(See also section H)

Abbreviations in common use on Usenet
    :-)    = Smile
    :-(    = Frown
    AFAIK  = As Far As I Know
    AKA    = Also Known As
    BTW    = By The Way
    FAQ    = Frequently Asked Questions
    FTP    = File Transfer Protocol
    FWIW   = For What It's Worth
    FYI    = For Your Information
    GIF    = Graphic Interchange Format
    HTTP   = Hypertext Transfer Protocol
    IIRC   = If I Remember Correctly
    IMHO   = In My Humble Opinion
    IMNSHO = In My Not So Humble Opinion
    ISTR   = I Seem To Recall
    RL     = Real Life
    ROTFL  = Rolling On The Floor Laughing
    UL     = Urban Legend
    URL    = Uniform Resource Locator
    WRT    = With Respect To
    WWW    = World-Wide Web
    YMMV   = Your Mileage May Vary

Abbreviations related to military aviation
    AA      = Anti-Aircraft
    AAA     = Anti-Aircraft Artillery
    AAM     = Air-to-Air Missile
    AB      = Air Base
    a/c     = Aircraft
    ACM     = Air Combat Manoeuvring
    AEW     = Airborne Early Warning
    AEW&C   = Airborne Early Warning and Control
    AF      = Air Force
    AFB     = Air Force Base
    AFTI    = Advanced Fighter Technology Integration
    AGM     = Air-to-Ground Missile
    AH      = Attack Helicopter
    ALARM   = Air-Launched Anti-Radiation Missile
    ALCM    = Air-Launched Cruise Missile
    AMRAAM  = Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile
    AOA     = Angle of Attack
    AP      = Armour Piercing
    APU     = Auxiliary Power Unit
    ARH     = Active Radar Homing
    ARM     = Anti-Radiation Missile
    ASL     = At Sea Level
    ASM     = Air-to-Surface Missile
    ASPJ    = Airborne Self-Protection Jammer
    ASRAAM  = Advanced Short-Range Air-to-Air Missile
    ASTOVL  = Advanced Short Take-Off/Vertical Landing
    ASV     = Anti-Surface-Vessel
    ASW     = Anti-Submarine Warfare
    AT      = Advanced Trainer
    ATB     = Advanced Technology Bomber
    ATF     = Advanced Tactical Fighter
    ATGM    = Anti-Tank Guided Missile
    ATGW    = Anti-Tank Guided Weapon
    ATM     = Anti-Tank Missile
    AWACS   = Airborne Warning and Control System
    BDA     = Bomb Damage Assessment
    BUFF    = Big Ugly Fat Fucker (B-52)
    CAD     = Computer Aided Design
    CAG     = Carrier Air Group
    CALF    = Common Advanced Lightweight Fighter
    CAM     = Computer Aided Manufacturing
    CAP     = Combat Air Patrol
    CAS     = Close Air Support
    CAW     = Carrier Air Wing
    CCIP    = Continuously Computed Impact Point
    CO      = Commanding Officer
    COD     = Carrier On-Board Delivery
    COIN    = Counter-Insurgency
    CTOL    = Conventional Take-Off and Landing
    CV      = Carrier, Heavier-than-Air
    CVA     = Carrier, Heavier-than-Air, Attack
    CVE     = Carrier, Heavier-than-Air, Escort
    CVN     = Carrier, Heavier-than-Air, Nuclear Powered
    CVS     = Carrier, Heavier-than-Air, Anti-Submarine
    CVW     = Carrier Air Wing
    DACT    = Dissimilar Air Combat Training
    DS      = Desert Storm
    EAP     = Experimental Aircraft Programme
    ECCM    = Electronic Counter-Countermeasures
    ECM     = Electronic Countermeasures
    ECR     = Electronic Combat and Reconnaissance
    EFA     = European Fighter Aircraft
    EFIS    = Electronic Flight Information System
    ehp     = Equivalent Horsepower
    ekW     = Equivalent Kilowatts
    ELINT   = Electronic Intelligence
    EMP     = Electromagnetic Pulse
    ESM     = Electronic Support/Surveillance Measures
    Eurofar = European Future Advanced Rotorcraft
    EW      = Electronic Warfare
    F/A     = Fighter/Attack
    FAC     = Forward Air Control
    FAST    = Fuel and Sensor, Tactical
    FB      = Fighter-Bomber
    FBW     = Fly by Wire
    FGA     = Fighter/Ground Attack
    FLA     = Future Large Airlifter
    FLIR    = Forward-Looking Infrared
    FOD     = Foreign Object Damage
    FR      = Flight Refuelling
    FSW     = Forward-Swept Wings
    Ftr     = Fighter
    FY      = Fiscal Year
    GA      = Ground Attack
    GCA     = Ground Controlled Approach
    GCI     = Ground Controlled Interception
    GPS     = Global Positioning System
    HARM    = High-Speed Anti-Radiation Missile
    HE      = High Explosive
    Helo    = Helicopter
    HOTAS   = Hands On Throttle and Stick
    HUD     = Head-Up Display
    IADS    = Integrated Air Defence System
    IAS     = Indicated Airspeed
    IFF     = Identification Friend-or-Foe
    IFR     = Instrument Flight Rules
    IIR     = Imaging Infrared
    INS     = Inertial Navigation System
    Intel   = Intelligence
    INU     = Inertial Navigation Unit
    IR      = Infrared
    IRH     = Infrared Homing
    IRST    = Infrared Search and Track
    JATO    = Jet-Assisted Take-Off
    JPATS   = Joint Primary Aircraft Training System
    JSTARS  = Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System
    JTIDS   = Joint Tactical Information Distribution System
    KE      = Kinetic Energy
    LAMPS   = Light Airborne Multi-Purpose System
    LANA    = Low-Level All-Weather Night Attack
    LANTIRN = Low-Altitude Navigation and Targeting Infrared for Night
    LCA     = Light Combat Aircraft
    LGB     = Laser-Guided Bomb
    LLLTV   = Low-Light-Level Television
    LTA     = Lighter Than Air
    LWF     = Lightweight Fighter
    M       = Mach
    MAD     = Magnetic Anomaly Detection
    MFI     = Multirole Fighter/Interceptor
    MG      = Machine Gun
    MP      = Maritime Patrol
    MRF     = Multirole Fighter
    MSIP    = Multi-Stage Improvement Programme
    NAS     = Naval Air Station
    NATF    = Naval Advanced Tactical Fighter
    NAVSAT  = Navigation Satellite
    NAW     = Night/All Weather
    NBC     = Nuclear/Biological/Chemical Warfare
    NOTAR   = No Tail Rotor
    NVG     = Night Vision Goggles
    PGM     = Precision Guided Munitions
    PR      = Photographic Reconnaissance
    PRF     = Pulse Repetition Frequency
    PT      = Primary Trainer
    RATO    = Rocket-Assisted Take-Off
    RCS     = Radar Cross-Section
    Recce   = Reconnaissance
    Recon   = Reconnaissance
    RIO     = Radar Intercept Officer
    RPV     = Remote-Piloted Vehicle
    RTB     = Return to Base
    RWR     = Radar Warning Receiver
    SABA    = Small Agile Battlefield Aircraft
    SAM     = Surface-to-Air Missile
    SAR     = Search and Rescue
    SARH    = Semi-Active Radar Homing
    SEAD    = Suppression of Enemy Air Defences
    SDI     = Strategic Defense Initiative
    SFC     = Specific Fuel Consumption
    SHAR    = Sea Harrier
    SL      = Sea Level
    SLAM    = Standoff Land Attack Missile
    SLAR    = Sideways-Looking Airborne Radar
    SLUF    = Short Little Ugly Fucker (A-7)
    SOP     = Standard Operating Procedure
    SPAAG   = Self-Propelled Anti-Aircraft Gun
    Sqn     = Squadron
    SR      = Strategic Reconnaissance
    SRAM    = Short-Range Attack Missile
    STOL    = Short Take-Off and Landing
    STOVL   = Short Take-Off/Vertical Landing
    TACAMO  = Take Command and Move Out
    TARPS   = Tactical Air Reconnaissance Pod System
    TAS     = True Airspeed
    TASM    = Tomahawk Anti-Ship Missile
    TCS     = Television Camera System
    TFR     = Terrain-Following Radar
    TFW     = Tactical Fighter Wing
    TIALD   = Thermal Imaging and Laser Designation
    TLAM    = Tomahawk Land Attack Missile
    TO&E    = Table of Organisation and Equipment
    TOW     = Tube-Launched Optically-Tracked Wire-Guided Missile
    TRAM    = Target Recognition and Attack Multi-Sensor
    UAV     = Unmanned Air Vehicle
    UH      = Utility Helicopter
    VFR     = Visual Flight Rules
    VG      = Variable Geometry
    VIFF    = Vectoring in Forward Flight
    V/STOL  = Vertical/Short Take-Off and Landing
    VTO     = Vertical Take-Off
    VTOL    = Vertical Take-Off and Landing
    WIG     = Wing In Ground-Effect
    WSIP    = Weapons System Improvement Programme
    WSO     = Weapon Systems Officer

Abbreviations for air forces and other organisations
    ACC     = Air Combat Command (USA)
    AETC    = Air Education and Training Command (USA)
    AFPLA   = Air Force of the People's Liberation Army (China)
    AFRES   = Air Force Reserve (USA)
    AMC     = Air Mobility Command (USA)
    ANG     = Air National Guard (USA)
    ARPA    = Advanced Research Projects Agency (USA)
    AVMF    = Aviatsiya Voenno-Morsko Flota (Naval Air Force) (Russia)
    BMDO    = Ballistic Missile Defence Office (USA)
    CIS     = Commonwealth of Independent States
    DA      = Dalnaya Aviatsiya (Strategic Aviation) (Russia)
    DARO    = Defence Aerial Reconnaissance Office (USA)
    DARPA   = Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency (USA)
    DOD     = Department of Defense (USA)
    FA      = Frontovaya Aviatsiya (Tactical Aviation) (Russia)
    FSU     = Former Soviet Union
    FUSSR   = Former USSR
    IDF/AF  = Israeli Defence Force/Air Force (Heyl Ha'Avir)
    JASDF   = Japan Air Self-Defence Force
    KLu     = Koninklijke Luchtmacht (Royal Netherlands Air Force)
    MAC     = Military Airlift Command (USA)
    MATS    = Military Air Transport Service (USA)
    NASA    = National Aeronautics and Space Administration (USA)
    NATO    = North Atlantic Treaty Organisation
    NRO     = National Reconnaissance Office (USA)
    PVO     = Protivo-Vozdushnoy Oborony (Air Defence Force) (Russia)
    PVOS    = Protivo-Vozdushnoy Oborony Strany (Air Defence Force)
              (Russia)
    RAAF    = Royal Australian Air Force
    RAF     = Royal Air Force (UK)
    RN      = Royal Navy (UK)
    RNAF    = Royal Norwegian Air Force
    RNZAF   = Royal New Zealand Air Force
    ROKAF   = Republic of Korea Air Force (South Korea)
    RSAF    = Royal Saudi Air Force
    RVSN    = Raketnye Voiska Strategityesko Naznatseniya (Strategic
              Missile Force) (Russia)
    SAAF    = South African Air Force
    SAC     = Strategic Air Command (USA)
    TAC     = Tactical Air Command (USA)
    USAAF   = United States Army Air Force
    USAF    = United States Air Force
    USMC    = United States Marine Corps
    USN     = United States Navy
    VTA     = Voenno-Transportnaya Aviatsiya (Military Transport Aviation)
              (Russia)
    VVS RF  = Voenno-Vozdushniye Sily Rossiskoi Federatsii (Air Forces of
              the Russian Federation)
    WP      = Warsaw Pact

Abbreviations for manufacturers' names
    AIDC     = Aero Industry Development Centre (Taiwan)
    An       = Antonov (Ukraine)
    AS       = Aérospatiale (France)
    ASTA     = Aerospace Technologies of Australia
    BAC      = British Aircraft Corporation
    BAe      = British Aerospace
    Be       = Beriev (Russia)
    BMAC     = Boeing Military Aircraft Corporation (USA)
    CAC      = Chengdu Aircraft Corporation (China)
    CASA     = Construcciones Aeronauticas SA (Spain)
    CNIAR    = Centrul National al Industriei Aeronautice Române (Romania)
    DASA     = Deutsche Aerospace SA (Germany)
    DH       = De Havilland (UK)
    DHC      = De Havilland Canada
    EC       = Eurocopter (France/Germany)
    EHI      = Ellicoteri/Helicopter Industries (Italy/UK)
    Embraer  = Empresa Brasileira de Aeronautica (Brazil)
    Euroflag = European Future Large Airlifter Group
               (France/Germany/Italy/Portugal/Spain/Turkey/UK)
    GD       = General Dynamics (USA)
    GE       = General Electric (USA)
    HAL      = Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (India)
    HAMC     = Harbin Aircraft Manufacturing Corporation (China)
    HP       = Handley Page (UK)
    HS       = Hawker Siddeley (UK)
    IAI      = Israel Aircraft Industries
    Il       = Ilyushin (Russia)
    Ka       = Kamov (Russia)
    LTV      = Ling-Temco-Vought (USA)
    MBB      = Messerschmitt-Bölkow-Blohm (Germany)
    MD       = McDonnell Douglas (USA)
    Mi       = Mil (Russia)
    MiG      = Mikoyan-Gurevich (Russia)
    NAMC     = Nanchang Aircraft Manufacturing Company (China)
    P&W      = Pratt and Whitney (USA)
    P&WC     = Pratt and Whitney Canada
    RR       = Rolls-Royce (UK)
    SAC      = Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (China)
    SEPECAT  = Société Européenne de Production de l'Avion d'Ecole de
               Combat et d'Appui Tactique (France/UK)
    Su       = Sukhoi (Russia)
    Tu       = Tupolev (Russia)
    XAC      = Xian Aircraft Company (China)
    Yak      = Yakovlev (Russia)