Up From the Depths (26 page)

FAST
: Fleet Antiterrorism Security Team. Part of the US Marine Corps Security Force Regiment. These units provide security to high value US Navy installations and vessels that contain, house, or are armed with nuclear weapons.

Fast Rope
: A quick method of exiting a hovering helicopter using thick ropes and usually no other rappelling gear other than sturdy gloves. The method is quite similar to that of sliding down a pole.

FBO
: Fixed Base Operator or Fixed Base of Operation. A commercial business, usually the primary provider of services to general aviation aircraft (private planes) and operators. Can be a private enterprise, state, county, or city owned, usually providing parking, fuel, hangar rentals, air taxi service, and other basic services such as aircraft tie-down, maintenance, restrooms, telephones, and car rentals.

FEMA
: Federal Emergency Management Agency. Now part of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).The successor to the Civil Defense of WWII and Cold War era.

FFAR
: Mk 4 or Mk 40 Folding Fin Aerial Rocket (FFAR) that was developed in the late 1940’s as an air to air rocket but was adapted for the air to ground role in the 1960’s. It has since been replaced by The Hydra 70 rocket. See Hydra 70.

Flechette
: Small metal darts used in munitions for light material and/or personnel targets. They have been used from WWI to the Russian-Georgian war in 2008 in bombs, missiles, artillery shells, special purpose grenades, and shotgun shells. At expulsion, the flechettes separate and form a disc-like mass which breaks up with each flechette assuming an independent trajectory, forming a repeatable dispersion pattern. The flechette uses kinetic energy derived from the velocity of the projectile to produce the desired impact and penetration effect on the target.

FLOTUS
: First Lady of The United States. The wife of the president.

FN-FAL
: Fabrique Nationale de Herstala (FN) is a Belgium based manufacturer of light arms which produces the FAL, Fusil Automatique Leger, (Light Automatic Rifle) a high power military rifle used by over 90 nations beginning in the 1950’s. It is chambered in 7.62 mm caliber.

FSG
: Forward Surgical Group. Some of these medical units are airborne qualified, meaning they can parachute in with airborne forces. The designation for those units would include an ‘A’ following their unit name. Example: 27FSG(A) = 27th Forward Surgical Group, Airborne.

FTX
: Field Training Exercise.

G28 DMR
: Designated Marksman Rifle. A German Heckler and Koch rifle that can trace its ancestry back to the G3 military rifle, the PSG-1 precision rifle, and the MSG90A2 rifle. It is based on the civilian MR308 rifle. Normally, it has a heavy match barrel, bipod, vertical foregrip and mounted with a Schmidt and Bender 8X24 scope. This rifle is favored by several special operations and police forces globally for its accuracy, versatility, and dependability.

G36
: A German Heckler and Koch military rifle.

GOTH-P
: Go To Hell Plan

GPS
: Global Positioning System.

HEDP
: High Explosive-Dual Purpose. A 40mm grenade that combines high explosive with a secondary option like HEAT (High Explosive, Anti-Tank), HEAP (High Explosive, Anti-Personnel).

HEMTT
: Heavy Expanded Mobility Tactical Truck. An eight wheeled, heavy duty, cargo truck that can be converted into several variations. The M977 and M985 cargo trucks carry all types of equipment, especially ammunition. The M978 is a fuel tanker while the M983 is used for the Patriot missile system. The M984 is a recovery vehicle, somewhat like a heavy duty tow truck. A crane is mounted at the rear of most versions of the vehicle. The most recent version, the A3 is a diesel electric hybrid much like a train locomotive or a Toyota Prius.

HH60 Jayhawk
:  is a multi-mission, twin-engine, medium-range helicopter operated by the United States Coast Guard for search and rescue, law enforcement, military readiness and marine environmental protection missions. The HH-60J is designed to fly a crew of four up to 300 miles offshore, hoist up to 6 additional people on board while remaining on-scene for up to 45 minutes and return to base while maintaining an adequate fuel reserve. Normal cruising speed of the HH-60J is 155 to 161 mph and the aircraft is capable of reaching 207 mph for short durations. The HH60J can fly at 161 mph for six to seven hours. Specifications are very similar to the US Army UH/MH60 Blackhawk.

H65A Dauphin (Dolphin)
: The Dolphin is primarily a Short Range Recovery (SRR) aircraft. There are now total of 102 Dolphins in the Coast Guard Fleet. The Dolphin is usually deployed from shore but it can be deployed from medium (WMEC) and high endurance (WHEC) Coast Guard Cutters, as well as the Polar Icebreakers.

HK MK23
: Heckler and Koch Mark 23. A handgun that won the Special Operations Offensive Handgun Weapon System, (OHWS), chambered in .45 caliber. It can be fitted with any of the following accessories: a Laser Aiming Module (LAM), sound suppressor, or a variety of optional sighting, and/or illumination accessories. Due to its overall size, some SPECOPS units prefer the Sig Sauer 226, 228 or the M9 Beretta. See SPECOPS

HUD
: Heads Up Display. A digital representation of information displayed on a visor, windshield or windscreen.

HMMWV
: High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle. Also known as the Hummer or Humvee. This vehicle replaced the M151 ‘Mutt’ Jeep. It can carry a squad of soldiers and be mounted with several different weapons systems, such as the M2 .50 caliber Heavy Machine Gun, the MK19 Automatic Grenade Launcher, the TOW missile system, 20mm Gatling guns, etc. The HMMWV can be configured into an ambulance, air defense system, troop transport, or command vehicle, etc., hence the ‘multipurpose’ in the name.

HUMINT
: Human Intelligence. Generally gathered by actual assets meaning agents on the ground and in the field.

HYDRA 70
: A 2.75 inch diameter or 70 mm unguided air to ground rocket which began to replace the Folding Fin Aerial Rocket (FFAR) unguided rocket in the mid 1980’s. Both the old MK4/40 and the newer MK 66 are 2.75 (70 mm) in diameter and carry different types of high explosive, flechette, air burst, illumination (flares) or smoke warheads. The MK 66 is longer than the MK 4/40, uses an improved smoke-less propellant, and has a completely new fin and nozzle assembly. The three fins are of the wrap-around type, and fit around the circumference of the rocket nozzle. Therefore the MK 66 is sometimes called a WAFAR (Wrap-Around Fin Aerial Rocket) instead of an FFAR. They are often fired from pods that have 19 of these rockets on each side of the aircraft in pairs, usually helicopter gunships such as the Marine AH-1A/B/C Cobra or the Army Apache (AH64). This gives each aircraft a minimum of 38 and up to 76 rockets. An upgrade planned for the Hydra system will be a guided warhead called the Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS) using the Hellfire Laser Designator. See FFAR.

IBS
: Inflatable Boat, Small. Used by various military forces for a variety of light duty on bodies of water. Sometimes referred to as a CRRC, Combat Rubber Raiding Craft pronounced ‘Crick’, or generically as a RHIB. This can be stored in a US Submarine for use by SEALs, and other special operations units but has to be hand rowed or electric motored since gasoline cannot be stored in a submersible. See SEAL, RHIB.

IMDb
: Internet Movie Database. An online website that contains information on just about any actress, actor, director, movie, producer, or screenwriter.

INDOC
: Basic indoctrination to naval special warfare. Most candidates will drop out at some time during this phase when they realize this field is not for them. This phase is prior to the official beginning of BUD/S and is sometimes referred to as Pre-BUD/S. This phase can last up to 6 weeks. See BUD/S.

ISP
: Internet Service Provider. Examples: AOL, Earthlink, etc.

JAG
: Judge Advocate General. The legal branch of the US military.

JCS
: Joint Chiefs of Staff. General officers representing all branches of the US military.

JSOC
: Joint Special Operations Command. Consisting of all US special operations forces and occasionally foreign special operations units. Pronounced ‘Jay-Sock’.

K-Pot
: Slang term describing the Kevlar combat helmet that replaced the old steel helmet.

LAV 25/Stryker
: Light Armored Vehicle (LAV). Using the same chassis and basic configuration of the USMC LAV is what the US Army is now calling the Stryker, or the M1126 Infantry Carrier Vehicle (ICV), or the Interim Armored Vehicle, or the LAV-III. The United States Marine version incorporates a small turret that has a 25mm ‘chain-gun’ (LAV-25) whereas the US Army version uses the M151 ‘Protector’ remote weapon system which contains a M2 .50 caliber heavy machine gun. The LAV/Stryker is a sloped front, eight-wheeled amphibious, light armored personnel carrier that can be configured into a command vehicle, a recon vehicle (LAV-R), an ambulance and many other options.

LCS
: Littoral Combat Ship. A fast, agile, focused-mission platform designed for operation in near-shore environments yet capable of open-ocean operation. Currently being built by two different contractors creating an issue when sailors from one vessel are transferred to the other which requires additional training as neither ship has the same operational procedures.

LHA
: Landing, Helicopter Assault/Amphibious Assault Ship. Has a wet well (the ability to ‘flood’ a small section of the interior of the ship) for amphibious operations and a small flight deck for helicopters and/or VSTOL aircraft. See VSTOL/VTOL.

LID
: Light Infantry Division. Example: 25th (LID) or 25th Light Infantry Division.

LMTV
: Light Medium Tactical Vehicle. A series of trucks that replaced the ancient 2.5 ton truck. The model 1078 is a single axle, truck and the model 1083 is a dual axle that is to replace the 5-ton cargo truck. Both models are the base platform for the Cougar and Caiman MRAP.

LPC
: Leather Personnel Carrier. Slang term used by soldiers to identify their footwear.

LPD
: Landing Platform Dock/Amphibious Transport Dock. This seagoing vessel has a wet well for smaller amphibious vessels to use as a point of embarkation, storage facilities for equipment and vehicles and a small flight deck for helicopters and/or VSTOL aircraft. (See VSTOL/VTOL).

LPH
: Landing Platform Helicopter. This is a support vessel for amphibious assault operations. Its appearance is that of a miniature aircraft carrier. Some LPHs can be used as a floating hospital after all the aircraft have been launched usually helicopters, AV8 Harrier VSTOL ‘jump jets’ and/or AV/MH/MV-22 Osprey tilt rotor aircraft. Similar to the LHA but has no wet well. See LHA, VSTOL, VTOL.

LZ
: Landing Zone. An area designated for helicopter landings which drops off cargo and troops.

L85
: The Enfield rifle most commonly issued to British military forces. Also referred to as the SA80. It is one of the few ‘Bullpup’ configured military rifles, meaning that the magazine is behind the trigger assembly.

M2
: A heavy machine gun in .50 caliber (12.7mm). Also known as the ‘Ma Deuce’ or MA2. Originally designed by John Browning and used since the 1920’s. It is the longest serving weapon in the US Military. It can be used on a tripod by infantry, but is more commonly mounted on a vehicle or ship.

M4 Carbine
: M4 Special Operations Peculiar Modification (SOPMOD). A shortened version of the full size M16 with barrel lengths of 18”-22”. Newer versions are also equipped with Picatinny slide rails for optical devices, scopes, passive laser systems, and additional weapon systems like the M203 or the M320 GLM. In some special cases, a shortened 12 gauge pump shotgun, originally a Remington 870 (what some refer to as the ‘key to the city’ configuration) has been replaced by the M26 Modular Accessory Shotgun System (MASS). This features a magazine attachment for the shotgun. Essentially, the M4 is the replacement for the M16 incorporating many design changes, mostly internal.

M9
: The Beretta 92FS. The current designation of the sidearm universally adopted by all branches of the US Military. It is a 9mm handgun that replaced old ‘slab sides’ the Colt 1911 .45 caliber pistol.

M11
: the military designation for the Sig Sauer 228 handgun, a model normally issued to Criminal Investigators within the Criminal Investigative Division (CID) of the armed forces.

M16
: Introduced in 1963 during the Vietnam War, it is now the standard infantry rifle for the US military since 1969. The current version is the M-16A4 and is typified by a Picatinny rail with which accessories such as scopes, flashlights, etc., are attached. All are chambered for the 5.56 mm round. See M-4, AR-15.

M24
: The M24 Sniper Weapon system is a military version of the Remington 700 bolt action hunting rifle. It will eventually be replaced with the M110 Semiautomatic Sniper Weapon system. Although, orders for the M24 are still being fulfilled by Remington as of February 2010.

M37 Ithaca
: A tactical shotgun that has the shoulder stock removed and a pistol-like grip in its place for easier handling in close quarters.