SAILORSPEAK
A Glossary of Military Terminology, Jargon, and Slang
compiled and edited by Jeff Crowell





Aircraft Nicknames Appendix







Aircraft Nicknames


alpha-
numeric
desig


official
service
name



      nickname

A-3D Skywarrior: Whale, All Three Dead (it had no ejection seats!)
A-4 Skyhawk: Scooter, Heinemann's Hotrod (for Ed Heinemann, its designer), Mongoose
A-5 Vigilante: Vigie, Viggie (both pronounced with short 'i' and soft 'g')
A-6 Intruder: Drumstick, Pregnant Guppy
A-7 Corsair II: SLUF (Short Little Ugly Fucker)
A-10 Thunderbolt II: Warthog, Hog
AC-130H/U Specter: Spooky, Puff The Magic Dragon, Dragon. These 'noms de guerre' are shared with the AC-130's Vietnam-era predecessor, the AC-47.
AD-1 Skyraider: Spad, Able Dog (from the phonetic alphabet), Fat Face
AH-1G Cobra: Snake
AH-1W Cobra: Whiskey
B-1 Excalibur / Lancer: Bone (from 'B One')
B-2 Spirit: Black Knight, Boomerang
B-52 Stratofortress: BUFF (Big Ugly Fat Fucker), Aluminum Overcast Buccaneer: Banana Bomber
C-5 Galaxy: Aluminum Overcast, Cumulus Aluminus, Big Mac, Fat Albert, Linda Lovelace (you can drive vehicles right down its throat as the nose pivots up and back), Queer (it kneels and blows things often)
C-17 Globemaster III: Mighty Mouse, Buddha, Moose, Barney
C-130 Hercules: Herky Bird, Fat Albert, Vibrator, Bugsmasher
C-141 Starlifter: Lockheed Lizard (when in camo paint), Star Lizard (same), Quarter Pounder
E-1 Tracer: Willie Fudd, Stoof With A Roof
E-2 Hawkeye: Hummer
E-3 Sentry: AWACS (Airborne early Warning And Control System), Frisbee
E-6A Hermes: Gecko (they can lose--have lost!--their tail and keep flying)
EA-3 Skywarrior: Electric Whale
EA-6B Prowler: Queer (from the 'VAQ' squadron designation)
EC-130H Hercules: Electric Herc
EC-130E Command Solo: Clipper (EW pods made it look somewhat like a seaplane)
EF-111 Raven: Spark Vark
ES-3 Shadow: Electro-Lux (continuing the vacuum cleaner theme)
F-2H Banshee: Banjo
F-3D Skyknight: Drut (now try that backwards)
F-4D Skyray: Ford
F-4 Phantom II: Lead Sled, Double Ugly, Rhino (E/G models with nose pitot tube), Flying Footlocker, Warped Wing, Bug Basher
F-5A,B Freedom Fighter: Skoshi Tiger, Dinky Toy
F-8 Crusader: MiG Master, Crud, 'Sader
F-14 Tomcat: Turkey, Tomkitty, Cat, Tomgrape, Bombcat (when capable of air to ground), Peeping Tom (when fitted with TARPS reconnaissance pod)
F-15 Eagle: Beagle (E variant, contraction of 'Bomb Eagle'), Mudhen (dark gray 'E variant), Albino (light gray 'C variant), Rodan, Flying Tennis Court, Starship, Ego Jet
F-16 Fighting Falcon: Lawn Dart, Icepick, Viper, Electric Jet
F/A-18 Hornet: Plastic Bug, Bug
F-100 Hun: Clunk (because of the sounds it would make while sitting in the hangar with no one near it), Super Sled
F-101 Voodoo: One-Oh-Wonder
F-102 Delta Dagger: Deuce
F-104 Starfighter: Zipper, Missile With A Man, Sled, Widowmaker
F-105 Thunderchief: Thud, Nickel, Lead Sled
F-106 Delta Dart: Six
F-111 Aardvark: Vark, Switchblade Edsel, Ramp Vac, McNamara's Folly
F-117 Nighthawk: Cockroach (they run away when the lights come on), Roach, Stinkbug, Black Jet, Goblin, Ghost, Batplane
H-53 Sea Stallion: Pisser (due to the hydraulic leaks), Jolly
HC-4 Sea King: Junglie
KC-10 Extender: Snoopy
KC-135 Stratotanker: Strato-Bladder, Steam Jet, Fanbird (R version, which was equipped with turbofan engines)
LOH-58 Kiowa: Loach (from the Light Observation Helicopter (LOH) designation)
MH-6 Cayuse: Little Bird
S-2F Tracker: Stoof
S-3 Viking: Hoover, War Hoover
SH-3 Sea king: Sea Pig
SR-71 Blackbird: Habu, Sled
T-2 Buckeye: Guppy
T/A-37 Dragonfly: Dog Whistle, Converter (converts fuel to noise), Tweety Bird, Tweet, Killer Tweet, Howler, Screamer
T-38 Talon: White Rocket, Smurf (blue-camo AT-38s)
UH-1 Iroquois: Huey
US-2B : Used to be stoof
UH-60 Blackhawk: Crashhawk
WF-1 Tracer: Willy Fudd, Stoof with a roof







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