To the Limit: An Air Cav Huey Pilot in Vietnam

Glossary

3 8 5 Glossary ACL Aircraft combat loading: the number of troops being loaded onto an aircraft. ADF Automatic directional finding radio. When a pilot tunes-in, a preset beacon frequency and a needle shows him the direction of the beacon relative to the aircraft. Each beacon transmits its identifying call letters in Morse code. AHB Assault Helicopter Battalion. aircraft combat loading The number of troops being loaded onto an aircraft. ARA Airborne rocket artillery. Arc Light Operation Arc Light: Bombing runs made by B-52s in Vietnam. ARVNS South Vietnamese Army Regulars. ash-and-trash Personnel assigned to these missions transport ammo, food, and water into, and remove refuse out of, given locations. ASP Steel planking; solid steel that is not perforated. Bandit 88 Radio call sign. Bandit refers to A Company 229th AHB. 88 is the official Army designation for a safety officer. Hence, Bandit 88 is the safety officer forA/229th. break squelch Term applied when a pilot pulls and releases the transmit trigger for his radio in lieu of actually saying anything . This action creates a radio noise that can be 3 8 6 GLOSSARY heard by others on the same frequency. Breaking squelch twice in rapid succession implies that one has received instructions and will comply or that one understands what was said. C&C See Charlie-Charlie. Charlie Slang for a member of the Viet Cong. Alternatives are VC and Mr. Charles. Charlie-Charlie Command and Control Huey: A Huey outfitted with special radios in the cargo compartment that would be at the disposal of the commander. Normally used by a commander as an airborne TOC to coordinate his troops during a large-scale combat assault. Also called a C&C. chest protector A protective vest, in appearance resembling those worn by the gladiators of ancient Rome. Also called a chicken plate. chicken plate See chest protector. commanding officer Generally a captain grade officer or higher. Often referred to as CO for short. CQ An orderly who ran the office and woke up pilots in the morning. C rations Canned field rations. CW2 Chief warrant officer; warrant officer grade 2. The title chief applied to all grade 2 through grade 4 warrants. daisy chaining One gunship makes its run toward the target, and at a point near the target, it will break off and its wingman will start a gun run on the same target. If executed properly, together the gunships will keep continuous fire on the target. DEROS Date estimated return from overseas. Used as slang for “last day in country.” deuce-anda -half truck A 2 1/2-ton truck. DMZ Demilitarized zone. EOD Explosive ordnance disposal; bomb squad: military team that disposes of unexploded ammunition. 3 8 7 GLOSSARY ETA Estimated time of arrival. free fire Command meaning fire at will. No gunner or crew chief was allowed to fire his weapon without a command to do so from the mission commander, for fear that friendly troops might be in the area. GCA Ground-controlled approach tactical radar. GP Medium General purpose medium tent. Home for 20 pilots, complete with dirt floor. greenhouse Clear green Plexiglas window over the heads of both pilots. ground effect An aerodynamic effect caused when a helicopter is hovering near the ground. Air pushed downward by the main rotor blades rebounds from the ground and gives the helicopter extra lifting ability. It takes less power to hover in ground effect than to attempt to hover at a height where the downward push of main rotor blade air no longer makes ground contact. During a vertical ascent, an overloaded Huey will stop climbing at a height of 24 feet (the length of one rotor blade) because of the loss of ground effect. grunts An affectionate name given to ground troops in Vietnam because of the sound they made when jumping off helicopters. IFR Instrument flight rules: The procedure for flying the aircraft solely by instruments and without any outside visual references. incoming Incoming mortar rounds. IVSI Instant vertical speed indicator; the gauge that registers feet per minute in climbing or descending. key To hold down the transmit button on a microphone for the purpose of transmitting a message over the airways. Keying two or more times in rapid succession without saying anything means your message has been received. KIA Killed in action. logger out When Army intelligence thought our LZ was about to get hit, all aircraft were moved to...