APPENDIX 2
105mm howitzer. The most common artillery piece used by the U.S. and the ARVN during the Vietnam War.
107mm howtar. A hybrid artillery piece consisting of a 4.2” mortar mounted on a howitzer chassis.
1st Sergeant. Pay grade E-8. The senior NCO in a company or aircraft squadron.
3.5-inch rocket launcher. Designed as a tank killer, this shoulder-fired, crew-served weapon, was commonly used as a bunker-buster in Vietnam. It fired a high-explosive antitank round or a white phosphorus round.
57mm recoilless rifle. An anti-tank weapon used by the VC and NVA.
60mm mortar. The smallest of the mortars used by the VC and NVA. Marine rifle companies also had three of these assigned to them later in the war in Vietnam.
81mm mortar. The standard general-support, organic mortar in a Marine battalion. The VC and NVA also used this mortar and the Chinese/Soviet 82mm mortar.
A4 Skyhawk. An attack aircraft used by the U.S. Marines and the U.S. Navy in Vietnam.
Adm. Admiral.
AK47. An automatic rifle used by the VC and NVA in the war, although not many were used in Starlite.
Alpha command group. The primary command group consisting of the commanding officer and key staff members.
Amphibious Squadron (Phibron). A groupment of ships in a naval task force designed to land Marines onto a hostile shore.
Amtrac. Amphibian tractor. Lightly armored tracked vehicle designed to carry troops and/or cargo from ship to beach as well as inland.
APA. Amphibious Attack transport ship. A troop ship that carried Marines to an objective area.
ARVN. The Army of the Republic of Vietnam. Pronounced to rhyme with “marvin.” Our South Vietnamese allies.
AR. In the context of Operation Starlite, an M14 rifle that had been modified to fire on full automatic.
BAR. Browning Automatic Rifle. Used heavily by the United States in World War II and Korea. In the Vietnam War it was used by the VC and NVA.
Battalion Landing Team (BLT). A Marine infantry battalion with attached support units, e.g., artillery and engineer units.
Bo Doi. Literally Vietnamese for “infantry,” this term has been expanded to mean something like “freedom fighter.”
Bravo command group. The secondary command group of a unit. It is usually composed of the executive officer and lesser staff members.
BriGen. Brigadier general.
Bronze Star Medal. The American fourth highest decoration for valor.
Capt. Captain.
Chicom. For Chinese Communist. It referred to the type of hand grenade, made in China, that was used by the VC and NVA.
CinCPac. Commander-in-Chief, Pacific. The senior U.S. military command in the Pacific rim.
CO. Commanding officer.
Col. Colonel.
Command-detonated mine. An explosive device detonated on command by electrical means.
Commodore. An honorific denoting the senior U.S. Navy captain of a flotilla of two or more ships.
Corporal (Cpl). Third lowest Marine rank.
CP. Command Post. The field headquarters of a military unit.
C-rations. The most commonly consumed food ration of the Vietnam era.
DASC. Direct air support center. A Marine organization that controls air operations from the ground.
D-day. The day an operation begins.
F4 Phantom. A fighter/attack aircraft used by the Marines, Navy, and Air Force in the Vietnam War. It was crewed by two men.
Five-paragraph order. A combat order orally given to Marines for an operation.
Flame tank. A regular tank chassis carrying a napalm gun rather than a standard 90mm gun.
FO. Artillery or mortar forward observer.
Fragmentary order or frag order. An abbreviated version of the five-paragraph order.
Gen. General.
Gunny. Short for gunnery sergeant.
GySgt. Gunnery sergeant, E-7.
H-34. A Sikorsky medium helicopter used by the Marines in the earliest years of the Vietnam War.
Han tu. Vietnamese for “blood debt.” It can also mean revenge or hatred.
H-hour. The hour at which an operation, usually an amphibious landing, is to begin.
HMM. Abbreviation for Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron.
Hootch. American slang for Vietnamese house.
HQ. Headquarters.
Huey. Generic term for what the U.S. Army called the Bell HU-1E Iroquois and the Marines called the UH-1E helicopter. A light-attack and passenger helicopter.
III MAF. III Marine Amphibious Force. At the time of Starlite it was commanded by LtGen Lewis W. Walt.
JATO. For jet-assisted takeoff. Rockets attached to the wings of aircraft to permit them to take off on short runways.
KC-130. The primary Marine cargo and air-refueling aircraft.
KIA. Killed in action.
L-hour. For landing hour. The hour at which a helicopter landing operation is to begin.
Lance Corporal (LCpl). The third lowest enlisted Marine rank. It is above private first class and below corporal.
LCM. Landing Craft, Medium
Light Antiaircraft Missile (LAAM) Battalion. Marine airdefense battalions armed with the HAWK ground-to-air missiles.
LSD. Landing Ship Dock. Amphibious ship that transports amtracs to the objective area.
LST. Landing Ship Tank. Flat-bottomed, ocean-going vessel capable of hauling troops, tanks, and other heavy equipment.
Lt. Leiutenant.
LtCol. Lieutenant colonel.
LtGen. Lieutenant general.
LZ. Landing zone for helicopters.
M14. The 7.62mm (.30-caliber) service rifle for the Marines at the time of Starlite. An updated version of the M1 rifle of World War II fame, it had a short life. It was phased in in 1962 and phased out in favor of the 5.52mm (.223-caliber) M-16 in 1967.
M48. Main U.S. battle tank during the Vietnam War.
M60. The 7.62mm machine gun used by the Marines and U.S. Army in Vietnam.
M79. The 40mm grenade launcher used by the U.S. and ARVN.
Maj. Major.
MajGen. Major general.
Marine Air Group. The intermediate Marine air unit, commanded by a colonel. It normally had three or more squadrons attached.
Marine Raiders. Elite Marine units during World War II. They were phased out early in the war.
Master Sergeant (MSgt). Pay grade E-8, the second highest pay grade for an enlisted man. Although this is the same pay grade as a first sergeant, it means that the holder of the rank is in a technical field, e.g. electronics, or administration, rather than in the command functions.
Medal of Honor. America’s highest military decoration for valor. Very often incorrectly called the Congressional Medal of Honor.
Medevac. Medical evacuation.
MP. Military Police.
Navy Cross Medal. America’s second highest military valor decoration for Marines and Navy personnel.
Ontos. Greek for “the thing,” this was a lightly-armored, trackedvehicle that sported six 106mm recoilless rifles.
Pfc. Private first class.
Popular Forces. A type of South Vietnamese local militia.
Purple Heart. America’s oldest military decoration, it designates that the holder has been wounded in action against an armed enemy.
Republic of Vietnam. South Vietnam. Our allies in the war.
RLT. Regimental landing team. Made up of two or more infantry battalions and support units.
RPG. Rocket-propelled grenade. Manufactured in the Soviet Union or China, these were easily transportable, anti-bunker and anti-armor weapons.
S-1. A unit’s personnel and administration officer.
S-2. A unit’s intelligence officer.
S-3. A unit’s operations officer.
S-4. A unit’s logistics officer.
Sapper. Western term for infiltrator and saboteur. The Vietnamese called these men “special forces.”
SATS. Short airfield for tactical support. An expeditionary airfield designed to be rapidly constructed by Marines or Seabees in a combat environment.
Sgt. Sergeant, E-5.
Silver Star Medal. America’s third highest military valor decoration.
SNCO. Staff non-commissioned officer. Pay grades E-6 to E-9.
Spider hole. Small, camouflaged, one-man fighting hole.
SSgt. Staff Sergeant, E-6.
TAOR. Tactical area of responsibility. A unit’s area of operations.
Tonkin Gulf incidents. Two clashes in the Tonkin Gulf between U.S. Navy and North Vietnamese naval forces. What actually happened is still in dispute. The Johnson administration used these incidents as an excuse to begin bombing North Vietnam. Congress also passed the so-called Tonkin Gulf Resolution that gave the President expanded powers in dealing with North Vietnam.
USA. United States Army.
USAF. United States Air Force.
USMC. United States Marine Corps.
USN. United States Navy.
USS. United States ship.
Viet Minh. The designation of the Vietnamese communist armed forces that fought the French.
Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry. A military valor decoration presented to members of the South Vietnamese and U.S. Military by the Republic of Vietnam.
VMA. Marine Attack squadron. At the time of Starlite, they flew the A-4 Skyhawk.
VMF/A. Marine Fighter/Attack squadron. At the time of Starlite, they flew the F4 Phantom.
VMO. Marine Observation squadron.
VNMC. Vietnamese Marine Corps.
Wermacht. German military forces in World War II.
WIA. Wounded in Action.
XO. Executive officer. Second-in-command of a military tactical unit (company through regiment).