Catchword: skittle

Filed Under: English, Firearms, Military, Slang

Part of Speech: n.

Quotation: Our guys usually dump 200 rounds of “Skittles” onto the target. I did not know what Skittles were for a long time. Back in Hawaii, I came upon two crew chiefs arguing loudly. One of them was very upset about the other guy giving away his Skittles.…AP-I’s machine gun rounds are pieces of ultra-dense tungsten, wrapped in a substance that burns/explodes upon contacting the target. They are referred to as “Skittles” because the tips are painted purple, green, red, or yellow, depending on when they were manufactured. “Skittles,” when fired at night, make beautiful showers of burning metal upon contact with the target. At night, they are a beautiful sight. They were rare, if not impossible to find in Hawaii. In Iraq, they are abundant.

Article or Document Title:
“Adjusting To Day Shift Is Purgatory” (URL)

Author:
Hunter Haskins

Article, Document, Publication, Web Site:
The Ledger

Publishing Location:
Lakeland, Florida

Date of Publication:
June 24, 2007

This catchword has yet to be researched.