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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.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKjYvrWY18T
897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuPQ9QHXj00
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.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvpCFHaw642
897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC0NT6vhIvY
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.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxkBw13IQOt
897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNsCAXlP6oc
ARVN: Army of the Republic of Vietnam, usually pronounced "arvin."897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3JWxdWMHTB
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AWOL: Absent Without Leave.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWFBOLlSZHr
897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx0WYpBMnof
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.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPQuzFf6ugr
897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOLLlvTwtAT
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.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiHuNUR9BYI
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Bird: girl/woman897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8smG0w2MZ2
897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR1ZA6eYI6M
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.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgwkyB407UJ
897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgdUH066t45
Chalk: The group of passengers for a single aircraft.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlyvhCs2zq5
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Charlie: The enemy, from VC = Viet Cong = Victor Charlie in radio phonetics.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1z3ps01YvY
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CO: Commanding Officer.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWib7ihDW7H
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CP: Command Post897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm6L4bjpPN3
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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.
897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpXk7269px1
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.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUgXcS8NmJB
897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI2wKUCUQI0
DMZ: The so-called Demilitarized Zone between North and South Vietnam.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYxzBODXgaZ
897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC03cThJLMX
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.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe82EeP9jEx
897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8Ml8F3KNRN
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.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9oft4tMsAy
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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."897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyeB8tFJFw4
897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLgZMgxDQPW
GVN: Government of Vietnam, the Saigon regime.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbBYgKrdRjC
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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."897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfbIBUTWqUE
897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYdemHGAI4g
Huey: UH-1 Helicopter, became Huey.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvdKqiI7vrH
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IO: Intelligence Officer.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX4GigIreRD
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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.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH18meAEBpg
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J: Jungle.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPlIGarjhkY
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KIA: Killed In Action.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjvq6R9rWFj
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Locstat: Location statement, present location.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPcYroyPLRv
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LO: Liaison Officer897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpPSe5M3KcZ
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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.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡREjasa3vA1
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LZ: Landing Zone897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIBwUg1MSJp
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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.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqgMsCtdxtc
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MASH: Mobile Army Surgical Hospital.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLLkH9vcGd0
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Military Region: The National Liberation Front had divided Vietnam into these areas for their own administrative and operational purposes.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoMr1KmIZ0U
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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.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWqdBC04A30
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MP: Military Police.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYBtcHHiUoh
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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.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvdnJGY58Wq
897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPAVPZMaJen
NVA: North Vietnamese Army. Never admitted by Hanoi to be in South Vietnam, an assertion believed only by the very naive.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡksWNYB89z7
897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTmZIHedKj3
OC: Officer Commanding. A company has an OC, a battalion a CO, a division a COC---General Officer Commanding.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfruaSkxuCW
897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHLMcN4qHCS
Orders Group: A gathering for the purpose of passing on orders to subordinates.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5idEzFTHmL
897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfWImk0PMTw
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.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlSSVVYTf10
897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡck4AcgLuCS
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.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ51ekQq1ojF
897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFAl0awHTP3
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.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9R8Q3UNX12
897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGyCWcKNzQk
PPS: Russian submachine gun of World War II vintage, firing a 7.62mm round.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm88iTdBij7
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PX: Post Exchange = US Canteen.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTeWGFcdGhn
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RATTV: Royal Army Training Team, Vietnam.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx5ECjzKbvc
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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."897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvwu2FOv9ch
897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWMkePXTwp6
RPD: Russian light machine gun for section or squad use. The initials stand for the Russian words, the D being for Degtyarev, the designer.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ58OSehCe8Y
897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡucOeFU3kYW
RMO: Regional Medical Officer, the battalion doctor.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡanUoEbYMZD
897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCNLJAgzBQ3
RSM: Regimental Sergeant Major, the senior noncommissioned officer in the unit, responsible to the CO for discipline.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTnQZw35O23
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RV: Rendezvous897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡreCNWuoT8r
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Slicks: Troop-carrying helicopters, as opposed to armed versions, the "gunships," called "pigs"897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSnWuQG2Svs
897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6Low08cXGK
Slope: U.S. term for Asian, similar to the British "wog."897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLWKn079gEK
897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1n9oirqxCs
SLR: Self Loading Rifle; the British-modified Belgian FN, produced at Birmingham, firing the standard NATO 7.62mm round, pronounced "slur."897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz7wXudal3W
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Smoke: To shoot, kill897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8dp7SbJUWm
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Tommy: A British soldier.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNpG6BqcV3h
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Twenty mike mike: 20-millimeter cannon, from 20mm.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ76O1xXHmJl
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VC: Viet Cong, the Vietnamese for Vietnamese Communist.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU74noXfhtX
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VNAF: Vietnamese Air Force.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIuPZ0uRwvy
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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.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpNNrWFGurB
897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ94qwEvdJTv
Wog: British slang for an Asian: more fully "Westernized Oriental Gentleman." Plural is "wogs" and the land is sometimes referred to as "Woggeria."897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCb9nj9n1cj
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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.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLBiiSb1leq
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WIA: Wounded in Action. 897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC1oje0W175
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Yank(s): citizen(s) of the United States of America.897Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv0cZRmaSa4
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