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The following are included as explanatory remarks, not exact definitions, for the reader who may not be familiar with the terms.
ACV: Armoured Command Vehicle.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvjHhFQl3Ku
991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ88L7jtR2Gt
Ao-dai: The Vietnamese national dress, a close-fitting top and bodice, with long flowing panels from the waist, under which long pants or trousers are worn. Pronounced "ow zhy," by the Northerners and "ow why' by the Southerners.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡELxUugrs28
991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpcxgm4N0lt
Arc of fire: Each weapon is positioned to fire over a certain piece of ground, which has left and right boundaries. If this is planted on a map, the area would be represented as an arc of the extremities of the boundaries. There are primary (main) and secondary arcs of fire.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOLrUs8SQlD
991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoXYlF7alZ7
ARVN: Army of the Republic of Vietnam, usually pronounced "arvin."991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhBlrpCeERL
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AWOL: Absent Without Leave.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtYkQQtxzkA
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Back-up: With reference to meals, coming back for a second serving.
Base-bludging: Bludging in a base or rear area. Anyone who is farther back from the enemy than oneself is a base-bludger. They rarely, if ever, go forward of the wire.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX5pQyK0IY3
991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUtP3VnWJ1h
Base-up! Make camp.
Basic Webbing: Generally the minimum harness that a soldier can wear and carry to enable him to perform his basic fighting functions: waist belt, shoulder harness, ammunition pouches, water bottles, bayonet, entrenching tool, and whatever else the unit deems necessary. On this "basic" webbing the thoughtful army can build big and little packs, bedding, radios, and so on.
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BHQ: Battalion Headquarters.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0EtVLc4ToN
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Bird: girl/woman991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtToKSdCBjE
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Brass-up: To shoot, be shot at, as in "they brassed up two Charlies," and "they got brassed up by a machine gun."
CHQ: Company Headquarters.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAWzRaw2kWa
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Chalk: The group of passengers for a single aircraft.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIYTPfQ0ZdG
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Charlie: The enemy, from VC = Viet Cong = Victor Charlie in radio phonetics.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYS1CjZfGX8
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CO: Commanding Officer.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4ss3LzyzdB
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CP: Command Post991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7GbEZgDwCQ
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CSM: Company Sergeant Major.
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Corps: The British army is composed of various corps e.g. infantry, artillery, transport, dental, etc. Everyone belongs to one of them.
991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjwycdJAKCH
III Corps Conference: South Vietnam was divided into four Corps Tactical Zones (CTZ): I, II, III, and IV. These were a means of dividing the country into areas of responsibility in which the various units operated, and had nothing to do with the infantry, artillery, etc., kind of corps. The III Corps HQ was almost adjacent to the airbase and the Conference was attended by a British representative.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOfb9TIKuUp
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DMZ: The so-called Demilitarized Zone between North and South Vietnam.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbPh0mbhUEv
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Dust-off: Radio callsign for a medical evacuation helicopter, the crews of which were renowned and revered for their efforts to lift wounded out of battle and back to the medical facilities despite bad weather and enemy gunfire. Spoken usage included: "We require Dust-off for six," and "Nigel got Dusted-off to Saigon," i.e., Nigel was evacuated to Saigon by helicopter.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8oHZKD35uu
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FAC: Forward Air Controller: a pilot who flies a small (Cessna) aircraft into the battle area to locate, mark, and guide the fighters or bombers onto the targets. A high degree of skill and courage was needed.
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FN: Fabrique Nationale, the Belgian firm of arms makers.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSpkpr8mBcE
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Forward of the wire: Outside the barbed-wire perimeter of the unit or base, i.e., out where the enemy may be met. See "basebludger" and "pogo."991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvnFtBCcdGO
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GVN: Government of Vietnam, the Saigon regime.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKGyPIjsozb
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Hutchi: Japanese (possibly Korean) word for house or shelter, corrupted to mean the soldier's tent in the field. American "hooch" or "hoochi."991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl1kZ185xma
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Huey: UH-1 Helicopter, became Huey.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8nSTZ8Vfl7
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IO: Intelligence Officer.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvZmkElSted
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Iron Triangle: A jungle area, roughly shaped like a triangle, about 30 miles west of Saigon, used by the Viet Cong as a base area.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJXzV9kZr3X
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J: Jungle.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb1sW4YxEIq
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KIA: Killed In Action.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkEH7ReHjnn
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Locstat: Location statement, present location.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ22qhq2nNJt
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LO: Liaison Officer991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRbIpxhJYB3
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Local Force: The Viet Cong National Liberation Front organized their fighting forces on several levels. At the bottom was the village guerilla, then units organized to operate in their home area----but larger than the usual village squad, and given tasks of a more demanding military nature, naturally enough these were called local force units. Above them were regional units and finally the main force.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgYZI8bZUlY
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LZ: Landing Zone991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT8MSQOzvfb
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Main Force: Units of soldiers who have graduated from the village guerillas, local and regional force units, are full-time members of the armed forces, and are now regular troops who can be given military tasks such as those given to regular units of the NATO armies.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb7NcWrnyuN
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MASH: Mobile Army Surgical Hospital.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYzOw4QSXPg
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Military Region: The National Liberation Front had divided Vietnam into these areas for their own administrative and operational purposes.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSGV0LuLFLL
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MPC: Military Payment Certificate. "Play money" or "Monopoly money" issued by the military authorities in an attempt to halt the flow of dollars into the black market, etc. It is only good in the military system such as canteens, messes, etc. The type or pattern of MPC would be changed at very short notice, and all unchanged old MPC would then be so much paper. There are said to be people throughout Asia with boxes of old MPC, hoping for the day when the particular pattern is again issued, and they will get rich.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡicCkOYVRPT
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MP: Military Police.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKh8B2EesFR
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NCO: Non-Commissioned Officer, i.e., below the rank of 2nd lieutenant.
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NLF: National Liberation Front. No Communist Revolution is complete without this title.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIjC4DJrLCc
991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDuM0kx4BCf
NVA: North Vietnamese Army. Never admitted by Hanoi to be in South Vietnam, an assertion believed only by the very naive.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwbtETxOF8B
991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiFtko1kL6S
OC: Officer Commanding. A company has an OC, a battalion a CO, a division a COC---General Officer Commanding.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8VJVNGHfGp
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Orders Group: A gathering for the purpose of passing on orders to subordinates.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5IPgpySuUz
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Political Officer: The communist forces, being the armed effort of the political organization, are always subject to strict political control, which is achieved by placing a political infrastructure paralleling that of the military command, at all levels from company on up. The political officer has the final word in disagreements between the military and political. Called commissars in earlier times, they are a very important and effective means of ensuring control, motivation, and explanation of policy to the soldiers.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDSpmjU6maY
991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmp2LH1m7Zx
Pepper-pot: A tactic for advancing under fire where one or two soldiers at a time leap up, run forward a few paces, go down, roll away, and fire on the enemy while their comrades are doing likewise. The enemy is presented with fleeting targets all across his front, making it very hard for him to take on an accurate shot. Like many other things, it requires practice and teamwork.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyJQaAtkgfZ
991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkcxPlCmf64
Pogo: See Basebludging. Pogos are the same, but worse. They supposedly spend their time bouncing aimlessly around the rear areas on a pogo-stick and are thus of no use to the fighting troops, i.e., anyone closer to, or likely to be closer to, the enemy.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxOfo6RecIo
991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW4m7qGXh1X
PPS: Russian submachine gun of World War II vintage, firing a 7.62mm round.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc9X2LhJ6wE
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PX: Post Exchange = US Canteen.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFq3dAXQRVS
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RATTV: Royal Army Training Team, Vietnam.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaNRbXDBgot
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Regional Force: Along with a similar organization called the popular force, were part-time troops of the Saigon Regime, used for guard and other light military duties, which could include operations to search for the VC, normally operating in their home locations or areas. Abbreviated in RF/PE so immediately were called "ruffpuffs."991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJYstioUSUb
991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGNnIvYx5aq
RPD: Russian light machine gun for section or squad use. The initials stand for the Russian words, the D being for Degtyarev, the designer.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxV6Z4aU2KI
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RMO: Regional Medical Officer, the battalion doctor.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhAhHmf9CLe
991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDrwyKtQBr5
RSM: Regimental Sergeant Major, the senior noncommissioned officer in the unit, responsible to the CO for discipline.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaGUFRR5gaT
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RV: Rendezvous991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ75UZiZltxw
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Slicks: Troop-carrying helicopters, as opposed to armed versions, the "gunships," called "pigs"991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxOyUw1sEu2
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Slope: U.S. term for Asian, similar to the British "wog."991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiVYHWXtinF
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SLR: Self Loading Rifle; the British-modified Belgian FN, produced at Birmingham, firing the standard NATO 7.62mm round, pronounced "slur."991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLCz1ngex3s
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Smoke: To shoot, kill991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxCxkzzdjAk
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Tommy: A British soldier.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYKBT4EluXK
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Twenty mike mike: 20-millimeter cannon, from 20mm.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5FDJbGKsMe
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VC: Viet Cong, the Vietnamese for Vietnamese Communist.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQIUhPUSoig
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VNAF: Vietnamese Air Force.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGJDJbDuU79
991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡamP67EtO87
War Zone D: A term dating from the 1950s war against the French, for a large expanse of jungle about forty miles northeast of Saigon, in which the VC had base camps, training areas, etc., and which was rarely entered by government forces prior to 1965; also called D-Zone or Zone D. Zone C was farther to the southwest, and others were to the north.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhf4OhPkouX
991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwA91LrDlgd
Wog: British slang for an Asian: more fully "Westernized Oriental Gentleman." Plural is "wogs" and the land is sometimes referred to as "Woggeria."991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6ypMFPIFjl
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Watch your front!: Do not stare down your shirt buttons and trouser fly, but pay attention to the area of ground before you, your arc of fire.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWXDJCSeI3y
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WIA: Wounded in Action. 991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtzUtYarsCq
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Yank(s): citizen(s) of the United States of America.991Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ7GnETtmmi
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