The Navy as a whole wears an inexplicably blue digital print, which looks not unlike that of rushing, turbulent water — precisely the colors you wouldn't want to be wearing if you fell overboard. LTGEN Gillespie was also able to spend time talking with soldiers operating out of various Patrol bases in the Baluchi, Chora and Mirabad Valleys during his visit. Combat uniforms, in other words, that would be used everywhere except combat. What makes the Marines' digital camouflage unique is also its greatest weakness for the military as a whole. That's pretty much everything you need to know about its effectiveness. Here are some camouflage decisions militaries made that just missed the mark. And what of the US Army’s grand ambition for a universal camouflage pattern that would work in every environment? Photo by SGT Brent Tero. If the Army's first effort at a new pattern was idiotic, the Air Force's go was simply embarrassing. First off, the Air Force changed its uniform not because it had found a superior camouflage, but because its chief of staff wanted something that looked "distinctive." ISAF seeks to bring security, stability and prosperity to Afghanistan and aims to prevent Afghanistan again becoming a safe haven for international terrorists. From brightly-colored dress uniforms to different types of digital camo, soldiers all over the globe tend to take a second glance at the duty wear of their international counterparts. In recent years, it has resisted efforts by the Army and Navy to derive uniforms from MARPAT and its colors. Tiger Stripe (U.S. Air Force)One would do well not to follow the Air Force. The list is organized by pattern; only … Majid Saeedi/Getty Images. This area covers from Alabama, to Louisiana, Texas, Arkansas, and the states in between. (Which is, in fact, the opposite of camouflage.) (See the photos here.) April 29, 2016. It is the worst camo pattern known to man. Top ten worst military camouflage patterns April 29, 2016 Chief of Army Lieutenant General (LTGEN) Ken Gillespie, talks with personnel about clothing and equipment at a Patrol Base in the Chora Valley. MARPAT is patented, and the Corps has proven an aggressive defender of its intellectual property. This site is owned and operated by Bright Mountain Media, Inc., a publicly owned company trading with the symbol. Top ten worst military camouflage patterns. Unlike the Army's  effort, MARPAT makes no attempt at being a universal camouflage, and there are two sets of colors used: For wooded areas, green, tan, brown, and black, and for desert environments, various shades of sand. Under this operation our forces contribute to the efforts of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) - led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan. The Universal Camouflage Pattern has finally been put out to pasture. (See the photos here.) This is an intellectually indefensible position made entirely for purposes of marketing and recruiting. Yemeni Camouflage Patterns Certainly the longest-lived camouflage pattern worn by Yemeni forces is the Egyptian two-color desert or "sand" pattern. Chief of Army Lieutenant General (LTGEN) Ken Gillespie, talks with personnel about clothing and equipment at a Patrol Base in the Chora Valley. The Army's solution? Operation SLIPPER also supports the United States led International Coalition Against Terrorism (ICAT) in the broader Middle East. The tiger stripe pattern remained, but the colors were changed to those used in the ineffective Army universal camouflage pattern. If the Marines are clinging to MARPAT to attract recruits, it almost seems like the Air Force is using theirs as a recruit repellent. Of course, there was actually a war going on at the time — two, in fact — and the universal pattern didn't work adequately in either of them. The South. Soldiers dubbed UCP camo a “digital camouflage,” as the mix of colors resembled computer pixels. If there was ever something to set military of the world apart, it would be uniforms. Photo by SGT Brent Tero. (Though an urban variety was developed, it was not approved. Creating camouflage patterns is an art-form. Deep Caption: One design, based on the British-designed Symien sniper suit, consisted of loose strips of multi-colored cloth, twine or burlap attached to a loose-fitting hooded jacket & trousers, designed to appear as foliage from … During the visit they met with soldiers based at the Kandahar Airfield and soldiers at the Multinational Base at Tarin Kowt. Today, deployed airmen are issued MultiCam-patterned uniforms. Army To Retire Worst Camo Ever Developed On October 1st. Obviously the effectiveness never lived up to the promise. So just as the United States was gearing up for war in Iraq, the Air Force selected a new tiger stripe pattern in blue and gray made of a material too hot for comfortable use in desert environments. This is a list of military clothing camouflage patterns used for battledress. This will give you an idea of what hunting camouflage patterns work best. In both its woodland and desert patterns, DPM was the standard camouflage pattern of the British armed forces from the late 1960s until 2011. Make no mistake — it looks nice. The shades vary from brown to light tan, with vague fields of green. From the rolling Ozark Mountains of Arkansas, to the lowland Swamps of Alabama and Louisiana. When the Marine Corps selected a digital pattern for its combat uniform in 2002, the U.S. military as a whole seemed to fracture, with each branch wandering aimlessly in a bizarre search for sartorial identity. It marked the U.S. military's first run at a digital uniform, and is (perhaps unexpectedly, given operations tempo and budgetary differences) based on the research of the Canadian Armed Forces. In a way, that might actually be the best argument for the pattern's effectiveness. This has since led back to the OCP, which isn’t all that different from the patterns used during World War II. The USMC’s MARPAT woodland and desert patterns are digital patterns, as are the US Navy’s NWU Type II and III patterns for woodland / jungle and desert use – and no one seems to have any complaints about them. Such a perfect camouflage would save a fortune, as the Army wouldn't have to issue a new pattern every time it went to war. Chief of Army Lieutenant General (LTGEN) Ken Gillespie, talks with personnel about clothing and equipment at a Patrol Base in the Chora Valley. This is an Iranian pattern, and it is apparently known as the "ice cream paint job pattern". The problem is, everybody can tell, because it doesn't actually blend into anything. Chinese Marines wear a bizarre blue digital pattern. Worst Camo Evar OK, Next person who bitches about the US Army UCP (ACU) camouflage pattern has to wear this. It has found great success in militaries the world over, from the Russian Federal Security Service to the Australian Special Air Service. The development of camouflage patterns specifically for military application by American forces can be traced to the First World War. Copyright © 2021 PopularMilitary | All Rights Reserved. Like her British and French allies, military engineers experimented with a number of designs for hiding reconnaissance personnel and snipers employed along the frontiers. The United States Army is officially retiring the Universal Camouflage Pattern (UCP) on October 1, 2019, much to the relief of soldiers and veterans everywhere. To issue specially-patterned "MultiCam" combat uniforms to soldiers in Afghanistan, but to also continue issuing universal pattern combat uniforms to soldiers coming out of basic training. 6 big questions about Trump's Space Force, Donald Trump's $10 trillion climate mistake, 7 scathingly funny cartoons about Republicans' impeachment cowardice, Republicans are suddenly very in favor of a third political party, according to Gallup, Jaguar cars will be fully electric by 2025, Gen. David Petraeus' old uniform, which was the upgraded "MultiCam" pattern. Just like most clothing choices, some decisions are better than others. The pattern was used by airborne & commando forces of the former Yemen Arab Republic and has been worn historically by some units of the Yemeni Armed Forces and the Yemen Police or units of the CSO. The irresponsibly stupid and dangerous camouflage patterns of the U.S. military January 22, 2013 Gen. David Petraeus' old uniform, which was the upgraded "MultiCam" pattern. Mercifully, the blue color scheme was later shouted down by the ranks for being "a little too distinctive.". Special Warfare units are the only members of the Navy who are authorized to wear the desert variant of MARPAT. MARPAT (U.S. Marine Corps)As the acronym suggests, MARPAT is the Marine camouflage pattern. Universal Camouflage Pattern (U.S. Army)The only other country that uses the Universal Camouflage Pattern (see the photos here) for its military is Kazakhstan. The pattern was designed to work in urban areas, forested areas, and desert environments. (See the photos here.) We actually learn a lot about this from animals in nature that use camouflage to avoid being seen when hunting (or being hunted). Mid Caption Operation Enduring Freedom Camouflage Pattern (U.S. Army, U.S. Air Force)To its credit, MultiCam actually is an effective pattern — and the Army knew that in 2004, when the military branch passed over MultiCam in favor of the universal print. Operation SLIPPER is Australia's military contribution to the international campaign against terrorism, piracy and improving maritime security. Operation Enduring Freedom Camouflage Pattern, as it is officially know, is characterized by the transition colors on each of its splotches (which are themselves smaller and more refined than those of the old woodland pattern). Given the population of China, an all out assault from these guys would resemble a blue wave coming at you from over the horizon. In other words, seven years after the invasion of Afghanistan, the Air Force settled on a color scheme that can be worn everywhere except Afghanistan. Only one other country uses the U.S. Air Force design for its military: The Dominican Republic, which is itself all but an operational branch of the Mexican drug cartels. Color While it makes sense for the Marine Corps to stop other countries from adopting such an effective camouflage, it does not make sense for the Marines to withhold permission from other branches of the U.S. military. Military camouflage is the use of camouflage by a military force to protect personnel and equipment from observation by enemy forces. Textile patterns for uniforms have multiple functions, including camouflage, identifying friend from foe, and esprit de corps.. It's been a long, strange trip since. So let's take a brief look at the camouflage patterns of the U.S. military, and the sorry stories of their adoptions. Likewise, there is no arctic variation; the Marines use a different pattern entirely for snowy terrain.). This area is huge, and like the others has a vast array of hunting habitats. Check out our article on the top camouflage patterns in nature to learn more. Share Tweet. Originally, the uniform was not digitized and looked even more strange. Modeled in part on the hand-painted military camouflage used by the famous Commando units of the Second World War, DPM was designed, as the name suggests, with pattern disruption in mind. first published on September 30, 2019 by Funker. Chief of Army Lieutenant General (LTGEN) Ken Gillespie visited the Middle East Area of Operations with the Regimental Sergeant Major of the Army, Warrant Officer, Stephen Ward.