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U.S. Army Soldiers can mix camo patterns for cold-weather gear

Soldiers can mix camo patterns for cold-weather gear
Army News Service

WASHINGTON (Dec. 20, 2016) — As winter weather approaches and temperatures
drop, Soldiers turn to their cold-weather gear to keep warm outdoors while conducting
training or operations.

Many Soldiers now wear their Army Combat Uniform, or ACU, in the new Operational
Camouflage Pattern, or OCP. But their organizational clothing and individual equipment,
or OCIE, such as their wet-weather gear and their Extended Cold Weather Clothing
System sport the Universal Camouflage Pattern, or UCP.

Soldiers don’t need to freeze so as to avoid a uniform faux pas, however, the Army
wants Soldiers to know that it’s okay to wear the foliage green fleece cold-weather
jacket and other UCP cold-weather gear on top of their new OCP uniform.

“Soldiers should continue to use the equipment they have been provided to remain safe
and warm in environments that call for it,” said Sgt. Maj. Eva M. Commons, uniform
policy sergeant major, Army G-1. “This is why the Army gives you this gear to wear.”

Cold-weather gear is not part of the “clothing bag” issued to Soldiers during basic
training. Instead, Soldiers get items like the fleece cold-weather jacket, the wind
cold-weather jacket, the soft shell cold-weather jacket and trousers, or the extreme
cold/wet-weather jacket and trousers from the clothing issue facility, or CIF, at their
installation.

Commons said that no matter what ACU Soldiers are wearing – the one in UCP pattern
or the one in OCP pattern – they are allowed to wear the winter-weather gear that is
issued by the CIF.

“Any item issued from CIF is permitted for wear,” she said. “There is no restriction based
on camo pattern or color.”

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