The US Army is well into the transition to the new camo pattern, and the Air Force uses it for their personnel overseas, with rumors for the latter continuing of a full transition as well. As a former soldier during the switch from Woodland to ACU pattern, I'm not upset this time, as OCP seems to be a much more practical pattern for its intended use. And of course now, as an Air National Guard dude, the ABU pattern is downright stupid.
As the receiving clerk on my base, I'm constantly reminded of the loads of taxpayer money being spent on clothing each time we switch camo patterns. It's always a little frustrating to see that each new pattern also requires a new color for everything else, including boots, fleece jackets, cold weather hats, and even t-shirts.
Some questions I haven't been able to answer, like the fact that we've been ordering tan boots for our deployers rather than the coyote boots the Army wants their guys to use. Is this a cost saving measure, or are the coyote boots simply not available in sufficient quantities? Either way, I'm sure that having divested themselves of tan boots after switching to sage, the Air Force is purchasing new boots rather than issuing new old stock. However, the tan boots are at least cheaper.
I discovered one bright side when I started getting new coyote fleece hats come across my bench. Years ago I ordered a three-pack of fleece hats for my own use, one black, one sage, and one brown, the last one supposedly being the color the USMC uses. I brought that one to work this week; turns out the Army adopted the same color for the OCP, so they're ordering hats that are already being made and are already in stock. They may only be $5.70/each but at least there was one smart decision being made.
