. Comprised the bulk of the Laotian Royalist Army; fought for the U.S.
- Hoi Chanh - an enemy soldier who took advantage of the Chieu Hoi program
- Hook - short for a CH-47 Chinook
- Horn - the radio
- Hotel Charlie - Hot Chow
- Hre - Tribe of Montagnards, 110,000 strong.
- Huey - sometimes UH-1A appeared as HU-1A which led to name "Huey", the image of Vietnam
I
- IFFV - 1st Field Force Vietnam
- II Corp - The AO for the 1/69 Armor, included Binh Dinh, Kontum, Pleiku provinces
- Illum - Illumination rounds fired by artillery, mortor, M79, or dropped by aircraft
- In-Country - on the ground in South Vietnam
- Indian Country - Area controlled by Charles
- IP - Initial Point - A reference point in the attack
J
- Jarai Tribe of Montagnards, living in the Pleiku area
- Jesus Nut - Large nut which holds rotor on rotor shaft
- Jody - "...Jody was there when you left, you're right"
- JP-4 - Fuel for Hueys and fast movers
- Jungle Boot - Special boots with stainless steel shank and holes to drain water out
- Jungle Fatigues - tropical weight jacket and pants
- Jungle Penetrator - bullet shaped device for extracting wounded in triple-canopy rain-forest
- Jungle Rot - Any of a number of fungal infections caused by moisture in Vietnam
K
- KHA - Killed Hostile Action
- KIA - Killed In Action
- Killer Junior - technique developed out of the need to protect 155mm battery from ground attacks, since
Army didn't design a "Beehive" round for the 155mm howitzer. Killer Juniors were perfected by Lt. Colonel Robert Dean the CO of
1/8th Field Artillery, 25th Infantry Division Artillery. The technique called for firing HE Projectiles with Time Fuses set at 2
seconds or greater to burst approximately 30 feet off the ground at ranges of 200 to 1,000 meters. Killer Juniors (and the 8"
Killer Senior) proved to be more effective than Beehive for antipersonnel because the enemy could not crawl under the burst as
they could the fan of the Beehive pattern.
- Kit Carson Scout - North Vietnamese Regulars who defected and acted as scouts for US troops
- Klick - a kilometer, 1,000 meters
L
- La Dai - Come here!
- Lager - Tanks or APCs circled in a defensive position, usually at night
- LAW - Light Antitank Weapon - M-72 - Fired 66mm round from disposable launcher
- LBE - Load Bearing Equipment, web gear, system for carrying canteen, ammo, pack, battle dressing
- LBJ - Long Binh Jail, the Army Stockade in Long Binh
- Leaf Killers - nickname for Dumbo pilots spraying Agent Orange defoliant; Operation Ranch Hand
- Lefty Lemon - Radio Code for Yellow Smoke
- Legs - non-airborne infantrymen (see also straight legs)
- Lima Delta - Line of Departure: point of no return in an attack
- Lima Lima - LL - Land Line: a field phone
- Lima Pappa - LP - Listening Post
- Little People - radio code for ARVNs
- LLDB - Vietnamese abbreviation for Luc Luong Dac Biet, Airborne Special Forces
- Loach - Light Observation Helicopter, usually an OH-6 (Hughes 500C) but also OH-58 (Bell Jetranger)
- Log - Logistics
- Log Bird - resupply helicopter, usually a Huey, sometimes a Chinook
- LOH - Light Observation Helicopter (Loach), usually a Hughes 500C but also Bell Jetranger
- Louie Lime - Radio Code for Green Smoke
- Low Boy - a tank transporter, also called Dragon Wagon
- LRRP - Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol - 5 man team dropped into indian country
- LRRP Rations - freeze dried food developed for LRRPs tasted better than "C" Rations
- LZ - Landing Zone (note that some were Fire Support Bases and had names)
M
- M-2HB - Caliber 50 machine gun (HB = Heavy Barrel)
- M-3A1 - Caliber 45 submachine gun (M-3 was older variant)
- M-16A1 - Later, better model of the famous automatic rifle
- M-16E1 - Early model M-16 which jammed frequently
- M-17 - Protective mask worn by non-vehicle crewmen
- M-18A1 - Claymore antipersonnel weapon, threw out 700 steel balls, lethal to 50 meters.
- M-24 - Korean war vintage Chaffee light tank (ARVNs only)
- M-26A1 - Fragmentation hand grenade (offensive)
- M-291 - 81mm mortor; range 3,500 meters; found in weapons platoon of Infantry rifle company
- M-30 - 4.2 inch (107mm) mortor (rifled tube), maximum range 5,650 meters; usually a platoon was assigned to a Bn Hqs
- M-33 - Fragmentation hand grenade (defensive) aka "baseball grenade"
- M-41 - Korean war vintage Walker Bulldog light tank (ARVNs only)
- M-42 - Duster (twin 40mm Bofors antiaircraft cannon on M-41 chassis)
- M-48A3 - Main Battle Tank used in Vietnam because of its thick hull
- M-49 - Trip flare
- M-55 - Quad .50 caliber machine-gun mount.. Range 7,275 meters
- M-56 - Selp-Propelled Anti Tank gun (90mm) on tracked chassis, named Scorpion used by D/16th Armor 173rd Airborne
- M-52A2 - 5-ton tractor, as in tractor-trailer
- M-60 - in Vietnam, the 7.62mm squad machine gun of the infantry; belt fed, air-cooled; 600 rounds per minute
- M-67 - 90mm recoiless rifle; range 450-800 meters; an Anti0Tank weapon, it was used to bust bunkers in Vietnam
- M-72 - LAW (Light Antitank Weapon) 66mm rocket in disposable launcher
- M-79 - 40mm grenade launcher, aka "Thumper"; range (HE) 400 meters
- M-88 - Tracked recovery vehicle (used by armor and Maintenance units)
- M-101 - Split trail 105mm Howitzer (traditional Artillery units); range 11,000 meters
- M-102 - Closed trail 105mm Howitzer (Airborne and Air Cav units); range 11,500 meters; could be lifted by a Huey.
- M-106 - Selp-propelled 4.2 inch (107mm) mortor track (modified M-113)
- M-107 - Self-propelled 175mm gun; tube maximum range 32,600 meters; crew of five.
- M-108 - Self-propelled 105mm howizter; tube had range of 11,500 meters;
- M-109 - Self-propelled 155mm howizter; tube had range of 14,600 meters; largest direct-support artillery
- M-110 - Self-propelled 8" howizter; tube range 16,800 meters; five man crew
- M-113 - Armored Pesonnel Carrier fitted with Chrysler 209HP gasoline engine
- M-113A1 - M-113 fitted with General Motors 215HP Diesel engine
- M-114 - Tracked, armored, scout vehicle. Fitted with Chevy 283 cubic inch gasoline engine
- M-114A1 - M-114 fitted with General Motors Diesel engine
- M-125A1 - Self-propelled 81mm mortor (based on M-113A1 chassis)
- M-132 - "Zippo" track mechanized flamethrower (based on M-113A1 chassis)
- M-151 - Jeep (truck, cargo, 4x4)
- M-449 - "Firecracker" round fired by artillery contains bomblets which go off in mid-air.
- M-548 - Tracked cargo vehicle
- M-577 - Tracked command vehicle, modified M-113 (used by all maneuver Bns)
- M-578 - Tracked recovery vehicle (used by infantry and artillery)
- M-728 - Combat Engineer Vehicle (CEV) M-60A1 chassis/turret w/ 165mm demolition gun
- Mac the FAC - The Forward Air Controller, usually flying around in an O-1 Bird Dog
- MACV - Military Assistance Command Vietnam
- Mad Minute - Random firing of all perimeter defensive weapons to discourage infiltration
- Max Ord - short for Maximum Ordinate
- Maximum Ordinate - The highest point in an artillery round's trajectory, important for pilot's to know
- MEDCAP - Medical Civil Action Program - Our Medics treated Vietnamese villagers
- Meo - Laotian term for Hmong tribesmen, meaning "savages".
- MFIC - Mother F_____ In Charge
- Mighty Mite - Small portable blower used for filling tunnels with CS (tear agent) powder
- Mike Mike - Millimeter
- Mil - unit of circular and vertical/horizontal measurement in tank gunnery. 6,400 in a circle
- MOGAS - Short for MOtor vehicle GASoline - military grade gasoline
- Moi - Literally, "savages". Vietnamese term for Montagnard tribesmen
- Montagnard - French Lit. "Mountaineer" Originally from Polynesia, they were the original inhabitants of the coastal region of Vietnam
- Montagnard Bar - A Hersey Tropical Bar
- MPC - Military Payment Certificates, scrip issued in lieu of dollars
- MRRF - Mobile Road Reaction Force
N
- Napalm - Thickened gasoline. Resembles Jell-O in bombs, maple syrup in a Zippo-track
- NCOIC - Non-Commissioned Officer In Charge
- NDP - Night Defensive Position
- Nickel - radio code for a junior NCO
- No Bic - I don't understand
- NLT - No Later Than
- Number One - The Best
- Number 10 - The worst
- Nung - Tribe of Montagnards, 15,000 strong; the fiercest of the Montagnard CIDG troops.
- NVA - North Vietnamese Army
O
- OIC - Officer In Charge
- One Four - The platoon Sergeant
- One Six - The platoon leader
- One Six Alpha - The platoon leader's gunner, the Assistant tank commander
- OOA - On Or About
- Oscar Pappa - Observation Post
- Oscar Track - Call sign for Company HQs or Bn S-3
P
- P-38 - Can opener that came with C-Rations
- Penny - Radio code for an enlisted man
- PFT - Portable Flame Thrower
- Phougas - 55-gal drum filled with napalm and C4 used as defensive perimeter weapon (also "Fougasse")
- Piaster - Vietnamese Money (in fall 1968 100 piasters was 1 US Dollar)
- POL - Petroleum, Oil and Lubricants
- Poncho Liner - lightweight, camouflage blanket for use at night in Central Highlands. Very useful
- Pop Smoke - to ignite a smoke grenade for identification and wind direction for Hueys
- PRC-25 - AN/PRC-25 man portable FM radio set
- PRC-77 - AN/PRC-77 man portable secure FM radio set
- Prick 25 - Slang for the AN/PRC-25 man portable FM radio set
- Punji Stake - sharpened bamboo stick booby trap smeared with excrement to cause infection
- Push - radio frequency (because you PUSHed a button to select one)
Q
- Quad-50 - Four Caliber 50 machine guns (M2HB) mounted on a gun truck for convoy defense
- Quarter Cav-50 - Nickname for 1/4th Cavalry
- Quick Reaction Force - Helicopter-borne infantry with gunships able to react to enemy attacks
- Q-Service - Quarterly service of vehicles
R
- Range Card - We never used them, but said we did
- Red Ball - Radio code for a hard surface road
- Red Haze - Radio code for ammonia sensing people-sniffer in aircraft
- Red Legs - Artillerymen, aka Cannon-Cockers
- Red Splash - another name for mad-minute
- Renago - Tribe of Montagnards, 10,000 strong.
- Rootin Tootin Raspberry - Radio Code for Red Smoke
- REMF - Rear Echelon Mother F_____
- Remington Raider - "Stretch" Grohman term for REMF (above); anyone typewriter-armed; see also "Smith-Corona Commando"
- Rhade - Tribe of Montagnards, 120,000 strong; of Maylay-Polynesian descent, continued to build houses on stilts.
- RF/PF - Ruff Puffs Regional Forces/Popular Forces, usually without weapons (see ARVN)
- Rock N' Roll - an M-16 on automatic
- Rome Plow - A Caterpillar D7E bulldozer used for defoliation missions
- Round Eye - Caucasian, usually a female
- RPD - (Ruchnoi Pulyemet Degtyarova) Soviet made squad machinegun, 7.62mm
- RPG2 - Rocket Propelled Grenade Launcher, Soviet made
- RPG7 - Later model Rocket Propelled Grenade Launcher, Soviet made
- RRF - Rapid Reaction Force
- RTO - Radio Telephone Operator
- Rucksack - also ruck: packs carried by grunts
- Ruff Puffs - Regional Forces/Popular Forces, usually without weapons (see ARVN)
S
- SA - Small Arms
- Sabot - Dutch word for "wooden shoe" cladding around an APDS round
- Sandy - A1-E1 Skyraider providing fire supression on a SAR mission
- SAR - Search And Rescue mission - looking for downed pilots
- Sappers - NVA/VC whose job it was to blow things up; also an engineer
- Search and Avoid - Typical ARVN mission
- Sedang - Tribe of Montagnards, 70,000 strong.
- Short - Very little time left in-country
- Short Round - an artillery round that falls short of the target on the Gun Target Line
- Sinh Loi - Sorry about that!
- Sitrep - Situation Report, made hourly to next higher headquarters
- Six - Radio call-sign of a unit commander (Company, Battalion)
- Six One Higher - Radio code for your boss if you're a Six
- SKS - Soviet/Chicom 7.62mm carbine
- Skypilot - Chaplain
- Sky Soldier - paratrooper of the 173rd Airborne
- Slick - a UH1D with no seats (slick floor) used for carrying troops
- Sling Load - load carried beneath a helicopter on a cable
- Smith-Corona Commando - "Stretch" Grohman term for a REMF (which see); anyone typewriter-armed; see also Remington Raider
- Snake - slang for AH-1 Hueycobra attack helcopter
- SOI - Signal Operating Instructions: codes for radio communications
- Spad - A1-E1 Skyraider providing tactical air support
- SP - Start Point. Beginning of a road march
- Spectre - Radio code for the AC-130 Gunship, which we called Spooky
- Spooky - Radio code for the AC-47 Gunship the REMFs and Saigon reporters called "Puff"
- SP Pak - Sundry Pak
- SRAP - Short Range Ambush Platoon
- Starlight Scope - AN/PVS-2 Image Intensification Device, turned night into day
- Strongpoint - term for any defended position, especially along highways to discourage ambushes.
- Super-quick - 105mm howitzer HE round fuze for immediate detonation
- Swift Boat - 50' boats operated by USN out of Qui Nhon et al; armed with 50 caliber machine guns
T
- TA-312 - Hand-cranked field phone
- TAC-E - Tactical Emergency
- TAOR - Tactical Area Of Responsibility
- Tango Charlie - Radio code for Tank Commander (also Track Commander)
- Tea Party - radio code for an ambush
- Tee Tee - very lttle
- Three Quarter Cav - nickname of 3rd Squardon 4th Cavalry because abbreviation is 3/4 Cav
- Thumper - an M-79 grenade launcher, so called because it made a hollow "thump" when fired
- Tien Bing - Chinese for "Sky Soldier"; appears on my 173rd Airbone Brigade Combat Certificate
- Tien Lien - Vietnamese phrase for "forward" or "charge"
- TOC - Tactical Operations Center: a huge bunker where the old man lives with his staff
- TOE - (also TO&E) Table of Oranganization and Equipment; Army rules for personnel & equipment
- TOT - Time On Target - Artillery fire from different batteries timed to explode at the same time.
- Tracks - the collection of track blocks on a tracked vehicle (REMFs say treads)
- Tropo - short for tropospheric antennas used for long range voice communication
U
- UCMJ - Uniform Code of Military Justice
- UFN - Until Further Notice
- UH-1A - sometimes appeared as HU-1A which led to name "Huey", the symbol of the Vietnam War.
- Uncle Ho - Ho Chi Minh
- USARPAC - United States Army Pacific
- USARV - United States Army Vietnam
- URC-10 - AN/URC-10 Survivial Radio used by LRRPs
- UTM - Universal Transverse Mercator - grid system on topo maps
V
- Viet Cong - Literally, Vietnamese Communist. The Former Viet Minh were co-opted by communist sympathizers
- Viet Minh - Literally, Vietnamese Nationalist: movement started by Ho Chi Minh to get French out of Indochina
- Voting Machine - Nickname for ARVN tanks because they only came out during a coup d'etat
- VTR - Vehicle, Tracked, Recovery (the tow track for tanks), Usually an M-88
W
- Web Gear - canvas belt and shoulder straps used for packing equipment and ammunition on infantry operations
- Whispering Death - Charles' name for a B-52 strike. He couldn't hear or see them
- WHA - Wounded Hostile Action
- WIA - Wounded In Action
- Willie Pete - White Phosphorous round or grenade (evil stuff)
X
- XM-177E2 - CAR-15, short-barrel, collapsable-stock version of M-16 rifle
- XM-203 - 40mm grenade launcher attachment for M-16 rifle
- XO - eXecutive Officer, the second in command of a unit.
Y
- Yankee Station - Tonkin Gulf Area of South China Sea patrolled by US Navy
- Yards - Affectionate GI term for Montagnards
Z
- Zippo Track - An M-113 APC converted to a mechanized flame-thrower M132A2
- Zulu Time - Greenwich Mean Time (now UTC) about twelve hours later than our time zone in 'Nam
End of Glossary
Creation Date: Saturday, April 6, 1996
Last Modified: Tuesday, August 11, 1998
Copyright © Ray Smith, 1996