AAA - Anti-Aircraft Artillery Acid - LSD, hallucinogenic drug Agent Orange - A chemical defoliant Air Cav (Airmoble) - Air Cavalry, helicopterborne infantry assault teams Angel - A helicopter that hovers near a carrier to pick up a pilot who
crashed Arc-Lite - Code name for B-52 bombing missions along the Cambodian
border Arty - Artillery ARVN - Army of the Republic of Vietnam Bad - Good Beaten Zone - Where most bullets hit when a machine gun is fired in the
bush The Bell Telephone Hour - The “interrogation” or torture of VC suspects using
electro shocks generated by a field telephone. Bends and Motherfuckers - Squat thrusts Big Boys - Artillery Bird - Any aircraft Blood - A black, from brother blood Blooper - An M79 grenade launcher, also known as a thumper Bode - A Cambodian Bogart - To hang onto a joint to long Bolter - A plane that misses the arrest wire when landing on an aircraft
carrier Boonies - The boondocks Boot - A raw soldier-that is, straight from boot camp Bouncing Betty - A trip-wire mine, designed to explode at groin height Brown-Water Navy - US Navy units operating in the muddy water of the
Mekong Delta Bush - Anywhere out of base where contact might be made with the enemy Busting Caps - Firing a weapon Cambodian Red - local marijuana Cammies - Camouflage fatigues Capping - Shooting Charlie - The Viet Cong, from military voice designation for VC Cherry - A virgin, someone young and inexperienced Chinook - A large transport helicopter, also known as a “Shithook” Chu Hoi - Vietnamese for “I Surrender” Chopper - A helicopter CIA - Central Intelligence Agency CINCPAC - Commander in Chief, Pacific Claymore - An anti-personnel mine shaped in a curved rectangle filled with
heavy explosive and ball bearings (grape shot). Each ball is approximately 1/4-inch
in diameter. It can be set off by trip wire or by remote control on command. The
curved shape enables the user to direct the blast (and thousands of shots) in a
specific direction or killing zone. It is ideal for ambush or perimeter defense. CO - Commanding officer Cobra - The AH-1G helicopter gunship Concertina - A tangle of barbed wire Condolance Award - Compensation paid to the family of a dead ARVN
soldier Contact - Firing on, or being fired upon by the enemy Country Team - US embassy personnel Corpsman - Medic CP - Command Post C-Ration, C-Rat - Canned food carried on operations Dawk - Neither a hawk nor a dove; someone who disapproved of the war but
would not demonstrate against it Delta-Delta, DD - Doughnut dollies or nurses Duece-and-a-half - 2+-ton truck, also a 6x6 Deros - Date eligible for return from overseas Diddy Bopping - Walking carelessly Dink - Derogatory term for Vietnamese District Mobile Company - The basic VC fighting unit DMZ - Demilitarized Zone Doc - Marine nickname for corpsman Doughnut Dollies - Nurses Doo-Mommies - Anglicization of Vietnamese “Duma” meaning “Fuck Your
Mother” Doper - A pot smoker Double Veteran - Someone who had sex with a woman then killed her Dove - Someone who was against the war Downers - Depressant drugs, especially barbiturates, taken for pleasure Driver - An aircraft pilot DRV - Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam) Dust-Off - Medical evacuation by helicopter ECM - Electronic countermeasure Em - Vietnamese for brother or friend FAC - Forward Air Command Fatigues - Green combat uniform FB - Firebase Finger Charge - A booby-trapping device; named for its size Firebase - A temporary artillery base to support ground operations Fire Brigade - An extremely mobile unit rushed to the scene of an enemy
attack Firefight - An exchange of small arms fire FNG - Fucking New Guy Fragging - The murder of an incompetent officer with a fragmentation
grenade Free Fire Zone - An area supposedly cleared of civilians where artillery could
fire without prior clearance FSB - Fire Support Base Fugazi - Mad, screwed up Get Some - Kill the enemy Gook - Derogatory term for Vietnamese Greased - Killed Greenbacking - Employing mercenaries Ground Pounder - A desk jockey, administrator Grunt - Infntryman; also to shit Gunny - Marine gunnery sergeant Gung-Ho - Uncritically patriotic, zealous, devoted or belligerent, from the hinese
“ken ho” meaning awe-inspiring or literally “more fiery” Gunship - A combat helicopter armed with various weapons Ham and Motherfuckers - C-Ration delicacy of ham and lima beans Hard Hat - Full-time VC soldier as opposed to a reservist or guerrilla; stateside -
a construction worker Hash - Hashish Haul Ass - To leave quickly Hawk - Someone who supported the war Head - Heavily into something, e.g. pothead Hit - A puff on a merijuana cigarette Hog - A model B Huey with 48 2.75-inch rockets and 4 M60 machine guns Home Plate - The airfield or carrier where an airfield is based Honcho - the boss Hootch - Military accommodation or peasant shack or hut Hootchgirl - A yound Vietnamese maid Hot - An area underfire Huey - The UH-1 helicopter Hump - To carry pack, equipment, armaments, etc. Incoming - Incoming fire In-Country - To be in Vietnam I&I - Intercourse and Intoxication, whimsical transliteration of R&R Jack/Jank/Jink - To make evasive maneuvers in an aircraft JCS - Joint Chiefs of Staff Jesus Nut - The mythical nut that holds the rotors on a helicopter Jock, Jockey - A man, as in deck jock, chopper jock Joint - A marijuana cigarette Jolly Green Giant - A USAF rescue helicopter K-Bar - Military combat knife KIA - Killed In Action Kill Zone - Area around an explosive device in which 95 percent fatalities are
predicted Kit Carson Scout - A VC defector working for the Allies Khmer Rouge - Cambodian Communists Klick - Kilometer Lao Green - Local Marijuana Leatherneck - A Marine Lifer - A career soldier LLDB - Lousy Little Dink Bastard Loach - A light observation and reconnaissance patrol Lurps - Members of a long-range reconnaissance patrol LZ - Landing Zone. A cleared area where a helicopter can land. Smaller then a
landing Sight, which is large enough for several helicopters to land. M-60 Machine Gun - The M-60 Machine Gun is an air-cooled, belt fed,
gas-operated automatic weapon. It fires the 7.62mm (.30-caliber) ball, tracer, armor
piercing, and armor piercing incendiary cartridges (standard service ammunition for
field use consists of ball and tracer cartridges in a 4 to 1 ratio). It is able to provide a
heavy, controled volume of accurate, long-range fire that is beyond the capabilities
of standard individual small arms. The weapon fires from the open-bolt position and
is fed by a disintergrating belt of metal links. The gas from firing one round provides
the energy for firing the next; thus, the gun functions automatically, as long as it is
supplied with ammunition and the trigger is held at the rear. The weapon is 43.5
inches long and weighs 23.2 pounds. It has a maximum range of 3,725 meters and a
maximum effective range of 1,110 meters. It effectively extends grazing fire (knee
high) up to 700 meters. The machine gun has a 100-round-per-minute rapid rate of
fire (10-12 round bursts) and a ctclic rate of fire from 550 to 600 rounds per minute.
MACV - MilitaryAssistance Command, Vietnam Mamma-san - An older Vietnamese woman MIA - Missing in Action MiG - Soviet-built Mikoyan-Gurevich fighter-bomber Mike-Mike - A millimeter Mike Forces - Montagnards trained by US Special Forces Montagnards - Hill people Mother, Motherfucker - General purpose expletive MP - Military Police Mustang - An officer who has come up through the ranks Nam - Vietnam Nape - Napalm Nardo - Someone with poor communication skills NCO - NonCommissioned Officer Number One - The Best Number Ten - The Worst Nung - A mercenary, usually Chinese anti-Communist or parole prisoner
working for a Mike Force NVA - North Vietnamese Army Oil Spot - A pacified area One Thou, One Thousand - Even worse then number ten Payback - Revenge Peacenik - An anti-war demonstrator Pig - The M60 machine gun Papa-san - An older Vietnamese man Pathet Lao - Laotian communists Pouge - Derogatory term for those in rear echelon support Pogey - Slang for a Marine, such as an administrative clerk or typist, who works
in an office. Marines would convince pogeys to do special administrative chores by
offering them candy and soda pop, which is appropriately called “pogey bait”. Popular Forces - Local militia forces organized within the village Pot - Marijuana or hashish POW - Prisoner Of War Puff the Magic Dragon - An AC-47 gunship - a spooky Purple Haze - A type of LSD celebrated in Jimi Hendrix’s song of the same
name Rallier - A VC defector who has rallied or returned to the flag of the South
Vietnamese government. Rack - Bed Ranch Hands - The special air force unit that flew defoliation missions R&R - Rest and Recreation Re-up - Re-enlist Re-Education Camps - Political prisons Regional Forces - Semiprofessional local troops REMF - Rear Echelon Motherfuckers, non-combat troops dealing with supply
and administration Rock and Roll - Automatic fire RVN - Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam) RVNAF - Republic of Vietnam Armed Forces SAC - Strategic Air Command Saddle - Final air attack position SAM - Surface-to-Air-Missile Sao - A repulsive, disreputable, dishonest or stupid person Sapper - A VC soldier who infiltrated a camp for sabotage SEAL - Sea-Air-Land Short-Timers Stick - A notch stick a grunt would use to count down his last few
days in Nam Shotgunning - Blowing marijuana smoke down a gun barrel to enhance the
effect Six-By - a large flat-bed or dropstick truck, from its wheel layout Short - Running out of time, not long in the Army Short-Timer - Someone with less then 30 days left in Vietnam Slide - Derogatory term for Vietnamese Slick - A troop-carrying Huey Slope - Derodatory term for Vietnamese SNAFU - Situation Normal (All Fucked Up) SOG - Studies and Observations Group (Special Operations Group) Spad - AnA-1 Skyraider Spider Trap - A VC foxhole Spooky - An AC-47 gunship Stack Trooper - An exemplary soldier Strae - Strictly adhere to regulations Stand Downs - A line units return to base for a short rest period Stash - One’s supply of drugs Steel Pot - Helmet TACAIR - Tactical Air Command Tanglefoot - Single-strand barbed wire strung at ankle height Tango-boat - US landing boat modified for use in the Mekong Delta Tet - Vietnamese New Year Thud - A plane crash, especially being shot down; an F-105 Thunderchief
fighter, so called because of theirappalling record of losses Tiger Suit - Camouflage fatigues The Triangle - The Iron Triangle, a VC stronghold near Saigon TOC - Tactical Operations Center Toke - A puff on a joint Tunnel Rats - US troops who flushed the Viet Cong out of their underground
hideouts Two Shops - Intelligence section UN - United Nations Uncle Ho - Ho Chi Minh VC - Viet Cong; by anology, anything stupid, inept or irresponsible Vet - A former member of the armed forces Victor Charlie - Military designation for VC, the Viet Cong Viet Minh - A resistance movement formed by Ho Chi Minh to fight the French,
forerunners of the Viet Cong Vietnik - A peace protester VNAF - (South) Vietnamese Air Force VNN - (South) Vietnamese Navy Waste - To kill Wax - To beat up, injure severly, kill or beat decisively in a sport contest The White Lie Ward - The Da Nang hospital ward for hopeless cases White Mice - South Vietnamese police, for their white helmets and gloves Willie Fudd - WF-2 flying radar center Willie Pete - White Phosphorous or grenades Winchester - Radio communication meaning “I am out of ammunition” The World - Anywhere but Vietnam Yard - Montagnard Zapped -Killed Zoo - The Jungle Zonked - Drugged up
