ACRONYMS

Acronyms-- Bookmark this post!!!! I wish I would of had this list for me available when we were first getting started!!!!!! I can't get over how much the military uses acronyms for everything! The ones posted aren't nearly all of them. I will highlight the ones I mostly cared to know about when I was first getting acclimated to the Air Force but all are useful to know.

AAFES- Army and Air Force Exchange Services. They supple and operate the base exchange (BX) and the commissary.

AFB- Air Force Base...duh

BAH- Basic Allowance for Housing, tax free money paid to you to go toward housing cost. If you live on base you forfeit this amount and live rent free on base.

BAS- Basic Allowance for Subsistence, this is an amount of money the service member gets each paycheck as their food allowance.

Basic pay- Main component of military pay

ABU- Airman Battle Uniform, their camouflage uniform

BX- Base Exchange, it is a mini walmart essentially but you don't pay tax only a surcharge fee. It's located on base and there you can purchase diapers to clothes to lawn care items. Some bases have nicer BX's than others

CDS- Child Development Services, daycare on base

CO- Commanding Officer, the head person of each individual unit.

COLA- Cost of Living Adjustment, this refers to a pay increase or decrease depending where you are stationed. If overseas for example your COLA is significantly higher than state side.

COT- Commissioned Officer Training, 4-5 weeks of officer training for medical officers i.e. doctors, dentists etc, attorneys and chaplins

DeCa- Defense Commissary Agency, the commissary, where you grocery shop without paying tax and items are generally cheaper as well

DEERS- Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting Service, the department that determines what benefits you and your family are entitles to. You'll have to register each family member with DEERS right away for health benefits to take affect.

DFAS- Defense Finance and Accounting Service, the ones responsible for paying us!

DITY Move- Do-It-Yourself move, if you move your own household goods this is what it would be called

DLA- Dislocation Allowance, money you receive to cover relocating costs

Duty Station- Where the service member is assigned to work

Exhange- Same as BX

JASOC- Judge Advocate Staff Officer Course, 9 week military law training

LES- Leave and Earnings Statement, this is your monthly pay stub that gives you all kinds of information like how many days of leave you have accrued.

MRE- Meals Ready to Eat, freeze dried meals that deployed members eat

MTF- Military Treatment Facility, a military hospital or clinic

NCO- Noncommissioned Officer, higher ranked enlisted members

O Club- The Officer's Club, the official bar/restaurant for the officer's

Orders- a physical piece of paper that is crucial for military member's to have so they can leave their duty station to go to a new job.

PCM- Primary Care Manager, your doctor who is assigned to you by Tricare

PCS- Permanent Change of Station, essentially means to relocate. You would be PCSing when you receive your orders to move to a new base.

POV- Personally Owned Vehicle, if you do a DITY move you'll see this acronym

PT- Physical Training, exercise required that is usually done as a group. Top Gun goes early in the morning 3 times a week with the JAG office to do PT together.

SJA- Staff Judge Advocate, the head attorney at an Air Force base (The Boss ;)

SGLI- Service Member's Group Life Insurance, inexpensive term life insurance plan

TDY- Temporary Duty, a temp assignment where the military member would be sent to, usually for a training course.

Tricare- The military's HMO

TSP- Thrift Savings Plan, a retirement savings plan