this glossary attempts to explain the technical detail of a situation, and the types of slang in use during the period |
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click a letter for quick search: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W numeral |
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| AAB [No] | Australian Army Book, as in the field notebook issued to commanders being AAB 64 |
| active service | A force or serviceperson on active service is one engaged in warfare against the enemy - for pension and legal purposes it requires a declaration of active service by a legal authority |
| admin | administration, action of preparing for and maintaining personal and unit preparedness for ops |
| AK47 | NVA/VC semi or fully automatic assault weapon using 7.62mm short ammo |
| ambush | attempt to kill from cover without warning, can be planned or done quickly to meet circumstances |
| ammo or SAA | small arms ammunition, usually bullets but can include grenades and other carried munitions |
| ANPRC-25 | VHF man portable radio used at the sharp end for most variety of communication - called '25 set' |
| ANPRC-77 | improved VHF man portable radio which gradually replaced the 25 Set - called '77 set' |
| ANZAC | Australia New Zealand Army Corps, a designation from Gallipoli 1915 when both countries fought together for the first time, also used to describe a 'common spirit of brotherhood and shared values' |
| AO | area of operations, as in the terrain ground forces patrolled and fought to dominate |
| AP | anti-personnel, as in 'AP mine' |
| APC | armoured personnel carrier, M113 for troops, M125 mortars, M548 cargo, M577 ACV, M579 fitters |
| arc | the area a weapon or soldier was required to cover in an all-round protective posture |
| arty | artillery of any calibre, tracked or towed - common were 105mm, 155mm, 8" howitzers, 40mm 'dusters' |
| ARU | Aust Reinforcement Unit – a training and reinforcement pool held in-country by 1ATF |
| ARVN | Army of the Republic of Viet Nam, South Vietnamese government forces |
| atch | attached to another unit in a support role or as a temporary deployment |
| Aussie | Australian, also shortened to 'Aust' in documents |
| awakey | the final day when only one sleep [wake up] remained before a return to 'the world' |
| AWOL | absent without leave, unauthorised absence from duty or place |
| back pack | (or field pack) a grunts load carrying back pack containing field equipment and spare stores, which was dumped whenever a contact occurred; typical weight around 65Lb/30Kg. See belt order |
| baggy | private soldier [from ill-fitting baggy uniform] |
| BC | abbreviation found in official reports to signify 'body count', VC KIA and body found on the scene |
| belt order | a grunts personal load carrying belt and suspenders containing all his fighting equipment not otherwise carried in the individual back pack, which remained on or close to the individual at all times. Typical weight around 40Lb/18Kg. See back pack |
| bergen | a large Scandinavian designed back pack favoured by SAS and radio operators |
| bn | battalion, usually four rifle and two other coy with bn HQ; ANZAC bn had a fifth rifle coy |
| bodycount | borrowed from US forces, term used to describe the success or ferocity of engagements, as in 'there was a high bodycount of enemy KIA' |
| booby trap | improvised trap designed to main or severely injure an individual |
| boonies | borrowed from US forces, see bush |
| boss | the informal bush title for an officer, also used to address an officer instead of 'sir' |
| boundary | edge of AO [to be close to or to cross a boundary required permission, called a 'mousetrap'] |
| brass | to fire lots of ammo, as in 'we brassed up the track with the M60', also empty ammo cases |
| brew | hot drink, as in 'want a brew..?' coffee, milk and two sugar was called 'NATO standard' |
| BT | abbreviation found in official reports to mean 'blood trail left by wounded VC' |
| burst | controlled firing of five or more rounds of automatic fire, more depending on urgency |
| bush | jungle, area outside the base perimeter where fighting took place |
| C&C | command and control, as in title applied to helicopter [usually with extra radios fitted] with sunray onboard flying above AO directing ground operations, or a person doing 'C&C' for a task |
| callsign | radio talk to identify or summon particular organisations or people for a radio conversation |
| cans | usually beer, see goffer, 'in the can' meant arrested and locked up |
| CASEVAC | casualty evacuation, an admin reaction to having wounded soldiers [see DUSTOFF and MEDEVAC] |
| CET | combat engineer team, assigned to support inf or APC elements likely to require immediate engineer assistance |
| chalk | group of personnel grouped together for travel, like 'your chalk travels on that slick', also 'stick' |
| charlie | slang for VC [phonetically 'victor charlie'] |
| charwallah | name for small food stall within the 1RNZIR lines, run by local people offering credit to soldiers |
| chopper | any model of helicopter [but usually US model Iroquois UH-1D troop lift and utility helicopter] flown by allied forces Army Aviation or air force units |
| Chicom | Chinese communist - describes equipment made in Communist China |
| Chieu Hoy | 'Open Arms', programme that allowed VC to defect, and receive money for surrendered weapons |
| civvies | civilians, as in people who had no idea what we were doing, also clothes when out of uniform |
| clacker | electrical firing device used to detonate the Claymore AP mine, from sound made on use |
| Claymore | US model directional anti-personnel mine with 700 ball-bearings, electrically fired singly or in a bank |
| click | kilometre, as in 'travel six clicks south..' |
| CO | Bn commanding officer, usually a LtCol |
| combat power | mix of weapons, intelligence, communications and personnel capabilities concentrated against enemy forces |
| comms | communications, verbal or electronic, as in 'get comms with..[callsign]' |
| contact | sudden engagement with the enemy, or the cry/radio message used to warn that the enemy is engaged, as in 'Contact Front' or 'Contact Fire Mission Two Mortars' |
| coord | coordination, bringing together different agencies to achieve a common task: arty support for inf attack at a certain time with FAC available to direct air strikes, or engr support to clear mines |
| coy | company, organisation of soldiers for administrative and tactical reasons, such as a rifle company |
| CP | command post |
| CQMS | Company Quartermaster Sergeant, a senior NCO responsible for stores and resupply |
| CSM | Company Sergeant Major, senior OR in company, OC's 'right hand man' and responsible for ammunition |
| C130 | called 'Hercules', US model tactical troop and cargo aircraft used extensively by USAF and RNZAF |
| C4 | type of plastic explosive, commonly found inside the Claymore AP mine |
| dacrons | material and name for Kiwi dress uniform in the tropics, worn with beret and medal bar. An Australian lanyard designating the ANZAC battalion the soldier was posted to was also worn |
| D&E Pl | HQ 1ATF Defence and Employment platoon, which when HQ 1ATF was not deployed undertook operational tasks |
| 'danger close' | indirect fire deliberately adjusted to within 250 metres or closer of troops because significant numbers of enemy are within that range and posing a real danger of overwhelming the troops |
| DF | defensive fire, usually refers to arty fire called to land close to the allied perimeter, can be fired and recorded in anticipation of a VC attack, a 'silent' DF was not fired but still recorded on a register |
| digger | slang for Australian soldier, although the term might have first started in New Zealand 50 years earlier |
| double-tap | snap shooting technique - two rounds are quickly fired at the centre of a target before the firer changes position |
| DOW | died of wounds some time after being wounded |
| drill | see IA |
| DUSTOFF | urgent removal of battle casualties from a contact, usually by chopper (rotor blades stirred up the dust) |
| duty officer log | read this explanation |
| engage | fire at or close with... |
| engr E | engineer, support troops used for construction, demolition or battlefield mine/booby trap clearance |
| FAC | Forward Air Controller, usually airborne, who could call for and direct air strikes |
| FFI | 'free from infections', a routine medical inspection to check for skin and other medical problems |
| field dressing | large cotton pad with strapping carried by every grunt and used for emergency first aid to stop bleeding, usually taped to designated equipment [like the individuals rifle butt] for easy location. |
| firebase | semi-permanent defended location in an AO from which a unit supports ops with arty and logistics |
| firetrail | bulldozer clearing of bush to provide better observation of likely VC routes |
| FOO | arty forward observation officer provided from the Bn close support artillery battery, usually travelled with Coy HQ to assist the coy commander coord fire support |
| FOO(A) | arty forward observation officer assistant, a NCO or gnr, in W3 Coy usually travelled with 3Pl as fire support coordinator in place of MFC |
| free fire zone | area free of civilian population, ROE allowed any target to be considered enemy and could be immediately engaged |
| Freedom Bird | a name US servicemen called their final flight out of Vietnam [see World] |
| FSCC | Fire Support Coordination Centre, an arty command post to manage fire from all deployed guns |
| FSPB | Fire Support Patrol Base 'Name' [often an important woman in the sunrays life] - see firebase |
| goffer | can of soft drink [coke etc] |
| gollock | issue machete, rarely used except in FSPB as the noise attracted enemy attention [see secateurs] |
| gooks | see VC |
| GPMG | general purpose machine gun, used at section level for fire support, belt fed [see M60] |
| greens | green coloured uniform designed for field wear to blend into the bush |
| grunt | US slang for infantry soldier, as in 'the only answer
you get from a foot soldier is a grunt...' Australian slang for infantry was 'crunchie', from the sound made when marching on gravel |
| GSW | gun shot wound, as different from shrapnel injury or traumatic amputation |
| guns | see arty |
| GVN | Government of (South) Vietnam |
| happy pills | daily anti-malarial tablets |
| harbour | bush location where field troops rest and protect themselves |
| H&I | harassment and interdiction, unobserved artillery, mortar or air bombardment on locations [suspected camps, track systems] which might be used by enemy forces, usually fired at night |
| HE | high explosive, the destructive force in artillery shells, mortar bombs, aerial bombs |
| Hercules | see C130 |
| hexie | hexamine [solid kerosene] cooking tablet, of UK origin used in training in Malaysia |
| hoochie | borrowed from US slang, hooch meaning house, tent or other living space |
| HQ | headquarters, at any level describes the commanders staff structure |
| IA | immediate action, the instinctive drill in a given circumstance, e.g. ambush or contact |
| inf | infantry |
| instls | installations - broad description for any support infrastructure by either side |
| INTREP | intelligence report on enemy locations, movement and intentions |
| J [jay] | jungle [see bush] |
| jungle penetrator | heavy bulb device with fold away seats, lowered from a helicopter by winch to extract people where a landing is not feasible, such as no available LP due to trees |
| KFS | knife fork spoon, used with mess tins. The preferred field KFS were plastic to reduce noise in the bush |
| KIA | killed in action during a contact [see WIA] |
| Kit Carson | a VC defector that then served with allied forces as a scout or interpreter [see Chieu Hoi] |
| Kiwi |
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| Km | kilometres, 1000 metres distance on a map or across country |
| lay-on | action where an arty bty anticipates a fire mission and lays the guns onto a likely target reference, then waits the order to fire - allows a quick response to a contact fire request |
| LFT | light fire team, UH-1D helicopter armed with forward firing mini-guns and 2.75" Zuni rocket pods, plus twin M60 in each door, RAAF callsign 'bushranger', two or more were called a HFT [heavy fire team] |
| lilo | Australian model air mattress with inner air tubes that seemed always to deflate in the middle of rest |
| LO | liaison officer, an officer from one formation co-located with another formation to assist both formation commanders with coordination and reporting. |
| LOB | Left Out of Battle - personnel routinely rested from ops [see poque] |
| loc | abbreviation for located or location [to be read in context of paragraph or report] |
| LOCSTAT | indication of location of a force or activity, typically a coded grid reference |
| LOH | light observation helicopter, in 1ATF the Bell 47 Sioux nicknamed 'possum' |
| long drop | a deep trench over which toilet seats are positioned, used in static positions to control faeces |
| LP | landing point, single helicopter pad or area in bush capable of allowing one chopper to land |
| LtCol | Lieutenant Colonel, rank of a battalion commander |
| LZ | landing zone, several LP in size and capable of simultaneous multiple chopper landings and movements |
| MAINTDEM | routine supply to field troops of essential items like food and water, clothing, batteries [see OPDEM] |
| MEDEVAC | medical evacuation [indicates a medical emergency rather than a battle injury], see DUSTOFF |
| medic | medical orderly or trained grunt who would provide medical support and firdt aid when required |
| mess | dining hall, also the barbeque area after the coy returned from ops and relaxed by the beer trailer |
| mess tins | metal dishes used to cook and eat meals, or as a container for shaving water, etc |
| MFC | infantry mortar fire controller [a misnomer as once outside mortar range the MFC directed arty and other fires] |
| MG | machine gun, any model |
| MID | mentioned in dispatches [recognition of outstanding duty] |
| mini-gun | 'Gatling' type machine gun, 6 or more rotating barrels and a very high volume of fire |
| mortar | infantry support weapon which fires bombs in a high trajectory that then plummet onto a target |
| mossie | mosquito, as in 'mossie net' |
| MPC | military payment certificates, having a face value of US currencies but only valid for use by service personnel at Allied facilities, an attempt to control the local black market |
| mug | field cup used to heat brews and rats |
| M16 | US designed AP jumping mine [read this article] |
| M16-A1 | US model 5.56mm [.203in] lightweight personal rifle [see SLR] |
| M18-A1 | designation for Claymore AP mine |
| M60 | US model GPMG, heavy but reliable |
| M72 | US model shoulder fired 72mm light shaped charge rocket used to attack bunkers |
| M79 | US model 40mm grenade launcher |
| Nasho | Australian national serviceman, a two-year conscript [Kiwi troops were all volunteers] |
| NCO | non-commissioned officer, section commander, platoon sergeant type ranks |
| NDP | night defensive position, a small temporary harbour for supporting arms like tanks |
| NE | north-east, a direction on a map |
| NOK | next of kin - the person registered to receive bad news about a soldier |
| NOTICAS | casualty notification, an abbreviated radio message using a standard format, also 'NOTICAS FATAL' |
| Nui xx | Nui means high ground as in Nui Dat, or Nui May Tau [Dat meaning dirt or earth] |
| NVA | North Vietnamese Army, usually highly skilled and motivated, a capable and well armed enemy [see VC] |
| NW | north-west, a direction on a map |
| NZ | New Zealand or New Zealander, see Kiwi |
| OC | Officer Commanding, the coy commander, sunray |
| O Gp | orders group, a meeting of personnel to be tasked for future ops |
| OHP | overhead protection - hard cover built as a protective roof over a fighting pit or bunker |
| OPCON | operational control, a status of command where an element works with a different unit who direct its activities, while remaining part of their parent unit |
| OPDEM | urgent supply to field troops of war fighting materials [ammo and weapons], usually to replenish munitions before continuing the fight [see MAINTDEM] |
| op(s) | operation, usually followed by a name, also see AO |
| OR | other ranks, term used to describe soldiers who are not commissioned officers |
| pad | see LP |
| patrol | an activity, or a selection of soldiers from three to company size on task in the bush |
| pax | radio jargon for passenger, as in 'put eight pax on the slick' |
| PC | slang for APC, as in 'mount that PC' |
| PE | plastic explosive, such as C4 |
| pepper-pot | advance to contact in an unpredictable manner using small groups of grunts who cover each others movement with observation and aimed fire, in appearance like shaking out pepper from a pot |
| pit | hole dug or scraped in the ground as protection from incoming rounds and explosives |
| pl comd | platoon commander, usually an officer of Lieutenant rank but others could be 'acting' for the officer if he were absent, e.g. platoon sergeant stepping up as acting pl comd |
| pl sgt | platoon sergeant, usually rank of sergeant, responsible for pl admin and deputising for pl comd |
| pop smoke | to throw a coloured smoke grenade on command to assist helicopters identify the correct LP |
| poque | derisory slang for a permanent LOB |
| Pte | Private, first grade of trained soldier, below NCO.
Equivalent in other corps: Gnr (gunner - artillery), Sig (signaller - Corps of Signals) Spr (sapper - engineers) Tpr (trooper
- armoured corps) Distinction between rank and appointment is whether grade starts with Capital [rank] or no capital [appointment] e.g. Sig Jones acted as gnr... |
| ptl | see patrol, abbreviation is commonly used for small groups temporarily absent from a larger element |
| PUBLINTICAS | message advice with details of a significant event of interest to general media, such as NOTICAS |
| punji | sharpened stick at bottom of camouflaged hole, see booby trap |
| PUO | pyrexia of unknown origin - an undiagnosed body affliction affecting individual performance accompanied by high temperature etc, sometimes in appearance like heat stroke. |
| PW | prisoner of war, combatant captured by the other side |
| psy ops | psychological operations, 'winning hearts and minds', 1ATF Psy Ops unit task |
| PZ | see LZ, but the 'P' distinguishes a site where troops are 'picked up' from |
| Q store | Quartermaster store - location of reserve stores held in the base area |
| qty | abbreviation for quantity, as in 'loc qty of SAA' |
| RAAF | Royal Australian Air Force, the helicopters and caribou transports supporting 1ATF |
| rainfall | rainfall in the wet season [May - November] was measured either in inches or points. A 'point' is rainfall measured by the horizontal lines on the cylinder every 0.2 mm (0.007"), less than 0.1 mm rainfall (0.2 mm in the USA) is generally referred to as a trace. |
| rank | designation of experience and authority - see NCO, Pte, CQMS, CSM, OC |
| RAP | Regimental Aid Post, 1st level medical facility in an infantry bn or similar sized unit |
| RAR | Royal Australian Regiment, Australian infantry structure of nine bn, three of which were during their tour designated ANZAC and had Kiwis attached |
| rats | rations [see this link for more details] |
| RC-292 | tubular potentially 30-foot radio mast used in static locations to increase radio coverage |
| recce | short for reconnaissance, US abbreviation was 'recon' |
| REMF | said as written, American term for soldiers who rarely lived dangerously - rear area M F don't ask! [see poque] |
| resup | resupply, see MAINTDEM |
| RF/PF | Regional Force / Popular Force militia, a part of ARVN |
| RIF | 'reconnaissance in force', a patrol searching through an area of bush and staying to fight or ambush |
| RNZAF | Royal New Zealand Air Force, flew resupply from Singapore and attached pilots to 9 Sqn RAAF and USAF |
| RTNZ | 'return to New Zealand' from overseas posting |
| ROD | remained on duty after being WIA, injuries did not require immediate evacuation |
| ROE | Rules of Engagement - restrictions imposed on allied soldiers as to where and when they could shoot |
| rounds | usually refers to ammo, as in 'I fired 20 rounds' |
| RPG | Soviet or Chinese model shoulder fired rocket propelled grenade, used as local firepower by VC |
| R in C | rest in country, a 48-hour recreational break at Peter Badcoe Club Vung Tau, about five times during TOD |
| R&C | rest and convalescence, one short period of leave, for NZ'ers usually 5-day's outside SVN, probably in Singapore |
| R&R | rest and recreation sponsored by the US Forces, one 5-day period outside SVN at different destinations |
| RV | prearranged rendezvous, an agreed map location where two or more patrols meet |
| SA or SAA | abbreviation for small arms [rifle, pistol, machine gun] or small arms ammo [5.56mm, 9mm, 7.62mm] |
| SAS | Special Air Service, either Aussie or Kiwi, lived on SAS Hill the highest point within Nui Dat |
| SATS | scheduled air transport service - weekly RNZAF B-170 logistics flight from Changi to Nui Dat |
| scout | first and second soldier in a patrol, upon which others relied for their safety and early warning of danger |
| SE | south-east, a direction on a map |
| secateurs | hand held pruning shears used to quietly remove bush during movement [see gollock] |
| sentry | all troops at rest had sentries to ensure their safety and to give early warning of danger, at night usually two people together for support and with staggered start times so one person was always fresh |
| short | period of time left in TOD, as in 'I'm getting short, only 25 and awakey' |
| sig | small 's' means appointment as radio operator [but also a rank, see Pte] |
| SITREP | situation report, usually a coded radio message using a standard format |
| SLR | British model L1A1 7.62mm [.308in] semi-automatic self-loading personal rifle [see M16-A1] |
| slick | single helicopter movement, or slang for an individual troop carrying helicopter |
| SNCO | senior NCO [see NCO] |
| snoopy | US aircraft tasked to scan jungle with a range of human detecting sensors |
| SOP | Standard Operating Procedure, the agreed way for everyone to do certain actions or reports |
| splinter team | small group of field engr attached to rifle units for mine, booby trap or obstacle clearing tasks |
| sqn | squadron, military subunit of company equivalent except in Air Force |
| stag | rostered sentry duty, as in 'your stag starts at 2AM' [sentry rosters had staggered change times] |
| stand to | period at dusk or dawn when activity ceases and arcs are observed, changing from day to night routine or vice versa |
| Stokes litter | rigid stretcher with straps to immobilise a casualty before winching aboard a dustoff helicopter |
| sunray | radio term for the boss of a group of soldiers |
| SVN | South Vietnam |
| SW | south-west, a direction on a map |
| sweep | tactical move through an area to check for bodies, wounded, equipment and sign |
| Swingfog | thermal fogging machine dispensing chemicals as fine aerosol droplets in an extensive dense fog |
| Tail-end Charlie | last person in a patrol, responsible for covering the patrols tracks and observing back over their route to mitigate surprise contact with any following enemy |
| Tan Tay Lan | Vietnamese for 'New Zealander' |
| TAOR | tactical area of responsibility, the area around Nui Dat and other firebases scoured by TAOR patrols |
| TCV | troop carrying vehicle, a International Harvester truck with open tray and seating facing outwards |
| the Dat | Nui Dat, base of 1ATF combat units, as in 'heading back to the Dat' |
| TOD | tour of duty, period of time for a task or posting. SVN TOD were 1 year [typically 364 and a 'wakey'] |
| TPM | teleprinter message, the military telegram system common until the 1990's |
| tracks | slang for APC; as in 'moving in the tracks down the coast...' |
| triangle | easily understood shape of a harbour position, known as 'triangular harbour' but also adapted as a drill for ambushes and halts, in SVN suited Claymore deployment and internal control |
| troopie | slang for an ANZAC soldier |
| Uc Dai Loy | Vietnamese for 'Australian' |
| UH-1D | model of American chopper operated in Phuoc Tuy province by 9 Sqn RAAF, called 'Iroquois' |
| VC | Viet Cong, the guerrilla army of the communist National Liberation Front, local provincial soldiers often not well armed and frequently lacking in logistical support |
| Victor | V Coy RNZIR, with numeral to designate which V Coy, as in V5 coy for fifth V Coy |
| Vungers | slang for Vung Tau, as in 'next trip to Vungers I'm going to...' |
| wakey | number of days left in SVN, as in '187 days and a wakey' [wake up and go home] |
| webbing | see belt order |
| Whiskey | also Whisky, W Coy RNZIR, with numeral to designate which W Coy, as in W3 coy for third W Coy |
| WIA | wounded in action and later restored to something like good health [see GSW] |
| World | "the World was anywhere but Vietnam and a Freedom Bird was any aircraft which took you to the World" |
| 1ALSG | 1st Australian Logistic Support Group, the 1ATF 'logistic tail' based at Vung Tau |
| 1ATF | 1st Australian Task Force, a brigade sized formation based at Nui Dat |
| 161 | 161 Battery RNZA [Royal New Zealand Artillery] |
| 2IC | second in command, sunray minor |
nickname used both internationally and within New Zealand to describe people from New
Zealand [NZ'er].. The name derives from the flightless
bird unique to New Zealand, the national bird.