Military vehicles surrounding queen? Crikey (7)

I believe the answer is:

jeepers

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'crikey' is the definition.
Both the answer and definition are interjections.
Maybe there's a link between them I don't understand?

'military vehicles surrounding queen?' is the wordplay.
'military vehicles' becomes 'jeeps' (I've seen this before).
'surrounding' indicates putting letters inside.
'queen?' becomes 'ER' (abbreviation for Elizabeth Regina).
'jeeps' going around 'er' is 'JEEPERS'.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Another definition for jeepers that I've seen is " Crikey!".)

I've seen this clue in The Daily Express.

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