Glossary

ICTZ: The acronym used for I Corp Tactical Zone the northern most military zone in Vietnam. Pronounced'eye core' (see maps pages)

IFFV: The acronym used for 1st Field Forces Vietnam. One of the two original Corp level commands in Vietnam from 1966 to 1971 in 1968 a 3rd command was added.

IICTZ: The acronym used for II Corp Tactical Zone, which included the Central Highlands. Pronounced 'two core' (see maps pages)

IIFFV: The acronym used for 2nd Field Forces Vietnam. One of the two original Corp level commands in Vietnam from 1966 to 1971 in 1968 a 3rd command was added.

IIICTZ: The acronym used for III Corp Tactical Zone. Pronounced 'three core' (see maps pages)

Illum, or Light Round: Short for illumination round. A projectile which base ejects a parachute suspended flare to light up an area.

IVCTZ: The acronym used for IV Corp Tactical Zone the southern most military zone. Pronounced 'four core' (see maps pages)

Killing Radius: A distance from the exploding round that had a high expectation of killing an above ground enemy. A 155mm HE round had a 100% killing radius of 50 meters. At 200 meters it still had a 50% capability.

LZ: Abbreviation used for Landing Zone. This term was often wrongly used as meaning the same as Firebase or Fire Support Base when in fact; most firebases had LZ's. Strictly, the term LZ means a place for insertion and extraction of troops and material. It may be a natural clearing in the vegetation large enough to land one or more helicopters or it may have been created by the use of a Daisy Cutter Bomb.

Mil: An arc described by two intersecting lines whose distance apart at one kilometer is 100 meters. There are 6400 mils to a full circle, versus 360 degrees.

Mortar: A high angle crew served weapon that fired exploding rounds of various sizes. U.S. mortars used in Vietnam were 60mm, 81mm, and 4.2 inch, called a "four duece." NVA used 60mm, 82mm, and 140mm mortars

Munitions: The collective name given to all powder, primers, projos and small arms ammunition.

Muzzle: The exit point of a Projo from the cannon barrel.

NCO: Abbreviation for Non-Commissioned Officer, those with ranks of Sgt. E-5 thru Sgt. E-9.

ORLL's: The acronym used for Operational Report-Lessons Learned. The official record of an organization usually stored in the National Archives. Normally produced by the parent organization from reports submitted by the subordinate units. The official records for the 1/92nd Field Artillery in Vietnam can be found in the ORLL's of the 52nd Artillery Group. ORLL's are done quarterly i.e. every 3 (three) months.

Pallets: 155mm rounds came in groups of eight, with wooden pallets top, and bottom. Getting the rounds to the guns was only the beginning of their usefulness. From building material, to furniture, their use was limited only by a persons imagination.

PD: Point detonating. A fuze that detonates upon impact.

Phonetic Alphabet: The alphabet used by the military in an effort to keep from being confused by numerous items in the English language that sound similar or the same. For example, the letter "C" when said over the two-way radio could be mistaken for the letter "B" or "D," so instead we would say "Charlie" or"Bravo" or"Delta"

Pig, Pigs: Slang term used for the M114A1 Howitzer, Medium, Towed 155mm.

Plt, PLT: Abbreviation for Platoon, generally 2 Howitzers (or Guns)

Primer: A device that looks a lot like a blank cartridge for igniting the powder charge.

Propelling Charge: Another name for the Powder Charge for propelling the projectile toward it's target.

Proximity Fuze: Also called a VT fuze, a proximity fuze used the time set on its scale, to arm the projectile. Using radar, it senses when it is within 20 meters of an object, and detonates.

PSP: Abbreviation for Perforated Steel Planking. Large sheets of interlocking steel panels normally used for building airstrips without having to pave them. The artillery used them to form the roofs of their hooch's and bunkers for their munitions.

Quadrant: Elevation, zero being horizontal. The 155mm howitzer could not only fire high angle, but could depress the tube slightly below horizontal.