Learning the new jargon Published June 26, 2009 By Dr. Philip R. Breeze 15th Airlift Wing Chief of Public Affairs HICKAM AIR FORCE BASE, Hawaii -- If you don't see Crudesron on TVs Funniest Bupers after Joint Basing goes into effect, don't get Bumed. You may, however, see those and some other unfamiliar phrases and acronyms on signs, in messages and even in the base paper. The brine-encrusted bossuns among us would know that a Crudesron is a Cruiser/Destroyer Squadron and Bupers is the Bureau of Naval Personnel, while Bumed in the Navy's Bureau of Medicine. Few blue-suiters, however, would be familiar with the terms. Likewise, many sea-going servicemembers might think the D-Fac are the professors who teach all the remedial courses at the local community college. Little do they know that the hunger associated with the D-Fac has nothing to do with knowledge. While most Air Force lingo is relatively recent: sucking rubber for wearing a gas mask; helmet fires for small emergencies; and bag drags for going through deployment lines, Navy jargon is as old as the English language. The words for left and right date to the era preceding rudders. A "steering board" was mounted toward the rear of the craft, usually on the right-hand side as the steersman faced forward. That steering board came to be known at the starboard. And since it was not advisable to lash the boat to the dock on that side, the other side -- the left side as you face the front of the boat -- became known as the port side. Some words and usages are unique to the military, but common across the services. Soldiers, Sailors, Marines and Airmen all know what it means to police an area. A bogey is an unknown radar contact, or a known adversary. A mustang is an officer who earned a commission (most officers in the Air Force and the Navy are enlisted, they just aren't commissioned). An Air Force Wing King is often a Skipper in the Navy. That word comes from the old Dutch "schip." The English simply dropped the hard 'c' as they incorporated ship into the language, but kept it in the word for the leader aboard a ship. Pogey bait in the Army and Air Force is called Kedunk or Gedunk in the Navy, as is the place where you buy it aboard ship. An Airman with a list may have much to do. A Sailor with a list may have had too much. In the Air Force AI stands for Artificial Intelligence. In the Navy it means Awaiting Instruction. In the Navy the CAN is the Center for Naval Analysis, in the Air Force it's just a latrine. FRP means Full Rate Production to an Airman. It means Fleet Response Plan to a Sailor. When people in the Air Force see the initials ET they start thinking about Roswell and phoning home. In the Navy the initials mean Equivalent Training. When blue-suit pilots see the letters HOTAS they know they stand for Hands on Throttle and Stick. When Sailors see those letters ... well, they know it's a good idea to ask their Air Force buddies. The coming months will give us all a chance to help each other better understand one another. From stairs and ladders, floors and decks to AAFES and the NEX we'll all need to take a moment to increase our understanding as our workplace expands to include the professionals in our sister service.