Army Combat Uniform

A new Army Combat Uniform and gear is now being issued to soldiers deploying to Afghanistan.

The new uniform is the Army Combat Uniform style made in MULTICAM and has about a dozen changes or improvements and also include a new boot that is more of a hiking boot then a combat boot. The new uniform for in theater personnel only is called OCP (Operation Enduring Freedom Camouflage Pattern). The fist introduction was to roughly 3,600 Iowa National Guard soldiers. Each soldier is receiving 22 new or improved items in all.

The reason for the change is the solders frequently go from cities, to villages, to woods to Mountain and deserts. “The OCP allows soldiers to get far closer to the enemy before being observed, and I believe [the uniform is] safer,” Sgt. Maj. of the Army Kenneth O. Preston said. “And we’ve never issued equipment faster than we are now.”The ACU pattern was not preforming well. The original purpose of the digital pattern was not just to hide a individual but mostly to hide the number of ground troops from statalite pictures or distance viewing when they are bunched together. The digital pattern distorted the picture and view so it would be difficult to tell the difference from a hundred to a thousand troops. The issue was however that in close view the colors just did not blend into a multi environment situation (we all knew that)

Multi Cam is a combination of several different shades and color that actually dose work to take on the surroundings better then most other camo patterns. You most likely know of MulitCam from when it was introduced a few years ago. It has been a very popular but expensive pattern to civilians and used by hunters. The special forces has been using this camo for the past two years but was not widely seen and purchased by units on a small scale.

The new uniform is only available to solders in deployment and will be phased in to those that have 120 days left on tour. The phase in has started and is now in use. You will not see a soldier in MulitCam on base or stateside. Solders are not authorized to wear or use it once they leave tour. The army is for now staying with the Army Combat Uniform, ACU, for all other troops.

The overall functional improvements will also be made to the current ACU uniform to make it better and safer. The new and improvement to to the ACUs and OCP uniform include the following upgrades:

(below quoted from Armytimes)

• The MultiCam pattern. This is the result of in-depth analysis that started with 57 camouflage patterns. It provided the best concealment in a variety of tests in Afghanistan, and is especially proficient in the rugged terrain near the Pakistani border, service officials said.

• A better collar. Less Velcro and a new design keep it from crumpling up for a more comfortable wear.

• Infrared patches. These are sewn onto a hideaway tab instead of outside the pockets for greater durability. This is to ensure the patches don’t get destroyed through regular wear and tear.

• Buttons on cargo pockets: It’s back to buttons, as Velcro proved too problematic for soldiers trying to carry myriad gear.

• Extended pockets. The Army has added a special “extender button” to the trouser cargo pockets for easier access and expanded carrying capability.

• Stronger crotches. The crotch has been reinforced to reduce the rips that had become all too common.

• Fire resistant. The uniform provides four seconds of flame resistance — time to evade or egress without suffering third-degree burns. The protection also will keep second-degree burns to less than 30 percent. Such protection almost ensures a 100 percent recovery, according to studies by the burn center in San Antonio.

• Insect resistant. The days of treating your own uniforms are over as the preshrunk uniforms will have permethrine treatments before they are issued. The treatments will last for 50 washings, which should more than cover the 120 days this uniform is designed to last.

As a comment the military just spend millions of dollars to introduce the new ACU uniform that we all thought was a rush movement to have something new. We know from our experience that the overall feeling was that they knew it was not right but wanted something now for the new deployment. Was it the right step to get us where they need to be or a wast of money for not just using the 3-color desert until they figured it out?

Source:

Army Times, World Press, personal soldier interview