The new uniform design is a pixilated tiger stripe with four soft earth tones consisting of tan, grey, green and blue. The ABU will have a permanent crease and will be offered in 50-50 nylon-cotton blend permanent press fabric eliminating the need for winter and summer weight uniforms.
Air Force News Link: Airman Battle Uniform finalized
:: Word is that a member of the USAF Air Staff has confirmed that the Civil Air Patrol will eventually transition to the new Airman Battle Uniform.
This won't happen for a good long while... The current projected mandatory wear date for the new ABU for active duty Air Force isn't until fiscal 2011. So I wouldn't expect us to make the transition before the active component does.
Ever since the ABU was proposed by the Air Force, there has been all sorts of hand wringing discussion by CAP volunteers about whether we'll be joining our regular forces in the new duds.
I remember back when I was a Cadet, the same sort of kvetching went on when the Air Force transitioned from the old green fatigues to the current Battle Dress Uniform. Same old same old. The Scope of Work defines that CAP will wear the Air Force uniform, just distinctive from active duty forces, when meeting grooming and weight standards.
So now everyone can go forth and tell the worryworts to relax, and get back to work.
Now if we could just please for the love of hypothermia get the damn GORE-TEX ECWCS approved for wear.
[ UPDATE: Note the updated image, with the uniform sporting CAP aquamarine tapes and insignia. The cloth officer grade on the cover is still wishful thinking on the part of Eclipse. ]
I am in no hurry...I have the old style BDUs now and was planning to get another set. I'll just have to hold off on that and get this when it comes.
The BDU is my priamry field uniform for SARex activities...it is more suited, at least to me, for "fox hunting" in the brush and scrub land of South Texas.
I will offer no controversy on this...it will serve no positive purpose.
Posted by: Major Carrales | May 25, 2006 at 23:14
Gore Tex?
Hypothermia?
These words have no meaning to me.
(The preceeding comment has been an OBLIGATORY GLOAT from people who live in the State of Florida.)
Posted by: JohnKachenmeister | May 26, 2006 at 08:46
I would just like to point out - while those living in FL may not have to worry about being cold - at least those of us in the north don't have to worry about being EATEN ALIVE by any number of large hungry fish type things (read: sharks) or alligators.
Posted by: scottfmurphy | May 26, 2006 at 09:14
Hypothermia -- you remember it --it's in that GT greenbook that we ALL use--nationwide. The Hawaii Wing guys learned about snakebite from it.
You will not find 'goretex' in that green book, however, only 'rainwear, durable'.
Posted by: Tribal Elder | May 26, 2006 at 13:36
Scott:
Gators are just geckos on steroids.
Surfers are fed to the sharks intentionally. Their only useful contribution to the world is as a protein source for predatory fish
Posted by: JohnKachenmeister | May 26, 2006 at 14:42
Hey, the Rangers keep losing guys to hypothermia at Camp Rudder, and that's in Florida!
Posted by: NIN | May 26, 2006 at 15:59
We had snow in 2005!!! And on Christmas to boot (Bing would have been proud to see it actually snowed a WHITE CHRISTMAS in his wife Kathy's hometown of Robstown, Texas)...ask John K about Texas weather.
Posted by: Major Carrales | May 26, 2006 at 16:45
The only ice in Florida is in our cocktails.
Posted by: JohnKachenmeister | May 26, 2006 at 17:32
Besides, Camp Rudder is in the Panhandle. The Panhandle doesn't count as Florida. Its really part of South Georgia, but the Spanish were slow in leaving.
Posted by: JohnKachenmeister | May 26, 2006 at 17:40
Back to the original subject: did anyone REALLY think we were going to wear BDU's indefinitely?? Eventually, as the demand for them slowly goes away, they will too (case-in-point: you really don't see anyone selling green fatigues nowadays.) Die-hards take heart-BDU's will still be an option for us for a long time to come. Before long, you'll be able to buy them for peanuts on ebay.
Does anyone remember when BDU's first came out, and we all said "you're kidding, right?" That was 25 years ago-how time flies!
The new ABU's look pretty sharp, but I'm holding out for the double-breasted version!
Posted by: O-Rex | May 26, 2006 at 23:26
O-Rex:
You're right...
Our "Wear-out" dates are measured in eons.
WIWAC, senior members were still wearing "Ike" jackets into the late 1960's.
Ike, himself, had long retired from public life.
Posted by: JohnKachenmeister | May 27, 2006 at 14:22
Sorry everyone, but I've got to take exception to this..
Civilians wearing camo? Camoflauge BDUs are the uniform of a warrior, not a civilian auxiliary.
It sends the wrong message to the public about our cadet program and to outside agencies during field operations.
Plus it's just damn disrespectful of the men and women serving in theater.
CAP should move to standardize all cadets and seniors on the blue field uniform.
-Sarge
Posted by: SeattleSarge | May 27, 2006 at 16:08
It's much worse than that Sarge... regulations say that when out on a GROUND/UDF TEAM an ORANGE VEST WILL BE WARN AT ALL TIMES?!
A bit disingenuous if you ask me.
Never the less I must point out that wearing the unifrom of the MOTHER SERVICE promotes a since of belonging and brotherhood between THEM and US.
This is interesting...most interesting.
Posted by: Major Carrales | May 28, 2006 at 01:08
During SAR, I would hope that CAP would wish to be as visible as possible. Day-Glo fatigues would be most effective, but not realistic and probably not good for the morale.
Day-Glo orange vests are probably the compromise.
In many Army bases, specially since the begining of the WoT, many Army Post commanders have been setting the uniform-of-the-day to be fatigues, in solidarity with those out fighting the war, even if one's job is behind a desk all day long.
I would think that these cammo fatiues for CAP serve a similar role, one of solidarity with one CAP's major sponsors, if not, its major sposor: The USAF, for which I think CAP is out and about being its auxiliary roughly 1/3 of the time and shares much a common lineage.
But now with all the spooky things that this civilian paramilitary organization has been up to as of late (Border Patrol, Homeland Scruitiny, Law Enforcement, Customs and Imigrations, Ballistic Missile Range Safety, perhaps an Invisibility Cloak would be in store for CAP as an emerging Uniform Item to propose for the next conference. The only thing is some part of this cloak will need to stick out like a sore thumb as distinctive to CAP. In that manner, blue forces needn't salute us when
we wear it. ;-)
I wonder how long it will take to transition to this?
Take care 'yall!
Posted by: Oilygarch | May 28, 2006 at 14:34
We ought to take advantage of this opportunity to get the entire organization in Blue BDUs and say to USAF "thanks, but no thanks" to the USAF regarding the ABU.
uniform = uni form = one style.
Let's start the campaign now: "True uniformity in CAP by 2010!"
Posted by: Blackwing | May 28, 2006 at 19:16
I will, respectfully, disagree with Seattle Sarge. We are a part of the USAF. We are as much a part of the Air Force family as Sally Jennings' descendants are a part of Thomas Jefferson's family.
The guys who flew combat missions for the Army Air Corps earned for us the right to wear the USAF uniform. It is an honor not to be taken lightly, and certainly not to be thrown back in their faces.
I sort of agree with Blackwing that we have way too many possible uniform combinations. Our activities look like a NATO meeting. I disagree that the solution is to abandon the USAF uniform.
Posted by: JohnKachenmeister | May 28, 2006 at 21:33
I still say, plain khaki BDU's and pith helmets. Get ourselves some range rovers and go on safari in the outback.
Posted by: Major Cranford, CAP | May 30, 2006 at 21:58
Too many CAP members spend too much time and emotional energy worrying about uniforms: time and energy that could likely be better spent on doing things. I am sure that the average Air Force Officer and NCO cringes when they see the average CAP member all dolled up in one of their uniforms. As a retired Army Officer, I certainly do, most of the time. Take a careful look around the next search base that you go to: remind you of garbage collectors and rag muffins?
Posted by: bosshawk | June 04, 2006 at 12:57
That's a point I've made before, Bosshawk.
Just because you are in a CAP uniform and excused from the grooming standards of the USAF, should not be taken to mean that it is OK to look like a refugee from Bike Week in Daytona.
I can live with longer hair, if it is professionally styled. I can accept a well-trimmed beard.
But I have actualy seen scraggly fuzzfaces, ponytails, unkempt, greasy hair, all excused under the aegis of a "Corporate" uniform.
And, without exception, THESE are the guys hanging around to have their pictures taken when civilian reporters show up. They look like they should be holding a "Will work for food" sign, and they are Glory Hounds!
New CAP motto: "Bums and proud of it?"
Posted by: JohnKachenmeister | June 04, 2006 at 15:13
This new fatigue uniform makes our USAF look like the presidential honor guard for some banana republic. All they need now are some silk ascots, patent leather tanker boots and full color medals on the ABU shirt.
I can live with keeping the cadets in ABU's, but the Seniors need to go with all blue BDU's and flightsuits.
Posted by: WTF, OVER | June 08, 2006 at 22:41
I think that we should either stay with the regular BDUs or switch to blue bdus, after all our main mission is search and rescue, not search and destroy. but, either way ill be long gone by then so what ever
Posted by: skinner | May 08, 2007 at 19:02
Any news updates on this? all the reading i've been doing is from 2006-2008... we're entering 2010 and still, i've not heard any updates about CAP making the switch to ABU's. if any1 knows anything, please email me at George11421@hotmail.com
thanks. =]
Posted by: www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1018003387 | November 03, 2009 at 23:43