BUS — In electronics, the point at which power is supplied to numerous other circuits.
C-21B — The military version of the Gates Learjet 35A, it is a ten-person fast airlift jet used by the U.S. Air Force. Can be used for up to eight passengers, three thousand pounds of cargo, or in aeromedical evacuation role.
CANARDS — Movable fins or stabilizers mounted on the front of an aircraft to provide additional lift, turning power, or supplement performance of the main wings.
CAP — Combat Air Patrol. Arranging fighters in a defensive or offensive role at various altitudes and configurations to counter an enemy threat.
CAYMAN ISLANDS — A small chain of islands southwest of Cuba in the Caribbean Sea, self-governed but administered by the British government.
CBU — Cluster Bomb Unit. A canister carried by a fighter or bomber that dispenses small bomblets over wide areas. Used against columns of troops, parked aircraft, or lightly armored vehicles.
CHAFF — small pieces of metal, like tinsel, that reflect radar energy and act as a decoy to enemy radars or radar-guided missiles.
COMPOSITE — A material made from metallic and non-metallic substances to increase the material’s strength without adding weight.
CONNECTICUT ACADEMY (FICTIONAL) — KGB training facility that teaches young Russian agents how to act like Americans.
“CRANKED ARROW” F-16 — A special version of the U.S. F-16 Fighting Falcon fighter built by General Dynamics, the “cranked arrow” resembles a large delta-winged fighter. The larger wing increases fuel load, weapons carriage, and stability.
CV-22 OSPREY — A special tilt-rotor aircraft built by Boeing and Bell Helicopter that uses two movable rotors to take off and land like a helicopter but flys like a regular airplane.
DIA — Defense Intelligence Agency. A special Pentagon unit that conducts investigations for personnel security clearances and coordinates intelligence gathering, analysis and dissemination for the Department of Defense.
DREAMLAND — Unclassified nickname for the restricted military airspace in south-central Nevada used by the Departments of Defense and Energy and the Central Intelligence Agency for special weapons research.
E-3B SENTRY — Modified Boeing 707-320B airliner with a thirty-foot diameter rotating saucer radome mounted atop the fuselage, plus extensive computer displays and communications systems. Primary U.S. and western reconnaissance, command and control system. Can track hundreds of aircraft and ships at any altitude. Can fly one thousand miles to and from a patrol area and then stay on patrol for six hours.
EEG — Electroencephalograph. Measures electrical activity in the brain and central nervous system.
EET — Eastern European Time.
F-15E — Modified McDonnell-Douglas F-15 air superiority fighter, with a weapons system officer and extensive air-to-ground attack systems added.
F-16F — FIGHTING FALCON — Lightweight single-engine, single pilot counter-air and attack fighter, built by General Dynamics. Designed for high maneuverability and flexibility and able to carry a wide variety of weapons.
F-20 TIGERSHARK — Modified Northrop F-5F fighter with single-engine and single pilot. Emphasis on simplicity and low-cost maintainability.
F/A-18 HORNET — U.S. Navy carrier-based interceptor and attack fighter, built by McDonnell-Douglas. Can change from air-to-air to air-to-ground attack role while in-flight.
FAST PACK — Fuel Armament Storage Tank Packs. Smoothly curved conformal tanks fitted to the upper side fuselages of F-15 fighters to allow them to carry extra fuel and equipment without a significant drag penalty.
FLARES — Pyrotechnic magnesium or phosphorous devices ejected from tactical aircraft to decoy heat-seeking missiles.
FOX ONE — Call made by an attacking fighter to friendly forces to warn of a radar-guided missile launch.
FOX TWO — Warning call for heat-seeking missile launch.
G — Measurement of gravitational forces imposed on something. One G is normal gravity (weight); two G’s is two times normal weight, etc. Zero G is weightlessness. Negative G’s cause reversal of normal fluid motion in blood vessels or aircraft fuel systems. A trained human being can withstand as much as six positive G’s before experiencing gray- or blackout, or as much as negative-three G’s before red-out. Excessive G’s (positive or negative) cause unconsciousness.
GCI — Ground Controlled Interception. Ground-based radars and controllers used to direct fighters to attack enemy aircraft.
GEOSTATIONARY ORBIT — An orbit of a satellite approximately 22,300 miles above Earth, where the time for the satellite to orbit the Earth is equal to the Earth’s rotation. If the satellite is placed above the equator, the satellite will seem to hang motionless in space over the same point on Earth.
GPS — Global Positioning System. A system of satellites around Earth that provide highly precise position, speed and time information to aircraft, ships, vehicles and ground troops. Position information precise to four feet, speed information precise to one-quarter-mile per hour, time precise to one-hundredth of a second.
GRAY-OUT — Condition during high-G maneuvering where blood is forced out of the brain, causing a gradual loss, darkening, or tunneling of vision. Excessive G’s cause complete gray-out (blackout) and unconsciousness.
GUARD — Internationally established and recognized emergency radio frequencies. VHF GUARD is 121.5; UHF GUARD is 243.0.
HF — High Frequency radio. Used for extreme long-distance communications (being replaced in USAF by SATCOM).
HH-3 JOLLY GREEN GIANT — Modified Sikorsky CH-3 Sea King helicopter, used for deep-penetration rescue missions into heavily defended areas.
HH-65A DOLPHIN — Aerospatiale SA-366G-1 Dauphin II utility helicopter, used for medium-range personnel and cargo transport and rescue operations.
HIGH-G YO-YO — An air combat maneuver where a less maneuverable but more powerful pursuer can attack a more maneuverable opponent by executing a dive, then a hard climb and descent to bring weapons in line for an attack instead of trying to outmaneuver the opponent.
HOTAS — Hands On Throttle And Stick. A carefully designed feature in many new high-performance fighters that logically arranges all necessary switches on the pilot’s control stick and throttle for easy activation in busy combat situations.
HUD — Heads-Up Display. Usually a large piece of glass mounted atop the instrument panel in a fighter aircraft, used to reflect projected information in front of the pilot’s line of sight. All necessary flight and weapons information is thereby presented to the pilot without having to look down inside the cockpit.
HYPERVELOCITY MISSILE — A simple, low-cost missile with no explosive warhead, designed to destroy targets by sheer force of impact. Speed of these missiles can exceed a mile a second. Warhead is usually a dense depleted uranium material that increases force on impact.
I.P. — Initial Point, the beginning of a bomb run. Usually the weapons officer or bombardier has control of the aircraft from the I.P. to the target.