This week’s lingo is brought to you by Blackhawk Down
Waging war is a risky, all-encompassing endeavor physically, emotionally, and psychologically. It displays humankind at its best and at its worst, and the war fighter’s slang reflects the bitter, terrible, and inspiring all of it. A quick scan of these phrases illustrates the spectrum: disciplined bravado provides the glitz and glamour; earned camaraderie, the sincerity and warmth; irony, the realist’s edge; scorn, the punishing barb; and insistent vulgarity, a rowdy,leveling earthiness. A little verbal bravado and swagger has genuine utility. Hollywood bravado is little more than chest thumping bluster, but seasoned vets know that disciplined bravado indicates confidence and courage. Physical and moral courage and the confidence they create are essential warrior virtues. But God—or the first sergeant—help the fake macho and especially the “REMF,” “fobbit,” or “suit” who talks the talk but hasn’t walked the walk.
**NOTE: There are terms in these lists that could be considered NSFW. 
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AK-47 – A Russian-designed assault rifle, used by the Somalis throughout the fight.
- APC – Armored personnel carrier, a tank like vehicle that carries troops.
- BDUs – Battle Dress Uniforms, in this case, desert tan camouflage fatigues.
- Blackhawk – A Sikorsky-made UH-60 helicopter used primarily as a troop transport. It has a pilot and co-pilot and two crew chiefs who each man miniguns, extremely rapid-fire machine guns that fire up to 4,000 rounds per minute.
- CAR-15 – Colt Automatic Rifle 15, an automatic weapon more compact and lightweight than an M-16 that fires a high velocity 5.56mm round.
- Chalk – A squad of soldiers, usually about a dozen, assigned to a helicopter. Chalk One roped down at the southeast corner of the target block, Chalk Two at the northeast corner, Chalk Three at the southwest corner, and Chalk Four near the northwest corner.
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Chalk One – Led by Ranger commander Capt. Mike Steele and Lt. Larry Perino. It was at the southeast corner of the target house.
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Chalk Two – Led by Lt. Tom DiTomasso. It was at the northeast corner of the target house.
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Chalk Three – Led by Sgt. First Class Sean Watson. It was at the southwest corner of the target house.
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Chalk Four – Led by Staff Sgt. Matt Eversmann, it was supposed to have been at the northwest corner of the target house, but was out of position one block north.
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Command Copter – Also called the “C-2 Bird” (for command and control), this is a Blackhawk circling high above the city with air commander Lt. Col. Tom Matthews and ground force commander Lt. Col. Gary Harrell helping to direct the action.
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- Command Net – The radio frequency linking the various unit commanders and primary communications network for the mission. There were other, separate frequencies assigned to the Rangers (Company Net), Delta (Assault Net) and the helicopters (Air Net).
- Selected radio transmission and transcripts
- Delta Force – The US Army’s elite counter-terrorism unit, made up of three 150-man squadrons of specially trained professional soldiers, most of them in their late 20s or early 30s, products of a tortuously rigid selection process. The Army does not officially acknowledge that the unit exists. The Rangers called them ”the D-boys.”
- Fast rope – The technique used by assault troops who slide down thick nylon ropes from helicopter, or the rope used in this manuever.
- Flash-bang – A harmless grenade that gives off smoke and makes noise.
- .50-gunner – The man behind a .50-cal. machine gun, usually mounted on a humvee. On round can rip a grapefruit-sized hole in a cinderblock wall.
- .50-cal. – A Browning .50-cal. machine gun, mounted usually on a humvee, which can continuously fire a belt of ammunition. A .50-cal. round can poke a grapefruit-sized hole in a cinderblock wall.
- Five-ton – A five-ton capacity truck with a flat bed in back used as a transport.
- Habr Gidr – A powerful Somalia subclan, part of the Hawaye, one of the five principle clans in that desert nation. During Task Force Ranger, this clan was led by Mohamed Farrah Aidid.
- Hawlwadig Road – The wide, paved north/south road that ran in front of the target house and Olympic Hotel.
- Map of the Mogadishu target area
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Humvees – The wide-bodied Army vehicles that replaced the jeep as the all-purpose military ground transport. There are cargo humvees with sloping hatchbacks, and attack humvees with a gun turret on top, outfitted with either a .50-cal. machine gun or a Mark-19 automatic grenade launcher. Humvee comes from HMMWV, the military acronym for high-mobility multipurpose wheeled vehicle.
- JOC – The Joint Operations Center, a dilapidated building at Task Force Ranger’s beachfront base where commanders of the various units, Army, Navy and Air Force monitored the fight on TV screens and radio.
- K-4 traffic circle – One of the major traffic roundabouts in southern Mogadishu.
- Kevlar – Protective material capable of stopping small caliber bullets and shrapnel. Kevlar panels lined the floors of the Blackhawks, and Rangers wore newly-issued Kevlar vests with a ceramic front plate capable of stopping larger caliber rifle rounds. Military-issue helmets are also lined with Kevlar.
- Khat – A bitter green plant used by Somalis that acts as a stimulant when chewed.
LAW – A light antitank weapon. The disposable plastic launcher weighs only three pounds.
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Little Birds – The fast, tiny and highly-maneuverable bubble-front AH-6 (Attack Helicopter-6) and MH-6 (Military Helicopter-6) helicopters. The AHs are attack helicopters, armed with miniguns and rockets. The MHs deliver Delta soldiers to their target, carrying them on benches mounted on the outside.
- Lost Convoy – The original ground convoy of nine humvees and three five-ton trucks commanded by Lt. Col. Danny McKnight. The convoy’s mission was to drive Somali prisoners and the assault force back to base. They were whittled down to six humvees and two trucks. Carrying 24 prisoners, they got lost trying to find their way to the two Blackhawk crash sites.
Maiden on the Midway 
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