The Great Camo Boondoggle

[Corinthian]

Sillyppines

 

! ! ! ! ! ! !

[Ivanhoe]

Now this is what a sailor combats should look like.

 

 

Now you're talking! You can tell from 100 yards out what service he is in, contrast to today. He apparently needs a LH Lee-Enfield, though (don't we all?).

 

I guess the majority of today's officers consider naval battle dress of the early 20th century to be quaint or risible, but perhaps they need to be reminded that sailors from the Commonwealth and the US did a wee bit of fighting, back in the day. Those guys didn't measure cruise success by days without a lost-time accident or percentage of ship's complement taking the Hurt Feelings Online Training Course, they measured it in tonnage sank. Those quaint uniforms were worn by a bunch of certified badasses.

[Coldsteel]

Aw c'mon guys. You think you have it bad?

 

Now THIS is service envy-induced camouflage madness.

 

 

Holy shit! Our fire fighters need pixelated camo for fire fighting! You don't want those flames finding your firefighters and burning them, right? Right....

 

 

OK. You win. That is dumber than anything I can think of. I believe I am now stupider for having been exposed to that.

 

Having already conceded defeat, this is just for the hell it: Is it a bird? is it a plane? No! It's Camouflageman! Flashier than neutral grey, more visible than someone wearing street clothes, able to be distinguished from lesser services at a single glance. Camoflageman! It's a good thing he's wearing that Hi-vis vest or I would have thought it was just a picture of a pair of boots.

 

 

[Sardaukar]

I think the blue camo for USN is dumbest idea ever...yea...works when you fall overboard. I guess that is to force reduction effort...

[Yama]

 

 

OK. You win. That is dumber than anything I can think of. I believe I am now stupider for having been exposed to that.

 

Having already conceded defeat, this is just for the hell it: Is it a bird? is it a plane? No! It's Camouflageman! Flashier than neutral grey, more visible than someone wearing street clothes, able to be distinguished from lesser services at a single glance. Camoflageman! It's a good thing he's wearing that Hi-vis vest or I would have thought it was just a picture of a pair of boots.

 

 

 

 

Gross. What the hell is the point of blue camo anyway, and why the Air forces seem obsessed with it? Is the Tarmac blue? Is the grass blue? Are the buildings blue? On what environment it is supposed to camouflage anyone, and for what purpose? You think that C-17 isn't going to taxi over you if you wear a camo?

[ScottBrim]

 

SECNAV, via 'The Early Brief':

'He [sECNAV Ray Mabus] said the “blueberries” -- which is what sailors call their blue cammies -- work only when sailors fall overboard.'

 

So they're good against sharks, no?

 

Don't sharks carry their own naturally-evolved equivalent of AEGIS inside their snouts?

[Ivanhoe]

 

 

Gross. What the hell is the point of blue camo anyway, and why the Air forces seem obsessed with it? Is the Tarmac blue? Is the grass blue? Are the buildings blue? On what environment it is supposed to camouflage anyone, and for what purpose? You think that C-17 isn't going to taxi over you if you wear a camo?

 

 

Sooner or later, SG-1 will visit a planet with blue vegetation, and then the USAF will be golden.

[Max H]

 

 

SECNAV, via 'The Early Brief':

'He [sECNAV Ray Mabus] said the “blueberries” -- which is what sailors call their blue cammies -- work only when sailors fall overboard.'

 

So they're good against sharks, no?

 

Don't sharks carry their own naturally-evolved equivalent of AEGIS inside their snouts?

 

Lasers actually

[Dawes]

Always thought the old Rhodesian pattern was a pretty good general purpose pattern:

 

 

 

[Archie Pellagio]

 

OK. You win. That is dumber than anything I can think of. I believe I am now stupider for having been exposed to that.

 

Having already conceded defeat, this is just for the hell it: Is it a bird? is it a plane? No! It's Camouflageman! Flashier than neutral grey, more visible than someone wearing street clothes, able to be distinguished from lesser services at a single glance. Camoflageman! It's a good thing he's wearing that Hi-vis vest or I would have thought it was just a picture of a pair of boots.

 

WOFFAF put out a letter last week stating that street-fighter-multi-cam WILL NOT be the new cam pattern.

[shep854]

But...standard Aussie cam makes for great therapy and entertainment. Wearers get to pass the time looking for bunnies, hearts or female anatomy, depending on their mood...

[Archie Pellagio]

Female anatomy?

I've been pretty mind-blowingly-superhuman bored over the years, but never been so bored to cloud stare the pattern on my clothes!

[Coldsteel]

 

Gross. What the hell is the point of blue camo anyway, and why the Air forces seem obsessed with it? Is the Tarmac blue? Is the grass blue? Are the buildings blue? On what environment it is supposed to camouflage anyone, and for what purpose? You think that C-17 isn't going to taxi over you if you wear a camo?

 

 

The sky. The sky is blue, right? "Blue-sky thinking" and all that. 's why aircraft are painted grey to blend in with it.

 

WOFFAF put out a letter last week stating that street-fighter-multi-cam WILL NOT be the new cam pattern.

 

 

Small miracles occur then. Still depressing that this kind of idiocy got as far as "here put this on".

[nigelfe]

Always thought the old Rhodesian pattern was a pretty good general purpose pattern:

 

 

 

A very inferior copy of what UK instroduced in WW2 for airborne, etc forces.

[nigelfe]

The RAN also has the blue camo, but in Aust type blotches, I see them regularly on platforms at Sydney Central station and have to prevent myself from laughing out loud. What adds to the joke is the plethora of colourful badges worn and a reflective band around each arm. I'm told the blotch pattern is part of Aust defence corporate branding.

 

I also noted a few weeks back that RN had adopted new non-full-dress uniforms, the clothing items were mostly the same style as the army's but were coloured plain navy blue not MTP. UK runs a single clothing procurement team for all its armed forces, which seems to have got its beans in a reasonably sensible row.

[swerve]

 

 

I'm told the blotch pattern is part of Aust defence corporate branding.

Where's the facepalm smiley when you want it?

 

Whoever thought of that should be dressed in a plain version of the uniform, & thrown overboard on a day when the choppiness of the sea is optimum for hiding him. After, of course, having '"Corporate branding" burnt onto his forehead.

[EchoFiveMike]

Navies should issue light colored nomex/kevlar coveralls for combat(seems the RN is pretty smart in this regard) and dark colored coveralls of non melting materials, with reflective stripes for normal shipboard routine. The vast majority of uniform items can be warehoused ashore for periods of shore duty. One set of a suitably squidlike err...naval uniform could be brought on ship for liberty etc, assuming civvies are not suitable. S/F.....Ken M

[Archie Pellagio]

The RAN also has the blue camo, but in Aust type blotches, I see them regularly on platforms at Sydney Central station and have to prevent myself from laughing out loud. What adds to the joke is the plethora of colourful badges worn and a reflective band around each arm. I'm told the blotch pattern is part of Aust defence corporate branding.

 

Its not blue, its grey with very dark green thrown in.

It is reasonably popular because it replaces the need for maintenance heavy dress white/blue uniforms when not at sea or pulling into/leaving port, but is practical enough for seagoing.

 

[seahawk]

A little camo pattern won´t hurt fpr naval uniforms. At least it hides a little dirt.

[rmgill]

I keep thinking the navy shipboard uniform should be a standard denim color with integral flash protection and good hot weather wearing characteristics. If you're going to spend stupid money on a uniform it better take into account fire protection and not make the crew actually working mechanical/engineering spaces uncomfortable additionally fatigued.

 

A nice to have would be a system that when the uniform is soundly drenched in salt water that portions of it change to a reflective mode. THAT would make sense for a safety aspect. Again, if you're going to spend stupid money, it better walk on water or otherwise be pretty standard and not cost stupid money.

[mnm]

Wait, there is still hope!

 

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/australian-firm-launches-anti-shark-wetsuits-065529643.html#H2nWbg8

[Paul in Qatar]

Various committees of House and Senate seem to be losing patience with this silly shit.

 

http://www.militarytimes.com/article/20130625/NEWS07/306250048/Congressional-agreement-common-combat-uniform

[bd1]

Aw c'mon guys. You think you have it bad?

 

Now THIS is service envy-induced camouflage madness.

 

 

Holy shit! Our fire fighters need pixelated camo for fire fighting! You don't want those flames finding your firefighters and burning them, right? Right....

 

relevant part start at 1.15

 

[Ivanhoe]

http://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=76271

 

NORFOLK (NNS) -- U.S. Fleet Forces (USFF) and U.S. Pacific Fleet (PACFLT) will distribute flame-resistant coveralls to the shipboard Sailors beginning early next year.

The two fleet commanders decided to approve a Flame Resistant Variant (FRV) coverall to ensure the safety of all shipboard Sailors after reviewing the findings of the Organizational Clothing Working Group.

"We made the decision to supply flame-resistant coveralls to all Sailors assigned to ships as an added safety precaution," said Adm. Bill Gortney, commander, U.S. Fleet Forces Command. "Sailors at sea operate in an environment with inherent risks. We are always looking for ways to mitigate those risks."

The FRV coverall will combine the existing blue utility coverall design with the flame-resistant fabric of the repair locker coverall.

 

...

 

Flame resistant organizational clothing had previously been limited to Sailors working in engineering departments, on flight decks and in other high-risk areas, but the working group ultimately decided every Sailor afloat should be outfitted with the additional protection.

The bottom line was simple. Any Sailor at sea could be on the end of a hose fighting a fire with little or no notice.

The Navy will initially issue two pairs of FRV coveralls to each Sailor serving on board surface ships and aircraft carriers. Type commanders will prioritize the distribution.

The coverall is expected to maintain performance properties, durability and appearance for typical deployments of six to nine months, with an optimal wear life of 18-24 months. Like other organizational clothing, the FRV coveralls will be replaced by each ship over time based on normal wear and tear.

 

...

 

The Navy is using available fleet funding to pay for this organizational clothing. Currently, the estimated per-unit cost for the FRV coverall is $50.24. The cost to research and issue the new FRV coverall is approximately $12 million.

 

[Kenneth P. Katz]

A sure sign of stupidity is when Congress has to force you to something sensible.

 

Various committees of House and Senate seem to be losing patience with this silly shit.

 

http://www.militarytimes.com/article/20130625/NEWS07/306250048/Congressional-agreement-common-combat-uniform