U.S. Army officials released an official statement today on its long-waited camouflage decision, and it left a lot of questions unanswered.
The statement echoes what Gen. Dennis L. Via, the head of Army Materiel Command, said July 23 – that Scorpion W2 would likely be fielded sometime in 2015.
But the statement never names Scorpion W2 as the replacement for the current Universal Camouflage Pattern. It only refers to the pattern as the Army’s new Operational Camouflage Pattern.
Here’s the complete statement:
Classification: UNCLASSIFIED
Caveats: NONEArmy statement on the Operational Camouflage Uniform
July 31, 2014
By Senior Army Spokesperson
ARLINGTON, Va. (July 31, 2014) -- The Army has selected a pattern as its
base combat uniform camouflage pattern. The Army has confirmed through
testing that the pattern would offer exceptional concealment, which directly
enhances force protection and survivability for Soldiers.The Army is naming the pattern the Operational Camouflage Pattern (OCP) to
emphasize that the pattern's use extends beyond Afghanistan to all Combatant
Commands. The Army's adoption of OCP will be fiscally responsible by
transitioning over time and simply replacing current uniforms and equipment
as they wear out.The Army anticipates the Army Combat Uniform with the OCP will be available
for purchase by Soldiers at Military Clothing Sales Stores (MCSS) in the
summer of 2015.\\_______
There are still a lot of questions that need to be answered. At the top of the list is a detailed account of the testing the Army put this revised version of the original 2002 Scorpion pattern through.
Roughly a year ago, Army uniform officials completed a four-year camouflage improvement effort. The finalists were Crye Precision, ADS Inc., teamed with Hyperstealth, Inc.; Brookwood Companies Inc.; and Kryptek Inc.
The Army should explain how Scorpion W2 compares to these top-performing patterns and release the test data to the public.
