From Steve Bridges Sci.Military Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) 1. Guidelines for sci.military moderation The purpose of the newsgroup is to provide a forum for discussion of military-related technology. In order to be a proper "sci" group, the discussion must remain technical; occasional sorties into non-technical areas are OK, but they shouldn't become predominant. I find that some topics, such as military history and theory, while non-technical, are fine, so long as they're presented in a logical, intelligent manner. If someone espouses that "The usefulness of battleships in modern naval combat is questionable; these ships serve no useful role", it's a much better presentation than saying, "I think battleships are stupid, and they should court-martial the idiot who OK'd their refits !" The way a statement is worded has a great influence on whether it gets flamed; and therefore, whether it gets posted. Volume also is important; when volume is high, I find myself less tolerant of history and theory topics, and I stick closer to pure tech stuff. The biggest point is to avoid flames, in general. If an author says something stupid, it's OK to post a response point out the errors; but don't be afraid to reject a response which is insulting. If a posting makes a wild, unsupported claim, such as "nuclear weapons are immoral and useless" or "NATO can easily defeat a Soviet attack", don't hesistate to send the article back to the author, asking him to rephrase that remark; it will certainly draw flames if you don't. Bear in mind that impartiality requires you to air all views; if you let a statement such as this go through, and then refuse to post equally-imflammatory responses, you could be accused of being biased. >From experience, I know that it's very easy to overlook such a statement; often, they might not seem imflammatory when read in context, yet another person might be angered by them, and fire off a flame. You just have to draw a line somewhere; if you think a replier is overreacting, tell him so; make it clear that you're willing to post a counterposition, but that it must be flame-free. In general, you should avoid arms-control altogether. The lone exception might be an arms-control posting that deals with technology; i.e., "Salt III says we have to disband our Pershing III's and the Soviets can't build any SS-29's; How do the spec's for those missiles compare ?" SDI is a touchy subject. It's got a lot of good technical content, but it's so politically charged that you have to watch it very carefully. 1A. What about "I've got a school assignment...." Recently, I've been made aware of a USENET policy about posting news articles requsting info for a school assignment. Michael Chui at Indiana University sent me the following info, which I have included almost verbatium and will try to stick to (since I agree with it) --------begin included text-------- From Michael Chui mchui@cs.indiana.edu Excerpt from the Usenet Primer publised in the new.* groups Please do not use Usenet as a resource for homework assignments Usenet is not a resource for homework or class assignments. A common new user reaction to learning of all these people out there holding discussions is to view them as a great resource for gathering information for reports and papers. Trouble is, after seeing a few hundred such requests, most people get tired of them, and won't reply anyway. Certainly not in the expected or hoped-for numbers. Posting student questionnaires automatically brands you a "newbie" and does not usually garner much more than a tiny number of replies. Further, some of those replies are likely to be incorrect. Instead, read the group of interest for a while, and find out what the main "threads" are - what are people discussing? Are there any themes you can discover? Are there different schools of thought? Only post something after you've followed the group for a few weeks, after you have read the Frequently Asked Questions posting if the group has one, and if you still have a question or opinion that others will probably find interesting. If you have something interesting to contribute, you'll find that you gain almost instant acceptance, and your posting will generate a large number of follow-up postings. Use these in your research; it is a far more efficient (and accepted) way to learn about the group than to follow that first instinct and post a simple questionnaire. Actually, I'm not completely opposed to using the Net as a resource for academic research. Being still in academia, I *am* irritated by people who want the Net to do their research for them (and not just because the results are often inaccurate). Basically, I'd reject queries of the form: "Does anyone have any references for X or know anything about Y? I have an assignment to do." (Note that sometimes the student will omit the part about this information being for an assignment, but with practice, such queries become rather easy to recognize.) On the other hand, I'd accept queries like, "I'm researching airship mine technology, and in General Napoleon SchwartzRommel's book _Boom, Der It Is!_, he makes reference to the GedankenSweeper. I've searched my University of Podunk library, but can't find any references to the GedankenSweeper. Could someone give some pointers to references about the propulsion system in the GedankenSweeper?" I'd like the student to show that they've done some work themselves (like go to a library) before they send a message to thousands of people. It all basically comes down to the oft-repeated Net-reminder that "the person on the other side of the message is human." Think of the Net as being an expert on, in sci.military's case, military technology. Would you walk into a military technology expert's office and ask him/her, "Gee, I have this homework assignment to do on X. Can you tell me everything you know about this topic?" Worse yet, would you do this to thousands of people? 2. BRIEF GUIDE TO POSTING If the focus of an article is then I might more oriented to ..... suggest you post it over in ... ------------------------------ ------------------- guns you can tote yourself rec.guns misc other weapons rec.martial-arts explosives/bombs rec.pyrotechnics paintball alt.sport.paintball picture files alt.binaries.pictures.misc cadet questions/ basic training alt.military.cadet Veteran questions soc.veterans. 3. ADDRESSES Most news software should be set up to submit postings via email to sci-military@backbone.usenix.org. If for some reason that this does not work, the following addresses may be used: sci.military@daytonoh.ncr.com military@ranger.daytonoh.ncr.com 4. Is there an e-mail digest? There use to be one, but due to the volume of people who were subscribed to receive the digest, I was forced to discontinue it on 1 December 1992. Please do not send e-mail requesting to be added to the digest list. I will not respond to them. 5. For what reasons are articles rejected? In addition to the guidelines listed in (1), I reject articles for the following reasons -- A. Too much quoted text from a previous poster B. Line length is greater than 80 characters C. Same information has already been provided by another poster I try to e-mail back to each poster whose article has been rejected, but sometimes this is not possible, as some news software (mainly NNTP) separates the real name of the poster from the mail headers it adds, and it takes a lot of time to save the file in a separate file, edit the headers, and generate the reply. 6. ACRONYMS. The military is famous for acronyms, and to help out new readers, a list of common acronyms is below. In addition there is some other info in there that may enhance your understanding of the topics AAA: Anti Aircraft Artillery Aardvark: F-111 fighter-bomber ALCM: Air Launched Cruise Missle Atrite: to loose troops by attrition Apache: AH64 helicopter AWACS: Airborne Warning and Control System Beaches: fighting terrain, arabian deserts Buff: nickname for the B-52 bomber (Big Ugly Fat Fu@*er) Collateral damage: Civ deaths, injuries and unexpected damage Decapitating attack: behind the lines attack on enemy commanders Eagle: F-15 Fighter Electronic jammers: Computer controlled pulses that disarm or disorient radar EPW's: Enemy prisoners of war Fighting Falcon: F-16 Fighter Fur Balls: fliers slang for the hectic tange of Air to Air dogfights Hornet F-18 Fighter Intruder: A-6 attack aircraft Jink: move quickly to evade enemy fire Killsack: Minefeilds or oil filled trenches MIA: Mising In Action NBC: Nuclear, Biological and Chemical weapons Patriot: a type of Anti ballistic missle missle a type of anti-aircraft missile with limited anti-ballistic missile capability Pave Tack: Infrared laser system for pinpointing targets POW: Prisoner Of War Prowler: EA-6B Electronic warfare fighter (NAVY) Raven: EF-111A Electronic warfare fighter (USAF) SLAM: Standoff Land Attack Missle Smart Bombs: self piloted microchip controlled weapon Sortie: a single mission flown by a single military aircraft Thunderbolt II: A-10A Attack Aircraft (Tank Killer)(SCUD Hunter) Tomcat: F-14 Fighter Tomahawk: Navy's cruise missle Warthog: Nickname for the USAF A-10A Wild Weasel: F-4G Fighter (SAM site Killer) Zulu: Greenwhich Mean time (0000 Zulu = 7 P.M EST = 3 A.M. Bagdad) 7. Soviet Acronyms: Surface combatants BPK Bol'shoy protivolodochniy korabl' (large anti-submarine ship) BRK Bol'shoy raketniy korabl' (large rocket ship) EM Eskadrenniy minonosets (destroyer) KR Kreyser (cruiser) KRU Korabl' upravleniye (command ship) PKR Protivolodochniy kreyser (anti-submarine cruiser) RAKR Atomnaya raketniy kreyser (nuclear rocket cruiser) RKR Raketniy kreyser (rocket cruiser) TAKR Takticheskoye avianosniy kreyser (tactical aircraft-carrying cruiser) Submarines PL Podvodnaya lodka (patrol submarine) PLA Atomnaya podvodnaya lodka (nuclear attack submarine) PLAP Atomnaya protivolodochnaya podlodka (nuclear hunter-killer submarine) PLARB Atomnaya podlodka raketnaya ballisticheskaya (nuclear ballistic missile submarine) PLARK Atomnaya podlodka raketnaya krilataya (nuclear cruise missile submarine) PLK Podlodka raketnaya krilataya (cruise missile submarine) Patrol/attack vessels MPK Maliy protivolodochniy korabl' (small anti-submarine ship) MRK Maliy raketniy korabl' (small rocket ship) PSKR Pogranichniy storozhevoy korabl' (border patrol ship) RKA Raketniy kater (rocket cutter) SKR Storozhevoy korabl' (patrol ship) TKA Torpedniy kater (torpedo cutter) Mine warfare vessels BT Bazoviy tral'shchik (base minesweeper) MT Morskoy tral'shchik (seagoing minesweeper) RT Reydovoy tral'shchik (roadstead minesweeper) ZM Zagraditel' minniy (minelayer) Amphibious warfare vessels BDK Bol'shoy desantniy korabl' (large landing ship) DK Desantniy korabl' (landing ship) SDK Sredniy desantniy korabl' (medium landing ship) Auxiliary vessels PB Plovuchaya baza (floating base) PM Plovuchaya masterskaya (floating workshop) VT Voyenniy transport (military transport) 8. U.S. Navy ship acronyms Abbr. Type --- -------------------- AE Ammunition Ship AFS Fleet Stores Ship AK General Cargo Ship AO Oiler AP Troop Ship (non-landing) APD Fast Destroyer Transport AR Repair Ship AVT Aircraft Carrier (Training) BB Battleship BC Battlecruiser BCGN Nuclear-powered Guided Missile Battlecruiser CA Heavy (armored) Cruiser CAH Through-Deck Cruiser (e.g. HMS _Invincible_) CB Big Cruiser (e.g. US WW2 era _Alaska_ class) CG Guided Missile Cruiser CGN Nuclear-powered Guided Missile Cruiser CL Light Cruiser CS Seaplane Tender (WW2 usage) CS Strike Cruiser (post-WW2 usage) CV Aircraft Carrier (conventional power) CVA Attack Carrier (post-WW2) CVE Escort Carrier CVH Helicopter Carrier CVL Light Carrier CVN Nuclear-powered Aircraft Carrier CVS Anti-submarine Aircraft Carrier DD Destroyer DDG Guided Missile Destroyer DE Escort Destroyer DMS Destroyer/Minesweeper FF Frigate FFG Guided Missile Frigate FFL Corvette LCC Command Ship. (Used for amphibious operations) LCI Landing Craft - Infantry LCM Landing Craft - Mechanized LCT Landing Craft - Tank LHA Helicopter Assault Ship LST Landing Ship - Tank ML Minelayer MS Minesweeper PC Patrol Corvette/Patrol Craft PG Patrol Gunboat PHM Missile-armed Patrol Hydrofoil PT Torpedo Boat PTM Missile-armed Patrol Boat (Often carries torpedoes as well.) SS Submarine (Conventional Deisel/Electric) SSB Balistic Missile Sub (Convenitonal power) SSBN Nuclear-powered Balistic Missile Submarine SSG Guided Missile Sub (Conventional power) SSGN Nuclear-powered Guided Missile Submarine SSN Nuclear-powered (attack) Submarine 9. RANK STRUCTURES -- Note: Those from other countries are most welcome. I'm especially looking for Great Britain, Germany, Former USSR (or CIS if they kept the same structures), and any other countries! U.S. Rank Structure Pay Grade USAF ARMY USMC USN ---- ---- ---- --------- --------------- E-1 Airman Basic Private(E1) Private Seaman Recruit E-2 Airman Private (E2) Private First Seaman Class [PFC] Apprentice E-3 Airman PFC Lance Corporal Seaman 1st Class E-4 Senior Airman/ Specialist or Corporal Petty Officer Sergeant Corporal 3rd Class E-5 Staff Sergeant Sergeant Sergeant PO 2nd Class E-6 Tech. Sergeant Staff Sgt. Staff Sgt. PO 1st Class E-7 Master Sergeant Sgt 1st Class Gunnery Sgt. Chief PO E-8 Senior Master Master Sgt or Master Sgt or Senior Chief Sergeant 1st Sgt 1st Sgt PO E-9 Chief Master Sgt Major or Master Gunnery Master Chief Sergeant Command SgtMaj Sgt or SgtMaj PO O-1 2nd Lieut. 2nd Lieut. 2nd Lieut Ensign O-2 1st Lieut. 1st Lieut. 1st Lieut Lieut. (JG) O-3 Captain Captain Captain Lieut. O-4 Major Major Major Lieut. Comdr. O-5 Lt. Col. Lt. Col. Lt. Col Commander O-6 Colonel Colonel Colonel Captain O-7 Brig. Gen. Brig. Gen. Brig. Gen. Rear Adm.(Lower) O-8 Maj. Gen Maj. Gen Maj Gen. RAdm (Upper) O-9 Lieut. Gen. Lieut. Gen. Lieut. Gen Vice Adm O-10 General General General Admiral US Coast Guard ranks are the same as for USN. Canadian Rank Structure: CANADA (rank structure in use today) Navy Army Air Force Noncommissioned: Ordinary Seaman Private Private Able Seaman Private Private Leading Seaman Corporal Corporal Master Seaman Master Corporal Master Corporal Petty Officer2 Sergeant Sergeant Petty Officer 1 Warrant-Officer Warrant-Officer Chief P.O. 2 Master W.O. Master W.O. or Sergeant-Maj Chief P.O. 1 Chief W.O. Chief W.O. or Regt Sgt Maj Commissioned: Acting Sub- Second- Second- Lieutenant Lieutenant Lieutenant Sub-Lieutenant Lieutenant Lieutenant Lieutenant Captain Captain Lieutenant- Major Major Commander Commander Lieutenant- Lieutenant- Colonel Colonel Captain Colonel Colonel Commodore Brigadier- Brigadier- General General Rear Admiral Maj Gen Maj Gen Vice Admiral Lt Gen Lt Gen Admiral General General Swedish Rank Structure Army, Air Force, Coastal Artillery Navy Approximate U.S equivalent ----------------- --------- ------------------------- menig Private korpral Corporal furir Sergeant sergeant Master Sergeant fa"nrik 2nd Lieut. / Ensign lo"jtnant 1st Lieut. / Lieut. (JG) kapten Captain / Lieut. major o"rlogskapten Major / Lieut. Cmdr. o"verstelo"jtnant kommendo"rkapten Lt. Col. / Commander o"verste kommendo"r Colonel / Captain o"verste 1 gr. kommendo"r 1 gr. Brig. Gen / Rear Adm. (LH) generalmajor konteramiral Maj. Gen. / Rear Adm. (UH) generallo"jtnant viceamiral Lieut. Gen. / Vice Adm. general amiral General / Admiral German Army Ranks Ranks in the German army come in groups. Everyone in a lower group has to greet everyone in a higher group when he/she (there are women in the Bundeswehr, but so far only as medics and in bands) meets one, and take orders from him(/her). This does not, however, apply within a group (ie a Major would not have to greet or take orders from an Oberstleutnant because of rank alone; then again, there are other categories, like position- if the OTL is in the same unit and commands the M, then he would be greeted, and could give orders), and never outside a military area- if I were still in the army, and stumbled across my korps general in town, I wouldn't be obliged to do so much as say "Hi" - if I recognised him at all, that is. And anyway, we have conscription in Germany and so I am OG d.R. (der Reserve - in reserve), and after basic training I wouldn't greet (militarily) anyone except when on guard duty, and this was entirely normal (I was in a staff company where a lot of officers ran around. Presumably I'd have spent half my time with my hand on my temple otherwise :). We - conscripts - would say "Gruess Gott" (Hello) to our unit commander, an Oberst, and call him "Obi" when no officer listened... Time periods given in the list below are how long you have to enlist total to get to finish with this rank, except where explained differently (ie enlisted men). On paper, people are not promoted because of seniority. They just become eligible for promotion after so-and-so many years. Draw your own conclusions on the influence seniority has on promotions, and promotion expectations, please. rank name group abbreviation Schuetze, Jaeger, Panzergrenadier, Panzer- Mannschaften S, J, PG, PS, P schuetze, Pionier, Sanitaetssoldat... SanS (?) Unterster Mannschaftsdienstgrad, if refer- lowest enlisted red to in regulation, as there are several rank names for different kinds of troops; Schuet- ze covers all support troops except as men- tioned; Jaeger is paras and mountain troops (Fallschirmjaeger and Gebirgsjaeger, respec- tively, but I think they are addressed just as "Jaeger", too), and light infantry; Pan- zergrenadier is mechanised infantry; Panzer- schuetze is armoured troops; Pionier is com- bat engineer; Sanitaetssoldat is combat pa- ramedic. Gefreiter (usually after six months of service) G Obergefreiter (after another six months) OG Stabsgefreiter (only for volunteers serving SG ? longer time, max 8 years!) (or upon leaving service even for conscripts if you get your personnel officer to do a lot of paperwork and bend some rules and give the boss a reason to promote you to it, anyway) Unteroffizier (must be volunteer, 2+ years) Unteroffiziere U, Uffz Stabsunteroffizier (four years minimum?) SU, StUffz Feldwebel (up to eight years?) Feldwebel Fw Oberfeldwebel (up to eight years?) OF, OFw Hauptfeldwebel (should be 12 years or life) HF, HFw Stabsfeldwebel (only if for life) SF, SFw Leutnant (officers are enlisted for six years. Leutnant L During this time they study at a university of the army, where they obtain a civilian degree, Masters level, like in management or engineer- ing. If they fail there, they're dismissed as Leutnant after six years. Otherwise their time is automatically prolonged to twelve years, and they should eventually become Hauptmann). Oberleutnant (I'm not sure whether the L or the H OL, OLt stand alone in a group. I tend towards the H, though) Hauptmann (needs 12 years) Hauptmann H, Hptm Major (all following grades need at least twelve Stabsoffiziere M years, and I do not think you can become anything higher than Major if you do not stay in for life - there is no third alternative between these two). Oberstleutnant OTL Oberst O Brigadegeneral (there isn't really such a thing as a "Generale My unit rank group. Each of them would theoretically have to greet any did not higher-ranking general- well, theoretically). have any of these Generalmajor so I do not know Generalleutnant them... General Shoulder patches are one to four diagonal stripes for Mannschaften, an overturned U for Uffze, closed by a bar for Stuffze, one to three silver stars for Offze (Offiziere: L - H), one to three silver stars with silver oak leaves for Stoffze, and one to four golden stars with oak leaves for generals. There is a little coloured band on the shoulder patch in a troop type specific colour- pink for Panzer, green for Jaeger, blue for Maintenance and Transport,... Most troops wear red berets; Jaeger and Panzergrenadiere have green ones and Panzertruppe black ones. Sanis (medics) have blue ones. The Luftwaffe don't have any, they wear the "Schiffchen" (like a little ship you can fold out of a sheet of paper, overturned). Rumour had it some time ago they'd get yellow berets... On the berets is a metal insignia identifying the exact troop type, eg artillery, maintenance, transport (yes, doesn't match with the above), psychological warfare, what you want... ODDITIES: pilots usually have to stay longer because they are more expensive to train (both fixed-wing and helicopter). In the Luftwaffe (air force) the lowest rank is "Flieger", but afterwards it seems to go on pretty much like in the army. The Bundesmarine (navy) should of course have its own lowest enlisted rank though I don't know it; for sure they call the Feldwebel Bootsmann, and I think they have different levels of Kapitaen (as equivalent of Stoffz levels, I think). I'm sure again that in place of Generale, they have Admirale (various levels, one of which is Flotillenadmiral). The medics have a prefix of San- (short for Sanitaets-, meaning medical xxx) for their Uffze. Their Hauptmann is a Stabsarzt, and from then on they have some combination of rank and -arzt, meaning doctor. While prospecitve Offze and Uffze do their basic training they have enlisted ranks with the suffix OA for Offiziersanwaerter (officer-to-be) or UA for Unteroffiziersanwaerter (Uffz in the making). OAs wear a silver band on their shoulder patch. I have forgotten what identifies UAs. Somewhere in that Faehnrich (F, Fhr) and Oberfaehnrich (OFhr) fit in. These are intermediary ranks between xx OA and Lt. I honestly do not remember where they fit into the groups, but theoretically I had to greet them as an OG. If Fw want to become Officer they can, but only as "Offizier des Militaerfachlichen Dienstes", and can then have only certain special positions, and are promoted much slower, to Hptm maximum. There is no way to recognise these guys from the outside, except that they are far too old for their rank :). Royal Navy Rank Structure RN rank structure. Junior Seaman Ordinary Seaman Able Seaman Leading Seaman (sl 'killick') Petty Officer Chief Petty Officer Warrant Officer RAF Officers Army Officers Midshipman Pilot Officer 2nd Lt Sub Lieutenant Flying Officer Lt Lieutenant Flight Lieutenant Captain Lt Commander Squadron Leader Major Commander Wing Commander Lt Colonel Captain Group Captain Colonel Commodore Air Commodore Brigadier Rear Admiral Major General Vice Admiral Air Vice Marshall Lt General Admiral Air Marshall General Admiral of the Fleet Air Chief Marshall Field Marshall The RN rank of Commodore is held by Captains in certain jobs thus Captain- Rr Adml is the normal promotion. British army rank titles for ncos vary from regiment to regiment. 10. More Acronyms 1MC - [One-M-C] Ship's Primary Broadcast System AAW - Antiaircraft Warfare ACB - Amphibious Construction Battalion ADAC - Acoustic Data Analysis Center ADCOM - Administrative Command ADIZ - Air Defense Identification Zone ADS - Advanced Deployable System ADSW - Antidiesel Submarine Warfare AEW - Airborne Early Warning AIMD - Avionics Integrated Maintenance Department ALNAV - [All Navy] Message for distrubution to all naval personnel ALUSNA - U.S. Naval Attache (followed by location, e.g., ALUSNA, London) AMDP - Aircraft Maintenance Delayed For Parts ANFE - Aircraft Not Fully Equipped ANGLICO - Air and Naval Gunfire Liaison Company AOC - Aviation Officer Cadet AOCP - Aircraft Out-of-Commission for Parts APFSDS-DU Armor Penetrating Fin Stabilised Discarding Sabot - Depleted Uranium ARG - Amphibious Ready Group ASOC - Air Support Operations Center ASROC - Antisubmarine Rocket ASTOVL - Advanced Short Takeoff/Vertical Landing ASUW - Antisurface Warfare ASVAB - Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (was GCT) ASW - Antisubmarine Warfare ATO - Air Tasking Order AUTEC - Atlantic Undersea Test and Evaluation Center AWOL - Absent Without Leave BADRA - Blackhawk and Assigned Destroyers Reunion Association (Asiatic) BAI - Battlefield Air Interdiction BARCAP - Barrier Combat Air Patrol BCD - Bad Conduct Discharge BDA - Bomb Damage Assessment BDS - Battle Dressing Station BLT - Battalion Landing Team BNEP - Basic Naval Establishment Plan BT - Bathythermograph BUSANDA - Bureau of Supplies And Accounts C(4)I - Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence CAG - Carrier Air Group CAP - Combat Air Patrol CARQUAL - Carrier Qualification CAS - Close Air Support CASREP - Casualty Report CB - Construction Batallion (Seabee) CBI - Computer Based Instruction CBMU - Maintenance Unit Construction Battalion CBR - Chemical, Biological, and Radiological CC - Tactical Command Ship CCA - Carrier Controlled Approach CCIR - Commander's Critical Information Requirement CEP - Circular Error Probable CIC - Combat Information Center CNO - Chief of Naval Operations (The Most Senior Navy Officer) CO - Commanding Officer COD - Carrier Onboard Delivery COLREGS - International Nautical Rules of the Road COM - Prefix referencing the "Commander" of a Command (not the Command) COMRATS - Commuted Rations CONUS - Continental United States COOP - Craft-Of-Opportunity Program CRUD - Corrosive, Radioactive, Undetermined Deposit (nuclear Navy) CS - Commissaryman (now MS) CSAR - Combat Search And Rescue CSMP - Current Ship's Maintenance Project CTE - Commander, Task Element CTF - Commander, Task Force CTG - Commander, Task Group CTU - Commander, Task Unit CVBG - Carrier Battle Group CW - Carrier Wave D-DAY - Day on which an operation is to commence DAB - Defense Acquisition Board DADCAP - Dawn and Dusk Combat Air Patrol DASH - Drone Antisubmarine Helicopter DDS - Digital Data System DECM - Defensive Electronic Countermeasures DMA - Defense Mapping Agency DOD - Department of Defense DR - Dead Reckoning DRT - Dead Reckoning Tracer DSRV - Deep-Submergence Rescue Vehicle DTG - Date-Time-Group EAB - Emergency Air Breathing (Mask) ECM - Electronic Countermeasures EDO - Engineering Duty Officer EFPH - Equivalent Full-Power Hours EHF - Extremely High Frequency ELF - Extremely Low Frequency EOD - Explosive Ordnance Disposal EOOW - Engineering Officer Of the Watch EP - Estimated Position EPANS - Enlisted Personnel Allocation and Nomination System ESM - Electronic Support Measure ESR - Equivalent Service Round ETC - Electrothermal Chemical (Guns) FAST - Fast Automatic Shuttle Transfer System FBM - Fleet Ballistic Missile FIFO - First-In-First-Out FLIR - Forward Looking Infrared FLY(#) - Flight Deck Subdivisions (Fly 1, Fly 2, and Fly 3) FMF - Fleet Marine Force FOD - Foreign Object Damage FOUR-0 - Perfect FPV - Force Projection Vehicle FRAM - Fleet Rehabilitation And Modernization (Program) FSCL - Fire Support Coordination Line FXR - Foxer Gear GCA - Ground-Controlled Approach GCI - Ground-Controlled Interception GCT - General Classification Test (now ASVAB) GEM - Ground Effects Machine GEOREF - Geographical Reference (System) GHA - Greenwich Hour Angle GLORIA - Geographical Long Range Inclined Asdic GQ - General Quarters (Battle Stations) H-HOUR - Time at which an operation is to commence (usually on D-DAY) HALO High Altitude Low Opening - SF parachute insertion technique HCS - Helicopter Combat Support HEAT Tank ammo - High Explosive Anti-Tank HESH Tank ammo - High Explosive Squash Head HHW - Higher High Water HIHO High Insertion High Opening - SF parachute insertion technique HILO High Insertion Low Opening - another name for HALO HLW - Higher Low Water HUK - Hunter-Killer Force HZ - Hertz IADS - Integrated Air Defense System IFF - Identification, Friend or Foe ILW - International Low Water IMC - Image/Motion Compensation JAG - Judge Advocate General JAN - Joint Army-Navy JATO - Jet-Assisted Take-Off JFACC - Joint Force Air Component Commander JFC - Joint Task Force Commander JLRSS - Joint Long Range Strategic Study JOOD - Junior Officer Of the Deck JOOW - Junior Officer Of the Watch JPATS - Joint Primary Aircraft Training System (USN & USAF) JSCP - Joint Strategic Capabilities Plan JSOP - Joint Strategic Objectives Plan JTF - Joint Task Force LAMPS - Light Airborne MultiPurpose System LAN - Local Apparent Noon LDO - Limited Duty Officer LFA - Low Frequency Active LHW - Lower High Water LIDAR - Laser-Light-Detection-And-Ranging LLW - Lower Low Water LORAD - Long-Range Active Detection (System) LPO - Leading Petty Officer LTA - Lighter-Than-Air LW - Low Water MAA - Master-At-Arms MAD - Magnetic Airborne Detector MAD - Magnetic Anomaly Detection MAD - Mutual Assured Destruction MAG - Maritime Action Group MAGTF - Marine Air-Ground Task Force MCB - Mobile Construction Battalion MCM - Mine Countermeasures MEB - Marine Expeditionary Brigade MEF - Marine Expeditionary Force MERCAST - Merchant Ship Broadcast System MEREP - Merchant Ship Report MEU - Marine Expeditionary Unit MIFASS - Marine Integrated Fire and Air Support System MILSTRIP - Military Standard Requisitioning and Issuing Procedures MK - Mark (specific equipment designation - followed by MOD) MLRS - Multiple Launch Rocket System MOD - Model or Modification (variety of MK) MOS - Military Occupational Specialty MPA - Maritime Patrol Aircraft MRC - Movement Report Center MRO - Movement report Office MS - Mess Management Specialist (was CS) MSB - Minesweeping Boat MSC - Military Sealift Command MTACCS - Marine Tactical Command and Control System MTI - Moving Target Indicator NAAS - Naval Auxiliary Air Station NAF - Naval Air Facility NAS - Naval Air Station NATF - Navy Advanced Tactical Fighter NAVALT - Naval Alteration NAVSAT - Navy (Navigation) Satellite (System) NDRF - National Defense Reserve Fleet NEC - Navy Enlisted Classification (Code) NEWRADS - Nuclear Explosion Warning and Radiological Data System NEX - Navy Exchange NFO - Naval Flight Officer NFST - National Fleet Surgical Team NMPC - Naval Military Personnel Command NOL - Naval Ordnance Laboratory NOMAD - Navy Oceanographic and Meteorological Automatic Device NOS - National Ocean Survey NOTAL - Not To (nor needed by) All NOTAMS - Notice to Airmen NROTC - Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps NSFO - Navy Standard Fuel Oil (i.e., Black Oil) NSFS - Naval Surface Fire Support NTDO - Navy Technical Data Office NUC - Navy Unit Commendation NVG - Night Vision Goggles OBA - Oxygen Breathing Apparatus OBOGS - On-Board Oxygen Generating System OCONUS - Outside Continental United States ODR - Omnidirection Range OOD - Officer Of the Deck OOW - Officer Of the Watch OPCON - Operational Control OPNAV - Entire Pentagon staff under control of the CNO OPORD - Operation Order OPPLAN - Operation Plan ORE - Operational Readiness Evaluation ORI - Operational Readiness Inspection PAE - Program Analysis & Evaluation PAL - Prisoner At Large PDL - Pass Down the Line (Book) PDR - Periscope Detection Radar PECM - Passive Electronic Countermeasures POD - Plan Of the Day PPI - Plan Position Indicator PUC - Presidential Unit Citation QM - Quartermaster RADAR - Radio Detection And Ranging RADIAC - Radioactivity Detection, Indication, And Computation RATAN - Radio And Television Aid to Navigation RATT - Radioteletype RAWIN - Radar Wind Sounding RAWINSONDE - Radar Wind Sounding and Radiosonde RCM - Radio Countermeasures RDF - Radio Direction Finder RECSHIP - Receiving Ship RECSTA - Receiving Station RESCAP - Rescue Combat Air Patrol RO/RO - Roll-On/Roll-Off ROC - Reserve Officer Candidate ROTC - Reserve Officer Training Corps SAR - Search And Rescue SAU - Search and Attack Unit SCN - Shipbuilding and Conversion Navy SDI - Strategic Defense Initiative SEAL - Sea, Air, Land SEBS - Submarine Emergency Buoyancy System SECNAV - The Secretary of the Navy SELF - Submarine Extremely Low Frequency SERB - Selective Early Retirement Board SERVFOR - Service Force SES - Surface Effect Ship SEW - Space and Electronic Warfare SHF - Super High Frequency SHIPALT - Ship Alteration SIV - Special Interest Vehicle SK - Storekeeper SLAM - Standoff Land Attack Missle SLCM - Submarine Launched Cruise Missle SLEP - Service Life Extension Program SLOC - Sea Lines Of Communication SLR - Side Looking Radar SNAP - Shipboard Nontactical Automated Data Processing SNAPII - Shipboard Nontactical Automated Data Processing - 2nd Generation SOBT - Submarine On-Board Training SOFA - Status Of Forces Agreement SOFAR - Sounding, Fixing, And Ranging SONAR - Sound Navigation And Ranging SOP - Senior Officer Present SOP - Standard Operating Procedure SOPA - Senior Officer Present Afloat SORD - Submerged Ordnance Recovery Device SP - Shore Patrol SPC - Specific Fuel Consumption SSBN - Fleet Ballistic Missle Submarine SSC - Supply Systems Command STOL - Short Take-Off/Landing SUBCAP - Submarine Combat Air Patrol SUBROC - Submarine Rocket TACAN - Tactical Air Navigation TACGRU - Tactical Air Control Group TACRON - Tactical Air Control Squadron TAD - Temporary Additional Duty TAO - Tactical Action Officer TAR - Reservist on Active duty for Training TASM - Tomahawk Conventional Antishipping Missle TERF - Terrain Flight TLAM - Tomahawk Conventional Land Attack Missle TO - Table of Organization UA - Unauthorized Absence UAV - Unmanned Aerial Vehicle UCMJ - Uniform Code of Military Justice UDT - Underwater Demolition Team UHF - Ultra High Frequency UNREP - Underway Replenishment USNI - United States Naval Institute USNR - United States Navy Reserve USNR(R) - United States Navy Reserve (Ready) USNS - United States Naval Ship USS - United States Ship UUV - Unmanned Undersea Vehicle VERTREP - Vertical Replenishment VHF - Very High Frequency VLF - Very Low Frequency VOR - Very High Frequency Omnidirectional Range VORTAC - Very High Frequency Omnidirectional Range & Tactical Air Navigation VPR - Virtual PPI Reflectoscope VSTOL - Vertical Short Take-Off/Landing VT - Variable Time (Proximity) Fuze WIG - Wing-In-Ground (Effect) XO - Executive Officer (slang) SS - Silent Service or Submersable Ship SSN - Submersable Ship Nuclear (fast attack sub) 11. U.S. DOD DESIGNATION SYSTEM DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE PUBLICATION 4120.15-L MISSION, DESIGN, AND SERIES SYSTEM (MDS) The current military vehicle designation system for military aircraft was introduced as a standard for all services in 1962. It is used for three purposes: 1) Aircraft 2) Guided missiles, rockets, boosters, and satellites 3) Electronic equipment The system consists of designations of the following type: XXXX-...X (-..-XX) where X indicates a letter, and . indicates a number. Not all letters are used all the time. 1) AIRCRAFT DESIGNATIONS: Starting at the first dash in the designation above, and moving to the LEFT, we encounter: VEHICLE TYPE: It indicates the type of vehicle at hand, e.g. helicopter, V/STOL. For normal aircraft, this designator is NOT used. (Example: the SH-2F uses the H to indicate it is a helicopter. The F-16A is a regular aircraft, and does not have a vehicle type designator). G - Glider H - Helicopter S - Spaceplane V - VTOL/STOL Z - Lighter than air BASIC MISSION: This is the most important designator. It indicates the primary design task of the aircraft. (Example: The B-1B uses a B because it is a bomber). A - Attack B - Bomber C - Cargo/ transport E - Special electronic installation F - Fighter O - Observation P - Patrol R - Reconnaissance: ER - Electronic Reconnaissance SR - Strategic Reconnaissance TR - Tactical Reconnaissance S - Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) T - Trainer U - Utility X - Research MODIFIED MISSION: Indicates the vehicle has been modified for a specific mission. Only one modified mission symbol is allowed. The modified mission symbol precedes the basic mission symbol. A - Attack C - Cargo/ transport D - Drone director E - Special electronic installation F - Fighter H - Search and Rescue (SAR) K - Tanker (from Kerosine tanker) L - Cold weather M - Multi-mission O - Observation P - Patrol Q - Drone R - Reconnaissance S - Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) T - Trainer U - Utility V - Staff/ VIP transport W - Weather STATUS PREFIX: Indicates that the vehicle is not standard due to tests, modifications, or experiments. This prefix precedes the modified and basic mission symbols. G - Permanently grounded J - Special test temporary N - Special test permanent X - Experimental Y - Prototype Z - Planning Returning to the first dash, and moving RIGHT, we encounter: DESIGN NUMBER: Supposedly in sequential order, it indicates the model aircraft within the basic mission catagorie. For example, C-20D, C-21A, C-22A, C-23B, EC-24A, VC-25A, C-26A, C-27A, etc. Obviously, the order is not always sequential, e.g. F-23, F-111, F-117. SERIES: Indicates alphabetically major modifications to the original design, which is indicated by the A. For example, the F-16B is a major modification of the F-16A. I and O are skipped. Then we officially encounter another dash, and two more designators. These are not used very often, however, and are not always indicated on the aircraft. Moving to the right from the dash, we find: BLOCK NUMBER: Indicates the block of identical aircraft to which the aircraft belonges. (another dash) MANUFACTURER IDENTIFICATION CODE: Indicates the manufacturer. Let's take an example: NKC-135A ||| | | Status prefix ----------------------------+|| | | || | | Modified mission --------------------------+| | | | | | Basic mission ------------------------------+ | | | | Design number ---------------------------------+ | | Series ------------------------------------------+ Sometimes, the block number and manufacturer code are added to the designation: F-4G-43-MC | || | | Basic mission ----------------------------+ || | | || | | Design number ------------------------------+| | | | | | Series --------------------------------------+ | | | | Block number ----------------------------------+ | | Manufacturer--------------------------------------+ 2) GUIDED MISSILES, ROCKETS, BOOSTERS, AND SATTELITES: Starting at the first dash in the designation above, and moving to the LEFT, we encounter: VEHICLE TYPE: Indicates the type of (unmanned) vehicle. B - Booster M - Guided missile or drone N - Probe R - Rocket S - Satellite BASIC MISSION: This is the most important designator. It indicates the primary design task of the vehicle. C - Cargo/ transport D - Decoy E - Electronic or communication G - Surface attack I - Intercept aerial or space L - Launch detection or surveillance M - Scientific/ calibration N - Navigation Q - Drone S - Space support T - Training U - Underwater attack W - Weather LAUNCH ENVIRONMENT: Type of launching platform. A - Air B - Multiple C - Coffin F - Individual G - Runway H - Silo stored L - Silo launched M - Mobile P - Soft pad R - Ship S - Space U - Underwater STATUS PREFIX: C - Captive D - Dummy J - Special test temporary M - Modified N - Special test permanent X - Experimental Y - Prototype Z - Planning The same rules as for aircraft apply to the rest of the designation, except for the block and manufacturer. This might be replaced by a CONFIGURATION NUMBER, which indicates a modification. Let's take an example: AIM-9L ||| || Launch environment -----------------------+|| || || || Basic mission -----------------------------+| || | || Vehicle type -------------------------------| || || Design number --------------------------------+| | Series ----------------------------------------+ 3) ELECTRONIC EQUIPMENT: Starting at the first dash in the designation above, and moving to the LEFT, we encounter: PURPOSE: The primary task of this electronic equipment. A - Auxilary assemblies B - Bombing C - Communications D - Direction finding, recon, and/or surveillance E - Ejection and/or release G - Fire control or light finding H - Recording or reproducing K - Computing M - Maintenance or test assemblies N - Navigational aids Q - Special or combinations of purposes R - Receiving/ passive detecting S - Detecting and/or range bearing, search T - Transmitting W - Automatic flight or remote control X - Identification and recognition Y - Surveillance and control EQUIPMENT TYPE: A - Infrared or invisible light C - Carrier (wire) D - Radiac E - Nupac F - Photographic G - Telegraph or teletype I - Interphone or public address J - Electromechanical or inertial wire covered K - Telemetering L - Countermeasure M - Meteorological N - Sound in air P - Radar Q - Sonar and underwater sound R - Radio S - Special types, magnetic combination of types T - Telephone (wire) V - Visual or visible light W - Armament X - Facsimile or TV Y - Data processing PLATFORM/ INSTALLATION: A - Airborne (piloted aircraft) B - Underwater mobile (submarine) C - Air transportable D - Pilotless carrier F - Fixed (ground) G - General purpose use K - Amphibious M - Ground mobile P - Portable S - Water T - Ground transportable U - General utility assemblies V - Ground vehicular W - Water surface and underwater combination Z - Piloted and pilotless airborne combination JOINT SERVICE INDICATOR: AN - Joint services The same rules as for aircraft apply to the rest of the designation, except for the block and manufacturer. This might be replaced by a VARIABLE GROUPING, which indicates a modification. Let's take an example: AN/APG-68A | ||| || Approved for joint services -------------+ ||| || ||| || Installation ------------------------------+|| || || || Equipment type -----------------------------+| || | || Purpose -------------------------------------+ || || Design number ----------------------------------+| | Series ------------------------------------------+ 12. Military Associations The Marine Corps Association maintains a military book store with an extensive collection of interest to the military reader. Their selection includes many books addressing military issues not explicitly connected to the Marine Corps. A free catalog of current listings may be obtained by writing to: Marine Corps Association (attn: Book Service) Box 1775, Quantico VA 22134 The book store may also be reached by telephone at: local (Northern Virginia) 703.640.6161 Autovon 278.3171 Toll Free 1.800.336.0291 FAX 703.640.0823 Major topic areas listed in the catalog (of 1993) include: MARINE CORPS HISTORY AND HERITAGE AVIATION * CIVIL WAR ** WORLD WAR II KOREA VIETNAM MIDDLE EAST GENERAL READING REFERENCE LEADERSHIP * The largest population group of Marine officers are pilots. This often comes as a surprise to people who think of the Marine Corps as light infantry only. ** For those with a Southern background, such as Texas Aggies, this is what the Yankees call the War of Northern Aggression. There is also a gift shop that carries a variety of flags, posters, postcards, videos, and boardgames. The MCA bookstore can also provide formal and informal calling cards. This information is provided solely for the benefit of the users of sci.military and other related electronic media. I have no official connection with the MCA book service. -- Steve Bridges, sci.military moderator|AT&T Global Information Solutions military@ranger.daytonoh.ncr.com | WorldWide Information Systems Phone: 513-445-4486 VP 622-4486 | Campus Lan Administration Fax: 513-445-1933 622-1933 (VP)__| PP-ASEL,AMEL "I want a P-38 type rating"