Hostile Fire (40 page)

Fort Fumble:
SEALs’ name for the Pentagon.

Forty-mm Rifle Grenade:
The M576 multipurpose round, contains 20 large lead balls. SEALs use on Colt M-4A1.

Four-Striper:
A Navy captain.

Fox Three:
In air warfare, a code phrase showing that a Navy F-14 has launched a Phoenix air-to-air missile.

FUBAR:
SEAL talk. Fucked Up Beyond All Repair.

Full Helmet Masks:
For high-altitude jumps. Oxygen in mask.

G-3:
German-made assault rifle.

GHQ:
General Headquarters.

Gloves:
SEALs wear sage-green, fire-resistant Nomex flight gloves.

GMT:
Greenwich Mean Time. Where it’s all measured from.

GPS:
Global Positioning System. A program with satellites around Earth to pinpoint precisely aircraft, ships, vehicles, and ground troops. Position information is to plus or minus ten feet. Also can give speed of a plane or ship to one quarter of a mile per hour.

GPSL:
A radio antenna with floating wire that pops to the surface. Antenna picks up positioning from the closest 4 global positioning satellites and gives an exact position within 10 feet.

Green Tape:
Green sticky ordnance tape that has a hundred uses for a SEAL.

GSG-9:
Flashbang grenade developed by Germans. A cardboard tube filled with 5 separate charges timed to burst in rapid succession. Blinding and giving concussion to enemy, leaving targets stunned, easy to kill or capture. Usually non-lethal.

GSG9:
Grenzschutzgruppe Nine. Germany’s best special warfare unit, counterterrorist group.

Gulfstream II (VCII):
Large executive jet used by services
for transport of small groups quickly. Crew of 3 and 18 passengers. Maximum cruise speed 581 mph. Maximum range 4,275 miles.

H & K 21A1:
Machine gun with 7.62 NATO round. Replaces the older, more fragile M-60 E3. Fires 900 rounds per minute. Range 1,100 meters. All types of NATO rounds, ball, incendiary, tracer.

H & K G-11:
Automatic rifle, new type. 4.7mm caseless ammunition. 50-round magazine. The bullet is in a sleeve of solid propellant with a special thin plastic coating around it. Fires 600 rounds per minute. Single-shot, three-round burst, or fully automatic.

H & K MP-5SD:
9mm submachine gun with integral silenced barrel, single-shot, three-shot, or fully automatic. Rate 800 rds/min.

H & K P9S:
Heckler & Koch’s 9mm Parabellum double-action semiauto pistol with 9-round magazine.

H & K PSG1:
7.62 NATO round. High-precision, bolt-action, sniping rifle. 5- to 20-round magazine. Roller lock delayed blowback breech system. Fully adjustable stock. 6 × 42 telescopic sights. Sound suppressor.

HAHO:
High Altitude jump, High Opening. From 30,000 feet, open chute for glide up to 15 miles to ground. Up to 75 minutes in glide. To enter enemy territory or enemy position unheard.

Half-Track:
Military vehicle with tracked rear drive and wheels in front, usually armed and armored.

HALO:
High Altitude jump, Low Opening. From 30,000 feet. Free fall in 2 minutes to 2,000 feet and open chute. Little forward movement. Get to ground quickly, silently.

Hamburgers:
Often called sliders on a Navy carrier.

Handie-Talkie:
Small, handheld personal radio. Short range.

HE:
High Explosives.

HELO:
SEAL talk for helicopter.

Herky Bird:
C-130 Hercules transport. Most-flown military transport in the world. For cargo or passengers, paratroops, aerial refueling, search and rescue, communications, and as a gunship. Has flown from a Navy carrier deck without use of catapult. Four turboprop engines, max
speed 325 knots, range at max payload 2,356 miles.

Hezbollah:
Lebanese Shiite Moslem militia. Party of God.

HMMWV:
The Humvee, U.S. light utility truck, replaced the honored jeep. Multipurpose wheeled vehicle, 4 × 4, automatic transmission, power steering. Engine: Detroit Diesel 150-hp diesel V-8 air-cooled. Top speed 65 mph. Range 300 miles.

Hotels:
SEAL talk for hostages.

HQ:
Headquarters.

Humint:
Human Intelligence. Acquired on the ground; a person as opposed to satellite or photo recon.

Hydra-Shock:
Lethal hollow-point ammunition made by Federal Cartridge Company. Outlawed in some areas.

Hypothermia:
Danger to SEALs. A drop in body temperature that can be fatal.

IBS:
Inflatable Boat Small. 12 × 6 feet. Carries 8 men and 1,000 pounds of weapons and gear. Hard to sink. Quiet motor. Used for silent beach, bay, lake landings.

IP:
Initial Point. This can be a gathering place for a unit or force prior to going to the PD on a mission.

IR Beacon:
Infrared beacon. For silent nighttime signaling.

IR Goggles:
“Sees” heat instead of light.

Islamic Jihad:
Arab holy war.

Isothermal layer:
A colder layer of ocean water that deflects sonar rays. Submarines can hide below it, but then are also blind to what’s going on above them since their sonar will not penetrate the layer.

IV Pack:
Intravenous fluid that you can drink if out of water.

JAG:
Judge Advocate General. The Navy’s legal investigating arm that is independent of any Navy command.

JNA:
Yugoslav National Army.

JP-4:
Normal military jet fuel.

JSOC:
Joint Special Operations Command.

JSOCCOMCENT:
Joint Special Operations Command Center in the Pentagon.

KA-BAR:
SEALs’ combat, fighting knife.

KATN:
Kick Ass and Take Names. SEAL talk, get the mission in gear.

KH-11:
Spy satellite, takes pictures of ground, IR photos, etc.

KIA:
Killed In Action.

KISS:
Keep It Simple, Stupid. SEAL talk for streamlined operations.

Klick:
A kilometer of distance. Often used as a mile. From Vietnam era, but still widely used in military.

Krytrons:
Complicated, intricate timers used in making nuclear explosive detonators.

KV-57:
Encoder for messages, scrambles.

Laser Pistol:
The SIW pinpoint of ruby light emitted on any pistol for aiming. Usually a silenced weapon.

Left Behind:
In 30 years SEALs have seldom left behind a dead comrade, never a wounded one. Never been taken prisoner.

Let’s Get the Hell out of Dodge:
SEAL talk for leaving a place, bugging out, hauling ass.

Liaison:
Close-connection, cooperating person from one unit or service to another. Military liaison.

Light Sticks:
Chemical units that make light after twisting to release chemicals that phosphoresce.

Loot & Shoot:
SEAL talk for getting into action on a mission.

LT:
Short for lieutenant in SEAL talk.

LZ:
Landing Zone.

M1-8:
Russian Chopper.

M1A1 M-14:
Match rifle upgraded for SEAL snipers.

M-3 Submachine Gun:
WWII grease gun, .45-caliber. Cheap. Introduced in 1942.

M-16:
Automatic U.S. rifle. 5.56 round. Magazine 20 or 30, rate of fire 700 to 950 rds/min. Can attach M203 40mm grenade launcher under barrel.

M-18 Claymore:
Antipersonnel mine. A slab of C-4 with 200 small ball bearings. Set off electrically or by trip wire. Can be positioned and aimed. Sprays out a cloud of balls. Kill zone 50 meters.

M60 Machine Gun:
Can use 100-round ammo box snapped onto the gun’s receiver. Not used much now by SEALs.

M-60E3:
Lightweight handheld machine gun. Not used now by the SEALs.

M61A1:
The usual 20mm cannon used on many American fighter planes.

M61(j):
Machine pistol. Yugoslav make.

M662:
A red flare for signaling.

M-86:
Pursuit Deterrent Munitions. Various types of mines, grenades, trip-wire explosives, and other devices in antipersonnel use.

M-203:
A 40mm grenade launcher fitted under an M-16 or the M-4A1 Commando. Can fire a variety of grenade types up to 200 yards.

MagSafe:
Lethal ammunition that fragments in human body and does not exit. Favored by some police units to cut down on second kill from regular ammunition exiting a body.

Make a Peek:
A quick look, usually out of the water, to check your position or tactical situation.

Mark 23 Mod O:
Special operations offensive handgun system. Double-action, 12-round magazine. Ambidextrous safety and mag-release catches. Knight screw-on suppressor. Snap-on laser for sighting. .45-caliber. Weighs 4 pounds loaded. 9.5 inches long; with silencer, 16.5 inches long.

Mark II Knife:
Navy-issue combat knife.

Mark VIII SDV:
Swimmer Delivery Vehicle. A bus, SEAL talk. 21 feet long, beam and draft 4 feet, 6 knots for 6 hours.

Master-at-Arms:
Military police commander on board a ship.

MAVRIC Lance:
A nuclear alert for stolen nukes or radioactive goods.

MC-130 Combat Talon:
A specially equipped Hercules for covert missions in enemy or unfriendly territory.

McMillan M87R:
Bolt-action sniper rifle. .50-caliber. 53 inches long. Bipod, fixed 5- or 10-round magazine. Bulbous muzzle brake on end of barrel. Deadly up to a mile. All types .50-caliber ammo.

MGS:
Modified Grooming Standards. So SEALs don’t all look like military, to enable them to do undercover work in mufti.

MH-53J:
Chopper, updated CH053 from Nam days. 200 mph, called the Pave Low III.

MH-60K Black Hawk:
Navy chopper. Forward infrared system for low-level night flight. Radar for terra follow/avoidance. Crew of 3, takes 12 troops. Top speed 225 mph. Ceiling 4,000 feet. Range radius 230 miles. Arms: two 12.7mm machine guns.

MI-15:
British domestic intelligence agency.

MI-16:
British foreign intelligence and espionage.

MIDEASTFOR:
Middle East Force.

MiG:
Russian-built fighter, many versions, used in many nations around the world.

Mike Boat:
Liberty boat off a large ship.

Mike-Mike:
Short for mm, millimeter, as 9 mike-mike.

Milstar:
Communications satellite for pickup and bouncing from SATCOM and other radio transmitters. Used by SEALs.

Minigun:
In choppers. Can fire 2,000 rounds per minute. Gatling gun-type.

Mitrajez M80:
Machine gun from Yugoslavia.

MLR:
The Main Line of Resistance. That imaginary line in a battle where two forces face each other. Sometimes there are only a few yards or a few miles between them. Usually heavily fortified and manned.

Mocha:
Food energy bar SEALs carry in vest pockets.

Mossberg:
Pump-action, pistol-grip, 5-round magazine. SEALs use it for close-in work.

Motorola Radio:
Personal radio, short range, lip mike, earpiece, belt pack.

MRE:
Meals Ready to Eat. Field rations used by most of U.S. Armed Forces and the SEALs as well. Long-lasting.

MSPF:
Maritime Special Purpose Force.

Mugger:
MUGR, Miniature Underwater Global locator device. Sends up antenna for pickup on positioning satellites. Works under water or above. Gives location within 10 feet.

Mujahideen:
A soldier of Allah in Muslim nations.

NAVAIR:
NAVy AIR command.

NAVSPECWARGRUP-ONE:
Naval Special Warfare Group One based on Coronado, CA. SEALs are in this command.

NAVSPECWARGRUP-TWO:
Naval Special Warfare Group Two based at Little Creek, VA.

NCIS:
Naval Criminal Investigative Service. A civilian operation not reporting to any Navy authority to make it more responsible and responsive. Replaces the old NIS, Naval Investigation Service, that did report to the closest admiral.

NEST:
Nuclear Energy Search Team. Non-military unit that reports at once to any spill, problem, or Broken Arrow to determine the extent of the radiation problem.

NEWBIE:
A new man, officer, or commander of an established military unit.

NKSF:
North Korean Special Forces.

NLA:
Iranian National Liberation Army. About 4,500 men in South Iraq, helped by Iraq for possible use against Iran.

Nomex:
The type of material used for flight suits and hoods.

NPIC:
National Photographic Interpretation Center in D.C.

NRO:
National Reconnaissance Office. To run and coordinate satellite development and operations for the intelligence community.

NSA:
National Security Agency.

NSC:
National Security Council. Meets in Situation Room, support facility in the Executive Office Building in D.C. Main security group in the nation.