Well, poo ...

One of the only good things to come out of TFU.

NAVADMIN 314/12, released Oct. 19, announced the Chief of Naval Operations' (CNO) decision to terminate the Service Dress Khaki (SDK) initiative.

Oh well.

Retro Wednesday

There was a lot of variety in Navy uniforms in WWII. Some I like (such as the covers worn by the crew of The Truculent Turtle right after the war) - but to be honest ... I don't care if you are Admiral John S. McCain, Sr - sir, that infernal mutt of a cover you wore towards the end of the war needed to go!

Another view of that horrible cover can be found on page 12 of Life.

On the other end - I kind of liked the Confederate States Navy in WWII - you know - the guys wearing Service Dress Grey?

The Camo Wars

I only link to this because it is such an "I told you so" moment, I just can't help my narcissistic self.

Now, who was it that called for this camo pattern over half a decade ago? Via a great Beltway slam-down @ SOFREP,

The Crye Developed “Multicam” pattern. I estimate that this was developed for under $500k and it is one of the best camouflage patterns this Century has seen. There’s a reason combat units from all branches (including Special Operations) use it on deployment—it f[redacted] works.

Wait, there's a lame, dead horse. Let me beat it with SOFREP's stick.

The Navy’s “Aquaflage” pattern. I don’t know of one person I’ve asked who likes this silly uniform. Apparently it makes you vanish if you fall overboard, not a good quality if you ask me.

More good stuff at TheDaily on the topic.

Hat tip Lucien on FB.

Women & Combo Covers

Oh come on - almost all of us have seen women wearing combo covers that men wear ... just not outside the bedroom (Am I bad for saying that? Deny it .... ).

This is interesting.

1. Purpose. To publish the policies and procedures governing a Department of the Navy initiative to conduct a fit and wear evaluation of the current male combination cap by female Midshipmen assigned to the U.S. Naval Academy and female members of the U.S. Naval Academy Band. This is part of the Department of the Navy’s goal to further a climate of inclusion for female Sailors and officers. Enclosure (1) depicts the proper wear of the male combination cap.

Ummmmmm, yea. It is the combo cover that is making women want to stay at home with their children in the 30s instead of doing the LCDR to make CDR grind mid-career. I knew it was something that simple.

Should be interesting to see how it works out. I am sure women will find it just as difficult to fit in a seabag as the men ... and it won't make a hill of beans difference. 

For a lot of the smaller women with small nogg'ns - they may look a bit Soviet .... but good luck.

Yep .... look at page 4 of the link above (the pic above ain't it). It actually manages to make the female in uniform even less attractive - and almost Soviet with the comparative size of the lid.

Note to the Navy. If you want a good female uniform; go visit the French Air Force or the Czech or Slovak military for a start.