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Glossary of Military Terms & Slang from the Vietnam War Q-T


This text, made available by the Sixties Project, is copyright (c) 1996 by Viet Nam Generation, Inc., or the author, all rights reserved. This text may be used, printed, and archived in accordance with the Fair Use provisions of U.S. Copyright law. This text may not be archived, printed, or redistributed in any form for a fee, without the consent of the copyright holder. This notice must accompany any redistribution of the text. The Sixties Project, sponsored by Viet Nam Generation Inc. and the Institute of Advanced Technology in the Humanities at the University of Virginia at Charlottesville, is a collective of humanities scholars working together on the Internet to use electronic resources to provide routes of collaboration and make available primary and secondary sources for researchers, students, teachers, writers and librarians interested in the 1960s.


Go to: Numbers, 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


Q

QUAD-50s
a four-barrelled assembly of .50 caliber machine guns
Quantico
Marine training base in Virginia
QUEBEC
military phonetic for the letter 'Q'


R

RA
Regular Army, prefix to serial number of enlistees
rabbits
white American soldiers, according to black vernacular
rack
bed or cot
rallier
defector from the Viet Cong
R&R
rest and recreation. A three to seven-day vacation from the war for a soldier.
Rangers
elite commandos and infantry specially trained for reconnaissance and combat missions
RBF
reconnaissance by fire
react
for one unit to come to the aid of another under enemy fire
recon
reconnaissance. Going out into the jungle to observe for the purpose of identifying enemy activity.
Recondo School
a training school in-country for LRRPs. The largest was at Na Trang, where the training action was taken against the 17th NVA Division.
red alert
the most urgent form of warning. Signals an imminent enemy attack.
redball
an enemy high speed trail or road
red bird
a Cobra helicopter
Red Legs
slang for Artillery. In the Civil War, Union Artillery men had red stripes on their pants.
reeducation camps
political prisons and labor camps of varying degrees of severity and size that comprised the Soviet-style gulag system throughout Communist Vietnam
regiment
a military unit usually consisting of a number of battalions
Regional Forces
militia units organized within each district in South Vietnam to engage in offensive operations against local Viet Cong forces. RF units were better paid and equipped than PF units and could be assigned duties anywhere within the home district.
REMF
rear-echelon motherfucker
repo depo
replacement detachment
RF/PF
Regional and Popular Forces. The South Vietnamese National Guard-type units. Regional Forces were company-size and protected district areas. Popular Forces were platoon-size and guarded their home villages.
rice paddy racers
rubber shower shoes used by GIs
RIF
reconnaissance in force. A heavy reconnaissance patrol. Later, RIF came to mean reduction in force; an administrative mechanism for retiring career soldiers prior to the end of their twenty year term.
ringknocker
graduate of a military academy. Refers to the rink worn by graduates.
rock'n'roll
firing a weapon on full automatic
ROK
soldier from the Republic of Korea
ROMEO
military phonetic for the letter 'R'
Rome plow
mammoth bulldozer used to flatten dense jungle
RON
remain-overnight operation
rotate
to return to the U.S. at the end of a year's tour in Vietnam
ROTC
Reserve Officer's Training Corps. Program offered in many high schools and colleges, geared to prepare students to become military officers.
RPD
a 7.62 mm Communist machine gun with a 100-round, belt operated drum that fires the same round as the AK-47
RPG
a rocket-propelled grenade. A Russian-made portable antitank grenade launcher.
RTO
radio telephone operator. The man who carried his unit's radio on his back in the field.
ruck/rucksack
backpack issued to infantry in Vietnam
Ruff Puff
derogatory term used by Americans for RF/PF
Rules of Engagement
the specific regulations for the conduct of air and surface battles by U.S. and allied forces during the Vietnam war
rumor control
the most accurate source of information prior to the actual occurrence of an event


S

S-1
Personnel
S-2
Intelligence
S-3
Operations
S-4
Supply
S-5
Civil Affairs
saddle up
put on one's pack and get ready to march
salvo
firing a battery in unison
sampan
a Vietnamese peasant's boat
SAF
small arms fire
S&S
Supply & Service; designation of a support unit
sapper
a Viet Cong or NVA commando, usually armed with explosives
satchel charges
pack used by the enemy containing explosives that is dropped or thrown and is generally more powerful than a grenade
SeaBees
Navy construction engineers
SEAL
highly trained Navy special warfare team members
search and destroy
an operation in which Americans searched an area and destroyed anything which the enemy might find useful
SEATO
Southeast Asia Treaty Organization
seminar camp
the Laotian Communist version of the reeducation camp for political prisoners
Sereika (Khmer Serei)
the non-Communist Cambodian resistance force
Sgt. Rock
a combat-scarred World War II comic book character
SERTS
Screaming Eagle Replacement Training School
set
a party
SF
Special Forces
shake'n'bake
sergeant who attended NCO school and earned rank after only a very short time in uniform
shamming
goofing off or getting by with as little effort as possible
shaped charge
an explosive charge, the energy of which is focused in one direction
shit burning
the sanitization of latrines by kerosene incineration of excrement
short
a term used by everyone in Vietnam to tell all who would listen that his tour was almost over
short-timer
soldier nearing the end of his tour in Vietnam
short-timer's stick
when a soldier had approximately two months remaining on his tour in Vietnam, he might take a long stick and notch it for each of his remaining days in-country. As each day passed he would cut the stick off another notch until on his rotation day he was left with only a small stub.
shrapnel
pieces of metal sent flying by an explosion
SIERRA
military phonetic for the letter 'S'
Silver Star
U.S. military decoration awarded for gallantry in action
sit-rep
situation report
six
any Unit Commander, from the Company Commander on up
six-by
a large flat-bed truck usually with wooden slat sides enclosing the bed and sometimes a canvas top covering it. Used for carrying men or anything else that would fit on it.
skate
a task that required little effort or pain; verb form means to take it easy
SKS
Simonov 7.62 mm semi-automatic carbine
sky
to leave
sky crane
huge double-engine helicopter used for lifting and transporting heavy equipment
sky out
to flee or leave suddenly
slackman
the second man back on a patrol, directly behind the point
slant
derogatory term for a Vietnamese person
slick
a UH-1 helicopter used for transporting troops in tactical air assault operations. The helicopter did not have protruding armaments and was, therefore, "slick".
slope
derogatory term for an Asian person
SMG
submachine gun
smoke grenade
a grenade that released brightly colored smoke. Used for signaling.
Snake
a Cobra helicopter
SOI
Signal Operating Instructions. The booklet that contained all of the call signals and radio frequencies of the units in Vietnam.
solacium payment
standard amount paid by the U.S. government to Vietnamese civilians when U.S. forces were deemed responsible for a wrongful civilian death. For a detailed discussion of a Solacium payment see Jim Lynch's artice, "Solacium Payment."
SOP
standard operating procedure
Sopwith Camels
slang term for a light, fixed-wing reconnaissance aircraft
soul brother
a black soldier
Spec-4
Specialist 4th Class. An Army rank immediately above Private First Class. Most enlisted men who had completed their individual training and had been on duty for a few months were Spec-4s. Probably the most common rank in the Vietnam-era Army.
Spec-5
Specialist 5th Class. Equivalent to a sergeant.
spider hole
camouflaged enemy foxhole
splib
term originated by black marines to identify other black soldiers. Supposedly meant to imply superior qualities.
Spooky
a large propeller-driven aircraft with a Minigun mounted in the door. Capable of firing 6,000 rounds per minute. Also used to refer to gunship helicopters with Miniguns.
SP pack
cellophane packet containing toiletries and cigarettes which was sometimes given along with C-rations to soldiers in the field.
squad
a small military unit consisting of less than ten men
staff sergeant
a E-6, the second lowest noncommissioned officer rank
stand-down
an infantry unit's return from the boonies to the base camp for refitting and training. Later, a unit being withdrawn from Vietnam and redeployed to the U.S.
Starlifter
a C-141, the largest military cargo transport airplane in the Air Force inventory
starlight scope
an image intensifier using reflected light to identify targets at night
steel pot
the standard U.S. Army helmet. The steel pot was the outer metal cover.
strac
smart, sharp, well prepared (from STRategic Air Command)
strategic hamlet program
a controversial pacification and village self-defense program implemented by the Diem government that attempted to turn all sixteen thousand South Vietnamese hamlets into fortified compounds.
strobe
hand held strobe light for marking landing zones at night
syrette
collapsible tube of morphine attached to a hypodermic needle. The contents of the tube were injected by squeezing it like a toothpaste tube.


T

TA-50
individual soldier's standard issue of combat clothing and equipment
TAC
tactical air strikes; fighter bombers
Tail-end Charlie
last unit in a long column on the move
T&T
through and through wound. One in which a bullet or fragment has entered and exited the body.
tanglefoot
single-strand barbed wire strung in a meshwork pattern at about ankle height. A barrier designed to make it difficult to cross the obstructed area by foot. Usually placed around permanent defensive positions.
TANGO
military phonetic for the letter 'T'
Tango boat
U.S. Navy designation for an armored landing craft mounted with 50-caliber machine guns and a 40-caliber anti-aircraft gun used for direct fire.
TC
tactical commander
Tet
January holiday, Buddhist lunar New Year. Buddha's birthday.
Tet Offensive
a major uprising of the National Liberation Front, their sympathizers, and NVA characterized by a series of coordinated attacks against military installations and provincial capitals throughout Vietnam. It occurred during the lunar New Year at the end of January, 1968.
tee-tee
pidgin for very small
TFES
territorial forces evaluation system. The companion report of the HES. A computerized military evaluation system devised by American authorities in Saigon and used by them to assess the readiness of the militia forces. Each month advisors at the district level had to fill out the long computer print-out sheets and report on many different aspects of quantity and quality in the militia forces. Like all computer programs, the quality of this one's output was dependent upon the quality of the input.
thermite
a mixture of powdered aluminum and metal oxide which produces great heat for use in welding and incendiary bombs
Three
radio call signal for the operations officer
three-quarter
a three-quarter ton truck
tiger suits
camouflage fatigue uniforms
tight
good friends are close to ("tight" with) each other
TO
tactical officer
TO&E
Table of Organization and Equipment
TOC
tactical operations center
Top
a top sergeant
TOT
time on target. Prearranged mortar or artillery barrage, set to occur at a specific time in order to coordinate with an infantry assault
trach
a tracheotomy. Making an opening into the windpipe to facilitate breathing.
tracer
a round of ammunition chemically treated to glow or give off smoke so that its flight can be followed.
tracks
any vehicles which move on tracks rather than wheels
triage
the procedure for deciding the order in which to treat casualties
trip flare
a ground flare triggered by a trip wire used to signal and illuminate the approach of an enemy at night.
Tropic Lighting
the U.S. 25th Infantry Division
turtles
new replacements. They were called turtles because it took so long for them to arrive.
Two
radio call signal of the intelligence officer.
two-niner-two
the RC-292 ground plane antenna which was used to extend the range of the MAT and the district team's PRC-25.


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