Multi Letter Acronyms

The entire Army is run on acronyms.

TLAs (Three-Letter Acronyms) replaced obsolete TLAs (Two-Letter Acronyms) after WW2 when it was realised that the Forces needed more possibilities than TLAs allowed.

TLAs of both kinds have now been largely been surpassed by MLAs (Multi-Letter Acronyms). TLAs are technically abbreviations, whereas MLAs provide an open-ended opportunity for total Acronym Overload.

Below is a selection of MLAs. For many more, visit The Dictionary

A

• ACC - Aldershot Concrete Commandos, Andy Capps Commandos
• AFV - Armoured Fighting Vehicle
• AGC - Alf Garnet's Commandos
• AGHW - All Gone Horribly Wrong
• ARAB - Arrogant Regular Army Bastard (cf. STAB)
• ASU - Active Service Unit (The Boyos)

B

• BA(G) - British Army (Germany)
• BALO - Brigade Air Liason Officer
• BAOR - British Army of the Rhine
• BATSU - British Army Training Support Unit
• BATSUB - British Army Training Support Unit Belize
• BATT - British Army Training Team
• BATUS - British Army Training Unit Suffield
• BCR - Battle Casualty Replacement
• BER - Beyond Economical Repair
• BFG - British Forces Germany
• BFOT - Big F*ck Off Tent
• BJAFO - Basically Just A F*cking Observer (2nd Pilot)
• BKYC - British Kiel Yacht Club
• BLR - Beyond Local repair
• BOB - Bird or Bloke
• BOBFOC - Body Off Baywatch, Face Off Crimewatch
• BOHFOC- Body of Halle, face of Chuck.
• BOHICA - Bend Over, Here It Comes Again!
• BOO - Battalion Orderly Officer
• BOS - Battalion Orderly Sergeant
• BSFAO - Best Suit For All Occasions

C

• CEFO - Combat Equipment Fighting Order (obsolete - now superseded by PLCE)
• CEI - Communications Electronic Instruction
• CEMO - Combat Equipment Marching Order (obsolete - now superseded by PLCE)
• CES - Complete Equipment Schedule
• CHIPS - Causing Havoc In Public Spaces, or Creating Havoc in Peoples' Streets
• CPV - Civilianised Patrol Vehicle (NI, early 90s). FFS why bother - it's just a f*cking CAR!!!
• CQMS - Company Quartermaster Sergeant
• CRA - Commander Royal Artillery
• CRE - Commander Royal Engineers
• COIN - Counter Insurgency
• CTF - Chuffed To F*ck
• CTR - Close Target Recce

D

• DADAFA - Deputy Assistant Director of Absolutely F*ck All
• DALO - Divison Air Liason Officer
• DARE - Defence Acronym Research Establishment
• DCTA - Defence Clothing & Textiles Agency
• DFT - Dont Fucking Touch
• DILLIGAF - Do I Look Like I Give A F*ck
• DSDA - Defence Storage & Distribution Agency
• DSDC - Defence Storage & Distribution Centre
• DSO - Did Something Outstanding

E

• E4a - Specialist RUC Squad
• EOD - Explosive Ordnance Disposal
• ERV - Emergency Rendezvous (also Electronic Repair Vehicle)

F

• FAC - Forward Air Controller
• FEB - Fucking English Bastard/Bitch (for the Jocks of us out there)
• FEHA - Force Environmental Health Advisor
• FIBUA - Fighting In Builtup Areas
• FIPAC - Fighting In Pubs And Clubs
• FISH - Fighting In Someone's House
• FIWAF - Fighting In Woods and Forests
• FOO - Forward Observation Officer
• FoS - Foreman of Signals
• FPF - Final Protective Fire
• FRU - Force Research Unit
• FRV - Final Rendezvous
• FRV - Fast Reaction Vehicle
• FUBAR - F*cked Up Beyond All Recognition
• FUP - Forming Up Point
• FUPA - Fat Upper Pussy Area

G

• GIFA - Great Iraqi F**K All
• GOC - General Officer Commanding
• GPMG - General Purpose Machine Gun
• GPS - Global Positioning System
• GTF - Get To F*ck
• GTT - Gunnery Training Team

H

• HALO - High Altitude Low Opening
• HLS - Helicopter Landing Site
• HMSU - Home Office Support Unit

I

• IED - Improvised Explosive Device
• IEDD - Improvised Explosive Device Disposal
• IO - Intelligence Officer

J

• JAFFA - Just Another Fat F*cking Administrator
• JANFU - Joint Army Navy F*ck Up
• JEWT - Jungle Exercise Without Trees
• JSAT - Joint Service Adventure Training
• JSPC - Joint Services Parachute Centre

K

• KISS - Keep It Simple Stupid
• KTC - Kiel Training Centre

L

• LE - Late entry Officer
• LMF - Lacking Moral Fibre
• LPC - Leather Personnel Carrier
• LRDG - Long Range Desert Group (WW2)
• LSW - Light Support Weapon

M

• MARINE - Muscles Are Required, Intelligence Not Essential
• MARINE - My Arrse Rides In Navy Equipment
• MBE - My Bloody Efforts
• MFP - Mixed Fruit Pudding
• MiD - Mention in Despatches
• MPI - Mean Point of Impact
• MRF - Military Reconnaissance Force
• MUPPET - Most Useless Person Pirbright Ever Trained

N

• NAAFI - No Ambition And F*ck-all Interest
• NBC - Nuclear, Biological, Chemical
• NEWD - Night Exercise Without Darkness
• NEWT - Not to be Employed With Troops
• NFI - Not Very Interested, also Not Feckin' Invited
• NORWICH - (K)nickers Off Ready When I Come Home

O

• OBE - Other Buggers' Efforts
• ODTF - Operation Doomed To Failure
• OGDW - Operation Gone Disastrously Wrong
• OMO - Old Man Overseas

P

• PDTF - Project Doomed To Failure
• PENIS - Planning Exercise Not Involving Soldiers
• PLCE - Personal Load Carrying Equipment
• PLONC - Person of Little Or No Consequence
• POA - Point Of Aim
• POETS day - P*ss Off Early - Tomorrow's Saturday
• POL - Petrol, Oil, Lubricants
• PONFU(W) - Personnel Of No F*cking Use (Whatsoever)
• PONTI - Person Of No Tactical Importance
• POW - Prisoner of War
• PPA - Popski's Private Army (WW2)
• PPPPPPP - Prior Preparation & Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance (aka The 7 Ps)
• PTI - Physical Training Instructor
• PUFO - Pack Up, F*ck Off

Q

• QMSI - Quartermaster Sergeant Instructor
• QRF - Quick Reaction Force

R

• RAOC - Rag And Oil Corps
• RAOC- Ragged Arrsed Old Cnuts
• REMF - Rear Echelon Motherf*cker
• RLC - Really Large Corps
• RSP - Render Safe Proceedure
• RTU - Returned To Unit
• RUC - Royal Ulster Constabulary (George Cross)

S

• SAS - State Authorised Slaughter
• SAS - Special Author Service
• SCRDE - Stores & Clothing Research & Development Establishment
• SH - Sh1t Head
• SHPRAC - Squashed Head Practice (Round)
• SLR - Self Loading Rifle; 7.62mm UK built FN FAL (obsolete - replaced by SA80/IW/L85)
• SMG - Sub-Machine Gun
• SMIG - Sergeant Major Instructor Gunnery (RA)
• SMIS - Sergeant Major Instuctor Signals (RA)
• SNAFU - Situation Normal, All F*cked Up
• SNS - Special Night Squads (Palestine)
• SOE - Special Operations Executive (WW2)
• SOUP - Single Officer Unnecessary Purchase
• SPTA - Salisbury Plain Training Area
• STAB - Stupid/Stinking TA Bastard
• SUIT - Sight Unit Infantry Trilux (obsolete - replaced by SUSAT)
• SUSAT - Sight Unit Small Arms Trilux
• SWAT - Some Weekends and Tuesdays (TA)

T

• TA - Toy Army
• TCH - That C**t Hoon (as used by the Chief of the General Staff and his mates, no less!)- the former SofS for defence, Geoff Hoon
• TEWT - Tactical Exercise Without Troops
• TFIB - Token Female in Battalion (obsolete)
• TOT - Time on Target
• TPU - Timer and Power Unit
• TULIP - Totally Useless Little Irish Person
• TWOK - Tested Working OK

U

• U3 - Utterly Utterly Useless
• UDR - Ulster Defence Regiment
• UMIN - Ugliest Man In NATO
• USMC - Uncle Sam's Misguided Children

V

• VCP - Vehicle Check Point
• VOL - Vision of Loveliness.

W

• WCS - Worst Case Scenario
• WFM - Whole Fleet Management
• WMD - Weapons of Mass Destruction (See NBC) (also Weapon of Mass Distraction)
• WOFTEX - Waste Of Fucking Time Exercise
• WT - Wireless Telegraphy

Y

• YofS - Yeoman of Signals