Vortex

A-6E Intruder-A twin-engine attack plane, the Intruder is one of the few planes that can strike a target in any weather. It is launched from carriers and has a prodigious payload. The crew of two sits side by side, and although the copilot has no flight controls, he can fly the plane by telling the plane’s computer what to do.

AA-2 Atoll-The first Soviet heat-seeking air-to-air missile, it is a direct copy of the 1950s-vintage AIM-913 Sidewinder. Like the early model of this missile, it can attack targets only from the rear. It has a range of about two miles.

AA-7 Apex—A Soviet radar-guided missile of mediocre performance. It has a range of about twenty miles.

AA-10 Alamo-An advanced Soviet radar-guided missile. It has a better seeker and a higher speed than the Apex.

AA-11 Archer-A Soviet short-range, heat-seeking missile. It has a range of about four miles, and most importantly, the ability to engage enemy aircraft from the front.

Afrikaans—Along with English, one of South Africa’s two official languages. Afrikaans is a variant of Dutch mixed with French and German.

It also includes words brought from Malaya and Madagascar by slaves.

Afrikaner—Term used to described white South Africans descended from

Dutch, German, and French Huguenot settlers first arriving in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Often referred to as Boers, the

Dutch word for “farmer,” they now dominate both South Africa’s politics and its economy.

AFV-Armored Fighting Vehicle-This abbreviation is used to describe any military vehicle that can shoot and expects to be shot at.

AH-64-An American armored attack helicopter, it carries both laser-guided antitank missiles, rockets, and a 30mm chain gun.

AIM-7M Sparrow-The standard U.S. radar-guided missile, its twenty-five mile range is shorter than that of the AIM54C Phoenix, but much longer than that of the Sidewinder or any other heat-seeking missile. It has gone through many improvements. Although the initial versions used in Vietnam were poor performers, the later makes are considered very effective.

AIM-9M Sidewinder-One of the most effective and successful missiles ever made. After launch, it homes in on the heat given off by an aircraft and explodes. Unlike earlier models, or other similar missiles of other countries, it does not need to see the hot tailpipe of a jet aircraft, but can even lock onto an aircraft from the front. It has a range of about ten miles.

AIM-54C Phoenix-A U.S. radar-guided missile, it is linked to the F-14

Tomcat’s AWG-9 weapons system. This huge weapon has a range of over one hundred miles and a speed over five times the speed of sound.

AK-47-A Russian-designed assault rifle, this simple, effective weapon has been widely exported and copied by many nations. A 7.62-caliber rifle, it can be fired either in semi or full automatic. It weighs about ten and a half pounds, and has a thirty-round magazine.

AKM-A newer and slightly lighter version of the Soviet AK-47 rifle.

ANC-First established in 1913, the African National Congress is the largest and most prominent black political group opposing apartheid. It has always had socialist leanings and is closely allied with the South African

Communist Party. Its military arm is Umkhonto we Sizwe—spear of the nation. “

Apartheid-An Afrikaans word literally meaning apart ness or “separation.”

A political philosophy espoused by Afrikaners and first articulated between

World War I and World War II. Implemented as government policy after the

National Party electoral victory in 1948. Apartheid was intended to ensure continued white control by geographically and socially separating racial groups as much as possible. Unlike the American concept of segregation-‘ I separate but equal-apartheid included as one of its explicit assumptions the superiority of the white race.

APC-Armored Personnel Carrier-A general term used to describe vehicles designed to ferry infantry across the battlefield. Their light armor provides protection against artillery fragments and small-arms fire.

AWB-Afrikaner Weerstandbeweging, or Afrikaner Resistance Movement. A political movement and paramilitary group, it could be compared to the Ku

Klux Klan, or the Minutemen in America, except the Armenian groups are too liberal. Its entire political philosophy is based on white supremacy and the use of violence to maintain white rule. The AWB believes that armed resistance to the liberalizing trend of the South African government is necessary.

Battalion-A large ground unit made up of three to five companies. A battalion will have about one thousand men.

If it is a tank or an armored-infantry battalion, it will also have about fifty armored fighting vehicles.

Brigade-A ground unit of three or more battalions, with smaller specialized units attached. Sometimes an ad hoc formation, brigades combine available units for a specific task. A fast, mobile brigade might consist of one tank battalion, two motorized-infantry battalions, an artillery battalion, and an antiaircraft company.