envelopment surrounding the enemy.
Excalibur a 155mm artillery shell with its own guidance system to increase accuracy.
ARMY, GROUND FORCES, AND GENERAL MILITARY TERMS 351
FCS Future Combat Systems. A developing system of weapons, including robots and combat vehicles,that can communicate with each other over a wireless network.
flamethrower a weapon that shoots incendiary gas. Nicknamed zippo.
flash blindness temporary or permanent loss of vision caused by intense flash from an explosion.
flash suppressor a device attached to the muzzle of a weapon to diminish its flash upon firing.
Fritz nickname for the Kevlar helmet worn by the army and marines. The helmets resemble those worn by the Germans in World War II.
glad bag derogatory slang for a body bag.
grunt slang for an infantryman.
guerrilla a member of an independent raiding band.
gun carriage a mobile or fixed support for a gun.
howitzer a high-trajectory cannon with a barrel longer than a mortar.
hum-vee modern equivalent of the jeep.
IED improvised explosive devices; homemade, remote-control bombs built by enemy guerrilla fighters, commonly employed by Iraqi resistance.
igloo space in an earth-sheltered structure, an area designed for the storage of ammunition and explosives.
klick kilometer.
KP kitchen police; mess hall duty.
laser rangefinder a device that uses a laser to determine the distance to an object.
litter a basket or frame utilized for the transport of the injured.
logistics the science of carrying out the movement and maintenance of troops.
mark a call for fire on a specific location to indicate targets.
materiel all items, including ships, tanks, aircraft, weapons, repair parts, and equipment, but excluding real property (installations, utilities, etc.) necessary to equip, maintain, and support military activities.
mess dining facility.
military currency currency prepared by a power and declared by its military commander to be legal tender for use by civilian and military personnel in the areas occupied by its forces.
mopping up finishing off the last remnants of enemy resistance in an area.
mortar a muzzle-loading, high-trajectory cannon with a shorter range than a howitzer.
muzzle brake a device attached to the muzzle of a weapon that utilizes escaping gas to reduce recoil.
napalm powdered aluminum soap or similar compound used to gelatinize oil or gasoline for use in napalm bombs or flame throwers. Also, the gelatin substance itself.
NATO North Atlantic Treaty Organization, an international military and peacekeeping alliance composed of 19 Western nations, including the United States and Canada, originally formed in 1949 for mutual protection against Soviet aggression.
nerve agent a potentially lethal chemical agent that interferes with the transmission of nerve impulses.
orange forces those forces used in an enemy role during NATO exercises.
ordnance explosives, chemicals, pyrotechnics, guns, ammunition, flares, napalm.
parlimentaire an agent or person sent behind enemy lines to communicate or negotiate openly with the enemy commander.
phonetic alphabet a list of standard words used to identify letters in a message transmitted by radio. The authorized words, in order: Alpha, Bravo, Charlie, Delta, Echo, Foxtrot, Golf, Hotel, India, Juliet, Kilo, Lima, Mike, November, Oscar, Papa, Quebec, Romeo, Sierra, Tango, Uniform, Victor, Whiskey, X- ray, Yankee, and Zulu.
pillbox a small, low fortification that houses machine guns, antitank weapons, and other weapons. It is usually constructed of sandbags or concrete.
pressure mine a mine that responds to pressure.
pull rank to use one's rank to force someone to do something.
purple forces those forces used to oppose both blue and orange forces in NATO exercises.
Px post exchange; a military store.
radar fire gunfire aimed at a target that is tracked by radar.
ratline an organized effort for moving personnel and/or materiel by clandestine means across a denied area or border.
recoilless rifle a weapon capable of being fired from either a ground mount or from a vehicle and capable of destroying tanks.
reconnaissance patrol a patrol used to gain tactical information concerning the enemy.
retrograde movement military doublespeak term for retreat.
rules of engagement directives issued by military authority, that specify the circumstances and limitations under which forces shall engage in combat with the enemy.
sabotage deliberately damaging or destroying an object or facility to interfere with or obstruct the national defense of a country.
safing applying mechanisms, catches, and so on, and similar means to make weapons and ammunition safe to handle.
salvo the simultaneous firing of several weapons aimed at the same target.
sapper an engineer who is responsible for clearing minefields and roadside bombs and who also lays mines and repairs or builds bridges, roads, and airfields. Also known as a combat engineer.
scopehead slang for radarman.
sheaf planned lines of fire that produce a desired pattern of bursts with rounds fired by two or more weapons.
sheet explosive plastic explosive in sheet form.
shelling report any report of enemy shelling containing information on caliber, direction, time, density, and area shelled.
sortie a sudden attack made from a defensive position. Also known as a sally.
sos chipped beef on toast; favored military meal.
splash in artillery support, the word transmitted to an observer or spotter five seconds before the estimated time of the impact of a salvo or round.
spoiling attack a tactical maneuvere employed to seriously impair a hostile attack while the enemy is in the process of forming or assembling for an attack.
spotting observing and reporting deviations of artillery fire to aid in homing in on a target.
strafing the firing of aircraft weapons upon ground units.
submunition any munition that is designed to separate from its parent munition to explode independently.
surprise dosage attack a chemical attack carried out too quickly for defending troops to mask or protect themselves.
thermal imagery infrared imagery useful in revealing camouflage and all object and personnel hidden behind camouflage.
tone down a form of camouflage in which surfaces of objects are made to blend in with their surroundings.
tracer bullets treated to create a glowing trajectory.
trench burial a quick burial method employed when casualties are heavy.
triage the evaluation and classification of casualties to determine the order and type of medical attention needed.
vesicant agent see blister agent.
vulcan an army air defense artillery gun that provides low-altitude air defenses; it is a six-barreled, 20mm rotary-fired weapon.