Factual error: When the helicopter comes into the village after Brownie is shot, it is shown displaying the red cross, as well as door machine guns. As a medevac operating under the protection of the red cross, it can't be armed. If it was a dustoff, that would be fine as dustoff choppers are called in as the closest unit to evacuate a casualty is still a combatant aircraft. Since it has the red cross on it, it is not considered to be a combatant and can't be armed.
Character mistake: When the platoon is walking to the village the next morning after the firefight in the jungle the previous night Brownie is shown walking with no sleeves on his fatigues then later on right before he's shot and killed by the VC he's shown with sleeves on but rolled up when talking to Ericsson near the farmer in the rice paddy.
Answer: "Short" in this context is military slang for someone whose tour of duty is coming close to an end. It's a derivative of "short-timer."
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