Military Glossary

TACINTEL
See tactical intelligence.

Tactical air observer
(DOD) An officer trained as an air observer whose function is to observe from airborne aircraft and report on movement and disposition of friendly and enemy forces, on terrain, weather, and hydrography and to execute other missions as directed.

Tactical air support
(DOD, NATO) Air operations carried out in coordination with surface forces and which directly assist land or maritime operations. (DOD, NATO) Air operations carried out in coordination with surface forces and which directly assist land or maritime operations.

Tactical combat force
(DOD) A combat unit, with appropriate combat support and combat service support assets, that is assigned the mission of defeating Level III threats.

Tactical level of war
(DOD) The level of war at which battles and engagements are planned and executed to accomplish military objectives assigned to tactical units or task forces. Activities at this level focus on the ordered arrangement and maneuver of combat elements in relation to each other and to the enemy to achieve combat objectives.

Tactical nuclear weapon employment
(DOD) The use of nuclear weapons by land, sea, or air forces against opposing forces, supporting installations or facilities, in support of operations which contribute to the accomplishment of a military mission of limited scope, or in support of the military commander's scheme of maneuver, usually limited to the area of military operations.

Tactical warning and assessment
A composite term. See separate definitions for tactical warning and for attack assessment.

TALCE
See Tanker Airlift Control Element.

TALO
See theater airlift liaison officer.

Tank, main battle
(DOD) A tracked vehicle providing mobile firepower and crew protection for offensive combat.

Target area survey base
(DOD, NATO) A base line used for the locating of targets or other points by the intersection of observations from two stations located at opposite ends on the line.

Target combat air patrol
(DOD) A patrol of fighters maintained over an enemy target area to destroy enemy aircraft and to cover friendly shipping in the vicinity of the target area in amphibious operations.

Target discrimination
(DOD, NATO) The ability of a surveillance or guidance system to identify or engage any one target when multiple targets are present.

Target system component
(DOD) A set of targets belonging to one or more groups of industries and basic utilities required to produce component parts of an end product such as periscopes, or one type of a series of interrelated commodities, such as aviation gasoline.

TECDOC
See technical documentation.

Technical operational intelligence
(DOD) A Defense Intelligence Agency initiative to provide enhanced scientific and technical intelligence to the commanders of unified commands and their subordinates through a closed loop system involving all Service and Defense Intelligence Agency scientific and technical intelligence centers. Through a system manager in the National Military Joint Intelligence Center, the technical operational intelligence program provides timely collection, analysis, and dissemination of area of responsibility specific scientific and technical intelligence to combatant commanders and their subordinates for planning, training, and executing joint operations.

TELINT
See telemetry intelligence.

Terminal velocity
(DOD, NATO) 1. Hypothetical maximum speed a body could attain along a specified flight path under given conditions of weight and thrust if diving through an unlimited distance in air of specified uniform density. 2. Remaining speed of a projectile at the point in its downward path where it is level with the muzzle of the weapon.

Terrestrial reference guidance
(DOD) The technique of providing intelligence to a missile from certain characteristics of the surface over which the missile is flown, thereby achieving flight along a predetermined path.

Thermal crossover
(DOD) The natural phenomenon which normally occurs twice daily when temperature conditions are such that there is a loss of contrast between two adjacent objects on infrared imagery.

Threat and vulnerability assessment
(DOD) In antiterrorism, the pairing of a facility's threat analysis and vulnerability analysis.

TIARA
See tactical intelligence and related activities.

Tie down point pattern
(DOD, NATO) The pattern of tie down points within a vehicle.

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