synthetic resin applied as a coating or surface treatment on radar-reflective areas of a vehicle in order to reduce its radar cross section. A particular RAM formulation may be specific to a narrow band of the radar frequency spectrum.
RC-135V Rivet Joint Program name for electronic reconnaissance aircraft, operated by 55th Wing based at Offut AFB, Nebraska. Used in Saudi Arabia during Desert Shield/Desert Storm.
Red Flag Regularly scheduled (about five per year) combat squadron training exercises held at Nellis AFB, Nevada. Every crew flies ten different missions on a highly instrumented range.
Red Horse U.S. Air Force engineering units (of squadron/battalion size) equipped and trained for rapid construction or repair of runways and airbase facilities.
Revetment An area adjacent to a runway or taxiway, surrounded by a protective wall or mound of earth, where aircraft may be dispersed for temporary shelter, refueling or rearming.
RFMDS Red Flag Measurement and Debrief System. Electronic monitoring and recording system at Nellis AFB used to evaluate performance and tactics of aircraft participating in training exercises.
ROE Rules of Engagement. Guidance, often determined at the highest levels of government, regarding how and when flight crews may employ their weapons. In air-to-air combat, ROE usually specify specific criteria for identifying a non-friendly aircraft as hostile. In air-to-ground combat, ROE usually forbids attacking targets likely to involve significant collateral damage to civilian populations or religious sites. Regardless of the ROE, the right of self-defense against direct armed attack is never denied.
Roll Change of an aircraft's attitude relative to its longitudinal axis (a line drawn from nose to tail through the center of gravity). Roll to port and the aircraft tilts to the left; roll to starboard and it tilts to the right. Roll also describes a class of aerobatic maneuvers, such as the barrel roll.
RWR Radar Warning Receiver. An electronic detector tuned to one or more hostile radar frequencies and linked to an alarm that alerts the pilot to the approximate direction, and possibly the type, of threat. Similar in concept to automotive police radar detectors. Also known as a RHAW (Radar Homing and Warning Receiver).
S-60 Soviet 57mm anti-aircraft gun. Highly mobile. Very lethal at low altitudes, it may be radar or optically aimed.
SA-2 Soviet surface-to-air missile. Introduced in the 1950s and frequently updated. Excellent performance at high altitude. Western reporting name is Guideline.
SA-3 Soviet surface-to-air missile. Soviet designation is S-125 Neva. Western reporting name is Goa. Improved low-altitude performance. Operation since early 1960s.
SA-6 Soviet surface-to-air missile. Western reporting name is Gainful. Semi-active radar homing. Proved highly effective in Egyptian service during 1973 Mid-east War.
SA-8 Soviet short-range surface-to-air missile. Western reporting name is Gecko.
SALT Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty. One of a series of agreements beginning in 1972, between the United States and the former Soviet Union, designed to limit the number and type of nuclear delivery systems and warheads.
SAM Surface-to-air missile. A guided missile with the primary mission of engaging enemy aircraft. Most SAMs use rocket propulsion and some type of radar or infrared guidance.
SAR Search and Rescue (sometimes written as CSAR, Combat Search and Rescue). An urgent and dangerous mission to recover shot-down flight crew or survivors from enemy-controlled territory or waters. Typically involves very low-altitude covert helicopter flights with or without fighter escort.
SAR Synthetic-Aperture Radar. An aircraft radar (or operating mode of a multi-function radar) that can produce highly accurate ground maps.
SCUD Western reporting name for the Soviet R-11 (SCUD-A) and R-17 (SCUD-B) short- range ballistic missile. Based largely on World War II German technology. Range of 110–180 miles with 1,000 kg./2,200 lb. warhead. Inaccurate inertial guidance. Can be transported and erected for launch by large truck. Widely exported to Iraq, North Korea, and other Soviet client states. Iraq modified basic SCUD design to produce longer-ranged Al Abbas and Al Hussein missiles with much smaller warheads.
SEAD Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses. This requires enticing the enemy to light up search and track radars, launch SAMs, or fire anti-aircraft guns, which can then be target for destruction or neutralization by jamming and other countermeasures. SEAD was a primary mission of Wild Weasel aircraft. With the retirement of the remaining F-4G Wild Weasels, the SEAD mission will be taken over by specially trained and equipped F-16s.
SIGINT Signal Intelligence. Interception, decoding, and analysis of enemy communications traffic.
Skunk Works(r) Lockheed's Burbank, California, Advanced Development group, created during World War II by engineer Clarence 'Kelly' Johnson. Developed the U-2, SR-71, F-117, and other secret aircraft. The name and skunk cartoon logo are copyrighted by Lockheed.
Slat A long, narrow movable control surface, usually along the leading edge of the wing, to provide additional lift during takeoff.
Slave Mode Any system mode that causes the sensor of a weapon to lock onto a target being tracked by the sensor onboard the aircraft. For example, the infrared seeker on a Sidewinder missile can be 'slaved' to a target tracked by the aircraft's radar.
SNECMA Societe Nationale d'Etude et de Construction de Moteurs d'Avions (National Aircraft Engine Research and Construction Company). French state-owned jet engine builder; financially troubled but technically proficient.
Sortie The basic unit of airpower: one complete combat mission by one aircraft. 'Sortie generation' is the ability of an air unit to re-arm, re-fuel, and service aircraft for repeated missions in a given period.
SOS Space Operations Squadron.
Spar A long load-carrying beam in the structure of a wing.
Sparrow AIM-7 family of long-range radar-guided air-to-air missiles produced by Raytheon. Variants include the ship-launched Sea Sparrow.
Stall Sudden lost of lift when the airflow separates from the wing surface. May be caused by a variety of maneuvers, such as climbing too steeply with insufficient thrust. 'Compressor stall' is a different phenomenon that occurs inside a turbine engine.
START Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty. One of a series of agreements between the United States and the former Soviet Union to reduce the number of deployed nuclear delivery systems and warheads.
Stealth A combination of design features, technologies, and materials, some highly classified, designed to reduce the radar, visual, infrared, and acoustic signature of an aircraft, ship, or other vehicle to the point where effective enemy detection and countermeasures are extremely unlikely before the vehicle has completed its mission and escaped. The F-117A is the best known modern example.
STOVL Short Takeoff, Vertical Landing. Capability of certain vectored-thrust aircraft, notably the Harrier. Short takeoff is assisted by a fixed 'ski-jump' ramp.
T-38 Talon Twin-turbojet advanced trainer; over 1,100 built by Northrop. Entered service in 1961. First supersonic aircraft specifically designed as a trainer.
T-3A Firefly Lightweight two-seat propeller-driven trainer based on British Slingsby T67. Used by U.S. Air Force for screening of prospective pilots. Top speed 178 mph., ceiling 19,000 ft.
TAC Tactical Air Command. Former major command of the U.S. Air Force responsible for most fighter aircraft wings. Merged into Air Combat Command in 1992.
TACC Tactical Air Control Center. A staff organization responsible for planning and coordinating air force combat and support operations in a given area.
TDY Temporary Duty. A military assignment to a location away from one's normal duty station. TDY generally involves separation from family and entitles personnel to supplementary pay and allowances.
TELAR Transporter Erector Launcher and Radar. A tracked or wheeled vehicle, typically of Soviet design, equipped to carry and launch one or more surface-to-air missiles. Often equipped with optical
