Zero Six Bravo (37 page)

ERV.
Emergency rendezvous. An important element of SOP when on covert operations, ERVs are a series of locations committed to memory that allow a dispersed force to regroup securely.

Fedayeen.
A combat militia under Saddam Hussein’s direct control.

GPMG.
General-purpose machine gun. Also known affectionately as the “Gimpy”; a belt-fed medium machine gun, usually operated from a stationary position or mounted on a vehicle.

Humint.
A source of human intelligence on the ground.

JTAC.
Joint terminal attack controller; the soldier responsible for coordinating air strikes in support of ground troops.

KrAZ-225.
A Soviet-era six-wheeled steel truck with strong off-road capabilities in widespread use with the Iraqi military.

Lion of Babylon (Asad Babil).
The Iraqi-manufactured version of the Russian T-72 main battle tank.

LRDG.
Long Range Desert Group; a Second World War precursor to David Stirling’s SAS.

LUP.
Lying-up point; a location chosen to allow a unit to occupy it undetected.

M72 LAW.
Light antitank weapon; a one-use 66mm rocket launcher designed to be employed against armored vehicles.

MILAN.
Acronym for Missile d´infanterie léger antichar; an antiarmor missile that packs a 7.1-kilogram wire-guided warhead that can defeat most armor. It is the most powerful and accurate piece of equipment that can be operated by a light vehicle or foot patrol.

Millilux.
A unit of illumination.

NBC.
Nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons.

NEP.
Night enhancement package; Specialist night-vision technology that shows a pilot the terrain over which he or she is flying in glowing near daylight, on laptop-like computer screens mounted in the cockpit.

NVG.
Night-vision goggles.

OPSEC.
Operational Security.

Pinkie.
Affectionate term for the open-topped, desert-adapted Land Rovers used by UKSF.

RPG.
Rocket-propelled grenade.

SAM.
Surface-to-air missile.

Satcom.
An encrypted radio satellite communications system.

Shemagh.
An Arab headscarf popular with UKSF engaged in desert operations.

SLAR.
Shoulder-launched assault rocket; an 85mm rocket launcher that fires an enhanced blast warhead, more commonly known as a thermobaric device.

Terp.
Military slang for interpreter.

Index

A-10 Warthog
189

Afghanistan War
12

Qala-i-Jangi
29
,
42–43

Afrika Corps
16

Al Jazeera TV
267

Al Maini, Lieutenant General Yasin
41

Al Sahara airfield
51–57

al-Qaeda
12
,
29

Anfal Campaign
137

Angus
145
,
192

Asad Babil (T-72 main battle tanks)
41
,
64
,
185–66
,
189
,
244
,
276
, see
illustrations

Bayji
3
,
41
, see
illustrations

Bedou people
113

Birch, Phil (“Mucker”)
18
,
20
,
28
,
44
,
67
,
71
,
73
,
83
,
107
,
108
,
140
,
202
,
265
,
269

background
18

Blair, Tony
270

Blue Force Tracking (BFT)
204
,
214
,
228
,
264
, see
illustrations

Bravo Two Zero
8
,
14
,
22
,
57
,
84
,
94
,
165
,
207–8

British Royal Marines
200

Bush, George Walker
27

C-130 Hercules transport aircraft
52
,
61
,
62–66

CBU-87s (combined effects munitions; cluster bombs)
225

Chinooks
51
,
52
,
54
,
55
,
56
,
62–63
,
66–69
,
72–74
,
78
,
226–27
,
263
, see
illustrations

internal fuel bladders
259

MV
Nisha
assault
68–69
, see
illustrations

NEP (night enhancement package)
68

CIA (Central Intelligence Agency) Special Activities Division (SAD)
42

Clarke, Clive (“Raggy”)

4th LUP (lying-up point)
121

ambush
168

escape
192
,
195–97
,
208

extraction
242
,
242–43
,
243
,
246
,
255
,
258
,
261
,
265

Colt assault rifles
48
,
54
,
64
,
241
, see
illustrations

CSAR (combat search and rescue)
226
,
227
,
270

DPV Land Rovers.
See
Pinkies

DShK antiaircraft guns (Dushkas)
147
,
174
,
236

ERV (emergency rendezvous) procedures
217
,
219

Euphrates River
52
, see
illustrations

F-15 warplanes
55
,
56

F-15E Strike Eagle fighter jets
55–130

F-16 Fighting Falcons
225
,
231–33
,
234–35
,
237
,
237–39

Fedayeen
118
,
211–14
,
221–22
,
229
,
235–37
,
241–42
,
250
,
253–55
,
256
,
272
, see
illustrations

ambush
122
,
151
,
156
,
171

recruitment video
60

Field, Reginald (“Reggie”)

2nd LUP (lying-up point)
4
,
89–90

7th LUP (lying-up point)
141–42
,
143

ambush
159
,
168
,
178

escape
209

extraction
227
,
243
,
253
,
264
,
267

Kenya
14

First Gulf War
8
,
13
,
41
,
84

G2
airfield
62–63
,
63–69
,
267

general-purpose machine gun (GPMG)
17
,
19
,
43
,
117–18