naval slang

(A)

Adrift. Not secure.

Air Boss. The watch-stander who is responsible for safe operations on the flight deck.

(B)

Baby Shit. Yellow, evil smelling, engineering grease.

Boat / Ship. Ships carry boats. A submarine is always a boat, not a ship. This tradition has clung on, and so Hunter and Wolverine class vessels are referred to as boats.

Bravo Zulu. (B.Z.) Good job, well done.

Beagle. The wardroom steward. They serve the officers their meals.

Brass. Officers.

Bubble Head. Slang for a crew-member of a Hunter or Wolverine. Opposite of “Skimmer”.

Burner. Burns Carbon Monoxide in the air processing machinery.

(C)

Cans. Headphones.

Close Quarters Battle. (C.Q.B.) Fighting in confined spaces.

Cold Iron. The whole ship shut down. No power, with even the reactor scrammed.

Cookie. The head chef.

Cross Decking. Transferring personnel or equipment from ship to ship.

(D)

Decompression Sickness. (D.C.S.) More commonly known as “the bends”.

Ditching Gash. Slinging rubbish out of the boat.

Drip. To complain.

(F)

Fear-Naught Team. A three-person fire-fighting team, protected by fear-naught suits.

Field Day. Cleaning the ship.

Fish. Torpedo. The term is still used to refer to missiles fired from Wolverines.

Flotsam. Debris from a destroyed ship.

(G)

Ganked. Stolen.

Grinder. Training academy obstacle course.

(H)

Hollywood. Shower. An over-long, self-indulgent, waste of precious water.

Hot Bunking. Sharing a bunk on a rotating shift. So-called because the sheets are usually still warm from the previous occupant.

(J)

Jackspeak. The term for slang used by R.N. Matelots. Also, a rather “Marmite” group on Facebook: you’ll either love it or hate it.

Jetsam. Items ejected from a ship.

(M)

M.P.s. Military Police.

Matelot. (Pronounced Mat-ello) An ancient reference to a sailor in the navy.

(N)

Netty. (Geordie) Slang for the toilet or “head”.

Non-functional Gear. (N.F.G.) No fucking good.

(O)

Oppo. Your opposite number.

(P)

Personal Load Carrying Equipment. (P.L.C.E.) Webbing across the shoulders, chest, back and belt that stores kit and ammo.

Pecker Checker. Navy Doctor.

Perisher. Hunter-killer Commander training course. If you fail, you’ll never serve on one again.

(R)

Ralph. Looking for Ensign Ralph. Vomiting.

Reactor Scram. The reactor shuts itself down.

Rest and Recuperation. Holidays (leave) or time off. Shortened to R and R.

Running Hot, Straight and Normal. The torpedo-missile is operating okay.

(S)

Salvo. Fire lots of missiles at once.

Scrubber. Removes C-O 2 from the air. Also, a derogatory name for a female.

Scuttlebutt. Gossip, rumour. A scuttled water butt was originally used for drinking water on sailing ships. The equivalent of gossip around a water fountain in the office.

Sewage Pipes. A term of endearment used by sailors to describe the hunter-killer vessels. The term refers to the smell that develops when water is rationed on board. Washing is limited to a quick rub over with a wet cloth.

Shippers. Your mate or best friend.

Sloshy. The cook’s helper.

Snipe (Bilge Rat or Clanky). Engineer. “The Snipes will get you!” Snipes are believed to drink engine oil instead of coffee.

Swinging the Lead. Being lazy.

(T)

Trooper. Generic term for a soldier in the Space Navy.

Turd Herder. Sewage plant operative.

(W)

Watch-Standers. Officers who “stand watch” at their stations.

Orders & Communication

(A)

Angles and Dangles. To perform a rapid or steep turn.

Avast. Stop what you’re doing!

(B)

Balls to the Wall. Full speed.

Bandit. An identified, hostile target.

Batten Down. To fix down, prepare for rough sailing.

Belay. Stop that.

Bogey. An unidentified target.

Bravo Zulu. (B.Z.) Good job, well done.

(D)

Don’t Give up the Ship. (D.G.U.T.S.) Fighting talk.

(E)

Emergency Operating Procedures. (E.O.P.s.) Pre-planned action during an emergency.

(F)

Fire for Effect. Fire with the intention to kill.

(G)

General Quarters. Battle stations, or action stations.

(H)

Heave To. Stop.

(I)

Immediate Response Force One. (I.R.F.-1.) Prepare for battle.

(L)

Lose the Bubble. An extreme manoeuvre up or down.

(M)

Make Fast. Tie off.

Mat-stat Briefing. A meeting to discuss the “Material State” of the vessel.

(N)

Nines. Punishment for two weeks. Extra duties and leave cancelled, possibly a fine.

(O)

Oscar. Man overboard.

(P)

Papa Hotel. (P.H.) All hands return to the ship.

Personal, for Commanding Officer. An encrypted message for Captain’s eyes only.

PIPED ORDERS:

Pipe Down. Be quiet.

Pipe the Boat to Harbour Stations. X.O. replies, “Pipe the boat to harbour stations, aye, aye, Sir!” Everyone moves to stations, ready to leave the harbour.

Pipe the Sides. A long, still, one-note. Everyone stands to attention because an Admiral is coming on board.

Pipe Carry On. Two-tone note; now they’ve gone, you can relax.

Pitch. To adjust the pitch of the vessel. When the bow (nose) of the ship moves up and down.

Plan of the Day. (P.O.D.) Daily, routine information sheet.

(R)

Rig for Red. Low intensity red lighting that is used in a battle situation to preserve night vision.

Roll (List). Tilting of the deck from side to side.

(S)

Screaming Alpha. A burning human.

Search and Rescue. (S.A.R.) Rescue operations.

Section Forty-Two. An amendment of the criminal code, allowing arrest, rapid trial, and public execution of criminals.

Sneaky Patrol. Intelligence gathering.

Square Away. Getting ready.

Stand the Fuck By. (S.T.F.B.) Get ready for trouble!

Standard Operating Procedures. (S.O.P.s.) Day to day procedures.

Sucking Rubber. Wearing an emergency breathing mask.

(V)

Vector. Direction.

(W)

Wilco. Will Comply.