Morale, say, on first of ops (3)
I believe the answer is:
ego
'morale' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'say on first of ops' is the wordplay.
'say' becomes 'eg'.
'on' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'first of ops' becomes 'o' (1st letter of 'ops').
'eg'+'o'='EGO'
(Other definitions for ego that I've seen before include "Self-confidence" , "Selfishness" , "One's sense of self-importance" , "Part of the mind" , "Self-esteem, conceit" .)