Dawson's TechnoBabble Glossary Version 3.0
This is a glossary of terms that I've used in my three novels and dozens of short stories; it covers military. intelligence and police terms. Terms appearing in blue bold are creations of the author's imagination. Questions and corrections can be addressed to drambo@sonic.net.
1MC Communication system aboard submarines; made famous by the "now hear this, now hear this" scenes in WWII movies.
AMEMB Milspeak for American Embassy
AN/PRU-12H Personal Recon Unit Photosensitive device that can detect magic "pixie dust" sprinkled on unsuspecting targets.
 
Angels Air Traffic Control shorthand for ‘altitude.’
ANP-6 Night vision goggles
Answering Bells When the engine room of a US Navy ship tells the bridge or conn that they are ready to provide the speed (full, flank, etc.) requested.
Anti-Crime Unit within the NYPD staffed by plainclothes officers (not detectives) responsible for countering street-level crimes such as purse-snatching, robbery, etc. Detectives tend to use Ant-crime to blend into the crowd at crime scene in an effort to get a grasp on the street buzz.
Article 32 The section of the UCMJ that deals with investigations prior to bringing courts martial. Roughly the same as a civilian Grand Jury, but with broader investigative and subpoena powers. Additionally, the defendant (the person or persons being investigated,) are present at the Article 32, which is not the case at a Grand Jury.
ASAFHP As Soon As Fucking Humanly Possible.
BCI Bureau of Criminal Information. The central repository of all prior investigation, arrest and conviction records of the NYPD.
Beef Criminal charge or complaint. A "Murder beef" is a murder charge. Also refers to a complaint, as in someone filing a report of a criminal activity with the police department.
Big Spooky NRO satellite that can listen in on conversations inside a specific house.
BOLO Be On The Lookout. Not really used anymore, except in episodes of The West Wing.
BOQ Bachelor Officer’s Quarters. Dorm-room-style "apartments" provided by the military for the housing of its umarried officers.
Box, The Device that allows the opening of portals between paralell universes.
Borough New York City term for a county. The City of New York is made up of five counties: Manhattan (actually New York County,) Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island.
Boss, Bosses Generic NYPD term for any supervisor, but usually refers to Lieutenants and above.
BSU Behavioral Sciences Unit - FBI unit charged with profiling serial criminals. The unit has gone through so many name changes by this point that the entry makes no sense. BSU in my stories refers to the folks that do the criminal profiles.
Budweiser Nickname for the qualification badge worn by US Navy SEALs. Originally, Enlisted Men wore a silver Budweiser and officers gold; now all SEALs wear the gold Budweiser. (link)
BUPERS US Navy Bureau of Personnel.
C17 USAF transport plane
C5A USAF transport plane
Camp Peary Supersecret CIA training facility located in the Virginia countryside.
Catching Which detective is next up on the "wheel," or, who is due to be assigned the next incoming case.
Central NYPD Radio Dispatch. "Central" can mean many things to different NYPD officers. For citywide squads, that is, detective or other tactical/special units that have pervue over the entire city, "Central" is the NYPD radio room. For borough, or county, units, "Central" is the radio dispatch for their borough or county.
CINCPAC Commander in Chief, Pacific. Supreme Commander of ALL US Forces in the Pacific. Not necessarily a US Navy officer. Note: Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfield has forbidden the use of the term "Commander in Chief" for any military command; his position is that there is only one Commander in Chief, the President of the United States. The new title for this position is Commander, US Pacific Command.
CINCPACFLT Commander in Chief, Pacific Fleet. Supreme US Navy commander of all ships, boats, planes and personnel in the Pacific. Note: Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfield has forbidden the use of the term "Commander in Chief" for any military command; his position is that there is only one Commander in Chief, the President of the United States. The new title for this position is Commander, Pacific Fleet.
CNO Chief, Naval Operations. The US Navy’s highest ranking uniformed officer.
CNWDI Critical Nuclear Weapons Design Information
Combat Infantry Badge (CIB) US Army qualification award worn by Infantry officers and enlisted men who have served 90 days or more in ‘sustained combat operations.’ Also awarded automatically in conjunction with the Purple Heart for any wound suffered ‘in battle.’ A recent (in the last 10 years or so,) change in the regulations by the Department of the Army now allows officers and enlisted men assigned to Special Forces to be awarded the CIB.
COMINT Communications Intelligence
Comp,
Comped Complimentary		 Hotels sometimes provide services free to some guests that other guests are charged for as a way of securing future business, or for returning favors.
COMSUBLANT Commander, Submarine Forces, Atlantic
 
COMSUBPAC Commander, Submarine Forces, Pacific
Company Grade Officer The three lower ranks of officers in the US Armed Forces. In the US Army, Air Force and Marine Corps, this includes Second and First Lieutenants and Captains. In the US Navy, this includes Ensigns, Lieutenants JG and Lieutenants.
Consular Operations First coined by author Robert Ludlum, refers to the US State Department’s intelligence and executive action branch.
CONUS Milspeak for Continental United States. Does not include Hawaii or Alaska, or any of the other lands owned or administrated by the United States, such as Puerto Rico or Guam.
Cover US Navy nomenclature for a hat.
Cray XMP Massively parallel computer capable of performing trillions of calculations per second.
CREAM Computer language invented by Zack Tarses.
CSU Crime Scene Unit. Specialized squad of detectives assigned to perform forensics not related to the body at a crime scene. The body forensics are handled by the ME's office. Most members of the CSU are ranked as Detectives, but they do have some "silver shield" investigators.
CVN US Navy designation for Aircraft Carrier, Nuclear (as opposed to a steam powered CV)
D5 Latest generation SSBN-based Trident SLBM-ICBM.
DARPA Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. DOD-based technology research and development agency.
DCSINTEL Deputy Chief of Staff, Intelligence (US Army) (Three-star Lieutenant General)
DCSOPS Deputy Chief of Staff, Operations (US Army) (Three-star Lieutenant General)
 
DCSPERS Deputy Chief of Staff, Personnel (US Army) (Three-star Lieutenant General)
DD5 NYPD Detective Division form number 5, "Report of Ongoing Investigation." Also called "Fives" by the Detectives. Every single open case must have a DD5 filed by the assigned detective every six months. Active cases (cases being actively investigated,) generate much more paperwork than old, cold cases. But every single solitary open case has a DD5 filed at least once every six months.
DEA Drug Enforcement Administration. Department of Justice agency charged with enforcing the drug laws of the United States.
Delta Force Officially, Special Forces Operational Detachment - Delta (SFOD-D), a still-disavowed US Army unit charged with antiterrorism and counterterrorism.
Detective Third Grade Detectives in the NYPD have three basic ranks, starting with Detective Third Grade. There about 1,300 Detectives Third Grade in the NYPD, about 400 Detectives Second Grade and about 110 Detectives First Grade. A Detective First makes about as much money as a Lieutenant, a Second about as much as a Sergeant.
DIA Defense Intelligence Agency. DOD-based intelligence agency primarily concerned with gathering military intelligence.
Doer NYPD shorthand for the person that commits a crime, usually a murderer.
DSM-IV Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (version 4)
DTSA Defense Technical Security Agency - Joint DOD-US State Department agency charged with making sure that dual-use technology (such items that can be used for either ‘good’ or ‘bad’ reasons, such as high-powered computers that can run a country’s social security system, or be used to target nuclear warheads,) doesn't get into the hands of the bad guys.
Egoz battalion Elite reconnaissance company in the Israeli Armed Forces
El Al Flag-carrier airline of Israel.
Electric Boat General Dynamics division that builds Los Angeles Class SSN’s for the US Navy, as well as Ohio-class SSBNs.
ELF Extremely Low Frequency - Method of communicating with submerged submarines, the ELF channel can transmit at the rate of approximately one character per minute. Not to be confused with the EAM channel, which is for Emergency Action Messages (ie, launch the nukes.)
ELINT Electronic Intelligence
ESU NYPD Emergency Services Unit, a combination of a Rescue Squad and SWAT Team. ESU has been referred to as the "Oh Shit! Boys." When a cop arrives at a call, takes one look around and says, "Ohhhh shit!" there's probably a need for ESU to respond. There is another saying about ESU. "When the public needs a cop, they call NYPD. When a cop needs a cop, he calls ESU." ESU is perhaps the finest unit of its kind in the world, and regularly cross-trains with the Secret Service, FBI, Customs, INS, IRS, Red Cell and other high-profile SWAT/Tactical teams.
F-14 Grumman-built US Navy carrier based fighter and fighter-interceptor. Two seats, with a pilot and a RIO (Radar Intercept Officer,) the F-14 is the plane flown by "Maverick" in the movie "Top Gun."
F-16  US Air Force (as well as export models to Israel,) multi-role fighter, fighter/interceptor and fighter-bomber. Single-seat, high-speed (just over Mach 1,) aircraft built by General Electric.
F-4 McDonnell - Douglas fighter, fighter/bomber, and fighter/interceptor. Two seat, twin-engine jet strike plane. Has the distinction of a) being the only plane purchased by the US Air Force, Marine Corps, and Navy, as well as the military plane with the highest production run. Over 5,000 were built, starting in 1959.
 
Farm, The Another name for Camp Peary.
Field Grade Officer The middle three ranks of officers in the US Armed Forces, the three just before flag or general officer rank. For the US Army, Air Force and Marine Corps, this is Major, Lieutenant Colonel and Colonel. For the US Navy, this is Lieutenant Commander, Commander and Captain.
Flare The odd nose-up-tail-down attitude that an aircraft makes just before landing.
FLETC Federal Law Enforcement Training Center.
Foxtrot One Four US Navy radio lingo for a F-14/D.
Frocked Sometimes, US Navy officers are ‘promoted’ to the next highest rank without being confirmed by Congress. Frocked officers can wear the insignia of the new rank, and receive the perks of the job (salutes by junior officers, etc.) but do not get paid at the new rate or enjoy retirement benefits until they are confirmed by Congress.
GBU-25 Guided Bomb Unit, Model 25.
GlobeMaster III C17A jet transport airplane.
Groton Location of US Submarine Base, US Submarine School, and General Dynamics’ Electric Boat shipyard, where the majority of Los Angeles-class SSNs are built.
Grounder, Ground Ball A case assigned to the detective division that can be solved in a day or two, such as finding a perp standing over the body with a smoking gun in his hand, six witnesses, videotapes and a prewritten, presigned confession. <G>
H&K Shorthand for Heckler and Koch, an Austrian manufacturer of fine weapons.
H&K MP5-PDW 9mm fully automatic shoulder-fired assault weapon, one of the best in the world. The preferred assault weapon of anti-terrorist and counter-terrorist squads the world over.
H&K MP5-PDW/X same as above, but with some DARPA-added goodies.
H-Hour The traditional moment of the commencement of a military operation.
HAHO High Altitude High Opening. Jumping out of an airplane above 24,000 feet and immediately popping your parachute so you can glide into your target. Used as a ‘stand off’ tactic, which means that the jumpers can exit the aircraft outside of another country’s airspace, and still manage to get on the ground inside the border.
 
Hamion Particle subatomic particle found in all organic, sentient beings that resonates at a certain frequency. The sum of your resonating Hamion particles is your Hamion signature, which is as unique as a fingerprint.
Highway Specialized unit in the NYPD responsible for patrolling the parkways and highways that wind through New York City. Highway RMPs are easily distingiushed from other RMP's by their roof-mounted emergency lights. Highway officers also ride large motorcycles and are trained in EVOC.  See also: RMP.
HRT Hostage Rescue Team. Elite FBI SWAT team schooled in hostage rescue techniques as well as standard SWAT operations.
HUBRIS Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) plan to combat domestic terrorism.
HUMINT Human Intelligence. Spies.
IAB Internal Affairs Bureau. The unit within the NYPD (and most other major police departments) responsible for investigating crimes committed by members of the department, or allegations of crime, or any other "improper" activities. Generally hated by most cops who see IAB officers and detectives as being traitors and turncoats. In the NYPD, the IAB reports directly to the Comissioner's Office, not through the regular command structure.
IAF Israeli Air Force. Perhaps the finest fighting force in the air anywhere in the world. Sorry, USAF.
 
ILRM Infrared Long Range Microphone - Device aboard Big Spooky that can listen in on conversations from 22,000 miles away.
INS Immigration and Naturalization Service
JCS Joint Chiefs of Staff. The committee that commands the US Armed Forces, staffed by the heads of the four branches, as well as a Chairman and a Vice Chairman. The Chairman is nominally the highest-ranking uniform member of the US Armed Forces and serves as ‘military advisor to the President, the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of State.’
Job, The 1. NYPD shorthand for the NYPD. "On the Job" means that the person being spoken of is a police officer. 2. An assignment that requires a RMP or a detective to respond to a complaintant or report of a crime in progress or a past crime.
JSOC Joint Special Operations Command. Unified command that is responsible for all the Special Operations and Special Forces units in the US Armed Forces. These include the US Army’s Special Forces (Green Berets,) the US Army Rangers, the US Navy Special Boat Squadrons, the US Navy SEALs, the US Air Force Air Commandos and Special Wings, and the US Marine Corps Force Recon units and SOC-capable MEU (Marine Expeditionary Units.) There are several other units such as SpecOps-capable CBW units and the US Army’s Task Force 160 that are nominally assigned to JSOC, but since the US Army doesn’t admit that the units even exist...
Jump Wings Silver wings worn by US Armed Forces members that are qualified combat parachutists.
Keyhole Code name for a series of satellites.
KILLBOT Unix deamon written by Frohickie that performs sequential searches on the NCIC.
Lacrosse Another code-name for a satellite project. Older than Keyhole.
Langley Location of the headquarters of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)
LAX FAA designation for Los Angeles International Airport
 
Legend Fictitious identity created by intelligence officers so that they may go abroad undercover.
 
LEKEM (Leshkat Kesher Madao) TECHINT unit of the Israeli government.
 
Loose Deuce Flying formation for two aircraft where they are roughly side by side, but at different altitudes.
Marine Barracks, Quantico Location of the FBI Academy and other, more clandestine units.
Master Blaster Wings Airborne wings worn by Master Parachutists.
 
Master Chief Petty Officer Highest enlisted rank in the US Navy.
MCPO Abbreviation for Master Chief Petty Officer.
MDW Military District of Washington, the CONUS designation for Washington, DC and the surrounding area. The Pentagon is in the MDW.
MOS Military Occupational Specialty. The designation of what advanced training an enlisted man or woman receives after completion of Basic training. MOS 11B (11 Bravo) in the US Army is ‘Infantry," whereas 18B would be "Special Forces Weapons Sergeant." Thanks to Ken Mead (ken.mead@earthlink.net) for the correction.
Mossad (Mossad Letafkidim Meouychadiym) The Israeli Bureau for Intelligence and Special Tasks. Roughly the same as the American CIA.
Motorola  CMX-100 Body radio.
Mustang Navy and Marine Corps slang for an officer that was once an enlisted man.
NAS Naval Air Station
NCA National Command Authority. The person or ‘title’ responsible for giving orders to the military.
NCIC National Crime Information Computer
NIS Naval Investigative Service. Note: In 1993, this was changed to the Naval Criminal Investigative Service Command (NCISC.) Sorry about not catching that sooner.
NMCC National Military Command Center - The "War room" in the Pentagon we always see in the movies.
NMI No Middle Initial
NORAD North American Aerospace Defense Command - Joint US-Canadian Air Force command responsible for BMEWS (Ballistic Missile Early Warning System) tracking; looking for then-Soviet and now-Russian (or Chinese, or Iranian, or...you get the picture) missile launches, most especially over the North Pole.
NRO National Reconnaissance Office - Responsible for administering the US surveillance satellite program.
NSA National Security Agency - primary ELINT, SIGINT, COMINT and TEHCINT gathering agency.
 
Nugget US Navy and Marine Corps slang for a new pilot that has not successfully completed Carrier Qualifications (CQ’s or CarQuals).
OCCB Organized Crime Control Bureau. Specialized unit in the NYPD assigned to fight ogranized crime. The OCCB, like the IAB, reports directly to the Comissoner's office.
OCS Officer Candidate’s School
OER Officer's Efficiency Report. Sort of like a yearly review for US Armed Forces officers.
Off From. Jargon from the NYPD, used in such statements as, "I got this information off a pimp wanting to deal his way out of a pandering beef." See also: Beef.
Officer of the Watch Aboard US Navy vessels, the officer responsible for keeping an eye on things.
Operation Kidon Hagideon Mossad operation to avenge the murder of the Israeli athletes during the 1972 Munich Olympiad.
OPR-620 Unit of the OPR that does...other things.
OPR Office of Professional Responsibility. The FBI’s rough equivalent of the Internal Affairs Bureau of most major police departments.
OPSEC Operational Security. Trying to keep the bad guys from knowing what’s coming.
PAVE LOW RH-53D helicopter specially modified for SpecWar and SpecOps.
PEACH Computer designed by Zack Tarses.
Perp Short for "perpetrator," the person or persons who commit a crime. Despite the various TV shows and movies, cops very rarely refer to perps as "perps." Usually they call them "doers" or "shooters," or, depending on the crime, as "the dirtbag" or "scumbag."
Phantom Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps nomenclature for the F4 aircraft.
POCMUS Positioned Outside Custody Military, United States.
POTUS President of the United States
PriFli Primary Flight training given to US Navy and Marine Corps pilots at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida.
Ranger Tab Small cloth patch worn on the left shoulder of US Army officers and enlisted men that have completed the US Army Ranger School at Ft. Benning, Georgia.
RD-53D PAVE LOW helicopter.
RMP Radio Motor Patrol. NYPD term for a marked patrol car. Also called a "Blue and white" after the baby-blue and white color scheme of NYPD cars.
ROEs Rules of Engagement - Written statement by the command and control structure of a military or police unit specifying under what circumstances certain actions can be taken, such as the presumptive use of deadly force.
ROTC Reserve Officer’s Training Corps
SATCOM Satellite Communications - Usually means the secure kind.
 
SEAL US Navy Special Forces operator. Naval commandos. Most highly trained and highly feared military unit in the world, although reader Jeni Cartwright of England writes to say that the Special Air Service (Motto:"Who Dares, Wins") could give the SEALs a run for their money. SEAL stands for Sea, Air, Land. (Official designation is UDT/SEAL) SEAL Team Six - Officially, SPECWARDEVGRU, the US Navy unit charged with anti-terrorism and counter-terrorism. Created, trained, built and commanded originally by the now-legendary Commander Richard "Demo Dick" Marcinko, USN (Ret.)
Shield Generic police jargon for a badge. Also called "tin."
Shooter NYPD shorthand for a criminal that uses a gun to commit a crime, usually murder although not always.
Silver Shield Investigator An officer that has been assigned to a detective squad, who performs the investigative functions of a detective who has not yet been awarded the coveted gold shield of a NYPD detective
Sixty Six The form number of a report that uniformed officers fill out before turning a case over to the Detective Division.
Skell Short for "Skeleton," a NYPD term used to describe a street person (homeless,) an addict, a pimp or some other undesierable.
SLUDJ Sensitive Legal (Upper Deck) Jurisdiction - Unit inside the NCISC that handles legal matters that deal with Admirals or Marine Corps Generals.
SOG Special Operations Group : US Marshall’s service unit charged with tracking and arresting especially violent escaped federal prisoners. USMS SWAT team.
Sony FO1 Fiber optic camera.
Sony XM-3 FO-1 viewing device. Looks like a WatchMan. A "tactical" WatchMan.
SparcStation/30 a Unix-based high-performance workstation, they run about $40,000 fully equipped.
Squad NYPD shorthand for a Detective Unit, either a PDU (Precient Detective unit,) a borough-level or citywide unit. Also used as shorthand referring to all the uniform (patrol) officers assigned to a precient, or other specialized units, such as the CSU squad. See also: CSU.
Squid Fond (and sometimes not-so-fond) nickname for US Navy personnel.
SSBN US Navy designation for a Ballistic Missile Submarine.
SSN US Navy designation for a fast-attack submarine.
SUBFOR SUBmarine FORce.
SUBGRU 2 Subordinate command of COMSUBLANT.
Tank The SCIF reserved for use by the JCS.
TechServ  FBI black-bag unit.
Tomahawk US precision guided munitions, equipped with terrain-following radar, and can have conventional (high-explosive,) or special (nuclear) warheads. Los Angeles-class 688I-Flight III SSN’s have been equipped with VLS (Vertical Launch System) dispensers for Tomahawks.
Transient Ramp The location at a military airfield where aircraft not permanently assigned park.
TRFH Tactical Recovery of Friendly Hostage.
Trixie Nickname of Mulder’s computer.
UCMJ Uniform Code of Military Justice.
UNSUB Unknown Subject. A shorthand used by the ISU to refer to a criminal they are profiling. By using a generic name, the ISU profilers avoid attaching personal emotion to the profiles. Imagine what the profiles might be like if all the criminals they were tracking were referred to as "The dirtbag" or "The scumbag." UNSUB is a way of maintaining professional distance and detatchment.
USG United States Government
USMC United States Marine Corps
USMS  United States Marshals Service.
USNR United States Navy (Reserve)
USS United States Ship
UT Universal Time (Replaced GMT)
VF US Navy nomenclature for a Fighter Squadron (USMC is "VMF")
VICAP Violent Criminal Apprehension Program.
VPOTUS Vice President of the United States
Walther PPK a small .380-caliber semiautomatic pistol favored by James Bond and Dana Scully.
Water Wings Silver (enlisted men) or gold (officers) qualification badge worn by US Navy personnel that signifies they have graduated from Surface Warfare School.
Wheel Generic term for determining what detective is assigned to a new case. In most situations, the detectives in a given squad alternate, which each detective being assigned a case in turn until all have been assigned, and then the "wheel" turns again. In some cases, the bosses may reshuffle case assignments to make sure that the best detectives are assigned to the hardest or most sensitive cases.
WITSEC United States Marshal's Service Witness Security program. Also known as the "Witness Protection Program."
Wuzzle Computer that sat in a NSA wiring closet watching the NCIC for specific activity.
XO Executive Officer.
Yeoman US Navy rating for what amounts to an administrative assistant