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View Full Version : Okinawa troops line up for new cammies



thedrifter
11-04-02, 05:58 PM
By Carlos Bongioanni, Stars and Stripes
Pacific edition, Tuesday, November 5, 2002



CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa — Armani should be so lucky.

Guys here waited hours last week to get their hands on the new line.

But it wasn’t designer duds being offered at Okinawa’s military clothing outlets. It was the Marines’ new cammies.

Although Camp Schwab’s noncommissioned officers were allowed to buy a few hundred of the uniforms in March, general availability was offered for the first time last week.

The Army and Air Force Exchange Service was selling the new uniforms for the first time in the Pacific, said Master Sgt. Howard Smith, an AAFES spokesman on Okinawa.

But the new-style cammies arrived two months later than expected — and the Marines noticed.

At Camp Foster, some camped overnight to have first dibs at the new duds. Toward the close of business Monday, the shelves were so depleted that many cammie-seeking Marines went home empty-handed.

Master Gunnery Sgt. Miguel Pichando, for instance, decided to come back later when he arrived at Camp Foster’s Military Clothing Sales store on Monday — and saw a line stretching around the block. When he returned Wednesday, the store was out of uniforms in his size.

Pichando, who’s been through four uniform changes during a 29-year career in the Corps, said he understood why younger Marines were so eager.

“It’s like a new toy for them,” he said. “They couldn’t wait to get their hands on them.”

Although he retires in a year, he didn’t want to miss out on the new uniforms, either.

“Like anything else in the Marine Corps, we’re changing as we progress into the 21st century,” the master gunnery sergeant said. “This new uniform reflects those changes.”

More important, he said, Marines believe the new uniforms distinguish them from other services.

Unlike the traditional woodland patterns other services use, the Marines’ new cammies have photo-like dot patterns alternating splotches of black with shades of green for woodland camouflage, and a similar tan design for desert environments.

They also include a tiny version of the Marine emblem — the eagle, globe and anchor, with “USMC” underneath, embedded in the pattern. In March, the coat, trousers and cover cost $66.25, compared to $52.40 for those items in the old pattern.

Assistant store manager Kimiko Smith said Camp Foster’s military clothing store has not been able to confirm when the next shipment arrives. She said many Marines were upset when the store did not get the first one in late August as announced.

Consequently, Smith said, the store will stop making disclosures about future deliveries.


http://www.estripes.com/photos/11386_11412929b.jpg

Nathan K. LaForte / Courtesy U.S. Marine Corps
The line of Marines wrapped around the Camp Foster Military Clothing Sales as many waited to buy the new camouflage utility uniform that went on sale Monday. Many waited hours, and some even stayed the night Sunday to ensure their spot in this line.


http://www.estripes.com/photos/11386_11413515b.jpg

Nathan K. LaForte / Courtesy U.S. Marine Corps
Marines try on articles of the new camouflage utility uniform that went on sale at the Camp Foster Military Clothing Sales Monday.


Sempers,

Roger