Hunting Camouflages used by Soldiers

Thought it would be interesting to see different private purchase camos. Please correct me if I get the camos wrong, I'm not good at ID'ing them.


Sgt. Nick Andrews, C co, 1st Bn, 133rd IR, 2nd br, 34th ID, Tupac, Nuristan 21 Jan 2010
Realtree Under Amour Hurlock Gloves


Unknown user
I believe this is Realtree


Unknown user, possibly Canadian,  who uses M110 SASS?
Unknown Camo
From Guns & Weapons For Law Enforcement July 2011 if anyone has a copy could you check and see if it is captioned please?


SEAL Forward Air Controller during training at Navy Strike and Air Warfare Center 2 Jun 2003
Unkown Camo



allegedly DEVGRU
Realtree Under Armour Shirt


allegedly DEVGRU Grey Squadron
Realtree All Purpose maybe?


allegedly DEVGRU
I think Mossy Oak Break Up Country


"Speedy" on the left, Bob Horrigan on the right. CAG, Operation Anaconda, March 2002
Mossy Oak I think


Lance M. Vaccaro, DEVGRU
Realtree?


Edward Gallagher SEAL, I don't know what timeframe or team
I dunno what camo


Uniform field testing, Fort Bliss Training Center 21 Sept 2012
???

A book could be written on it. After the "duck hunter" things used in vietnam i recall in the 80's pics of Cabelas duck hunter goretex jacket (FYI ECWCS Goretex jacket was born using one of those as a template). From the 90's i recall USMC MEU snipers deploying in bosnia with Bdu cut uniforms in old realtree pattern. If you go to the GWOT you'd see early use of Realtree/Mossy oak cold weather type jackets, used for their performance in the cold, not for camouflage properties.

Then navy went on to try Natural Gear, Mossy Oak, Realtree uniforms and webbing for their camouflage properties (these are rare and expensive). A general issue hunting type "3d" ghillie suit in natural gear camo exists.

As of today again, hunting camouflage clothing is used for their performance and not for their camouflage properties. There are few and far away pics of Sitka camouflage, Under armour gear in new variants of Realtree or Mossy Oak, Sixsite camouflage and atleast another one that escapes me at the moment. Again , the times of "i'll buy a goretex jacket from Bass pro Shop because the issue ECWCS jacket is bulky and sucks" are long gone, while high end hunting and hiking gear are for sure better than issue items quality has improved, expecially for Special operation Forces clothing.

Great idea on the thread Cap. Can't wait to see where it goes. Good info Taucco. I've always wondered why the mix of camouflage patterns. Though I'm sure on occasion there is a tactical reason most of the time my opinion is that it is done because they can. Performance of the garment is also a very viable reason. Particularly for outer wear.

Natick pic of Early ECWCS set assembled from commercial components.



26th MEU before disembarking for a bosnia, june 1995. (it is from a WASP class ship, so it MAY have been the USS KEARSARGE just prior to the rescue of cpt. O'Grady.)




I will add a thing, there are MAP packs floating around in Mossy oak camouflage, despite what people say these are not made by eagle industries, but they are made by another US firm that made a custom run of mossy oak items around 2008. For one thing, male and female parts of buckles are reversed. Nothing extra special.

Taucco - Thanks for posting the pics.  I'm particularly interested in the 26th MEU picture. I'm not completely confident in the information with the picture in a few areas.  I served with 26th MEU during this time frame.  Specifically BLT 3/8.  First two months continued as the Battalion Assistant Operations Officer and then as the CO of Company L.  The only time we put troops ashore during this period was for the O'Grady rescue best to my recollection.  I'm not going to be arrogant enough to say I knew everything going on but I will say if it happened I missed it. I'd also offer that never during any of the pre-deployment training, did I see anything like this in the MEU.  Also, from 1998-2001 I was very much involved in the pre-deployment training of the MSPF and attended all TRUEXs and SOCEXs.  Again, never really saw anything like this.  Couple of possibilities to consider.

1. I'm wrong.  As we know never say never.  As I like to say "We're all victims of our experiences."
2. This is in fact 26th MEU but on a later deployment.  Can't remember the exact time frame but 26th MEU went into the Balkans under command of Col Paul Lefebvre.  (He later was the CG of MarSoc.)
3.  Though embarked on the Kearsarge these aren't Marines.  We did do a few exercises before spending the majority of our summer burning circles off the Balkans.  A lot of exercises would include cross attaching units from the various countries participating.  Not unusual to have a coalition unit embarked for an exercise.  I will admit that these do look like young Marines.  If so probably BLT STA or BLT Recon.
4. This is a picture of an onboard and/or in port dog and pony show. (Looks like that with the poncho table clothes.)  Again, could have been inter service / coalition forces.

Is it possible based on what you know of the picture that this isn't aboard a vessel at all? Does look like a hangar bay but also could be a hanger.  I guess what I'm getting at is with what looks to me to be a projector and screen set up in the background there might be a chance this is some kind of MarCorSyscom event or meeting about the way ahead for camouflage.  There looks to be 3 if not 4 distinct climates represented.

Again, I appreciate the picture.  Just offering some food for thought.

Jeff, thanks for your insight which I think it's perfectly reasonable and extremely valid. I think it is safe to assume these are Marines (I think the painted camouflaged snow over whites are peculiar to the scout sniper school). I am pretty sure it is a demonstration of some kind as it looks like everyone is camouflaged for a different environment. Guy on left has dbdus, guy on far right looks camouflaged for snow.
This pic comes from a famous Italian military photographer, most of his pics are taken in Italy or near.
I looks like the inside of a structure to me, maybe ship was docked somewhere? Does it look to you like a ship cargo hold?
https://dinofracchia.photoshelter.com/search?I_DSC=Wasp&_ACT=search
This is a link of pics which are in theory part of the same set of pics. Do you recognize the other Marines depicted as maybe part of MEU?
Caption says "US Marines waiting for landing in the hold of amphibious assault ship Wasp during operations in Bosnia-Erzegovina". Maybe all my thoughts were wrong on the pics?

May have been Uss wasp (and not wasp class ship) during exercise dynamic response 1998?

OK... kind of going back through some things and shaking out the cobwebs a bit. Also looked at the photo link. Mistake on my part - it was 24th MEU vice 26th MEU that did O'Grady in 1995. Right stories but wrong MEU designation in my mind. (Deployed with a few different MEUs.) That's just to keep the thread accurate as we go along.

The photos are of the USS WASP vice one of the Wasp Class Ships. I've tried matching up the USS WASP with the correct MEU but it's just escaping me. Without being able to do that it could be any of the 3 at this point - 22d, 24th (not during 1995), or 26th. My best guess at this point is that it's 26th MEU.

Couple of other points I notice from the pictures - The number of female service members makes this a later (post 1995) deployment. We deployed in 1995 as the first east coast MEU with female service members. All officers if I remember - 2 in the MEU (USMC Lt and USN LT) and about 5 on the Phibron side, all junior officers. No female enlisted.

All of the pictures to me look like a dog and pony set up - 50 cal on tripod, raid jeep with gunner, snipers, etc. Then only one that looks different is the loading or unloading of magazines. The Marine in that picture looks too clean to have come back from an exercise so I'm guessing live fire training on the flight deck maybe.

I think we can safely establish this is aboard ship in the MED somewhere. Any way to pull a date somehow off the pictures? I'm still just baffled by the different climates of camouflage the snipers are wearing plus the fact some is commercial - a victim of my own experiences I guess!!

Any way to pull a date somehow off the pictures

Yes. Helicopter has Sfor marking, so it is after December 1996.

I think this pic comes from the media day of DYNAMIC RESPONSE . Late March 1998, 26TH MEU

https://www.nato.int/sfor/dyn-resp/dyn-resp.htm

I'm always impressed with your ability to find information. Bravo! You nailed it I believe.

taucco wrote:I think the painted camouflaged snow over whites are peculiar to the scout sniper school.

Painted over whites absolutely were/are used in the Army as well.

The concept may have originated with the USMC's Scout Sniper community, but its use was discussed at the Benning schoolhouse and were in utilized by scouts and snipers during NTC rotations (logic would suggest this also was used while deployed). I fell out of touch with current practices in the sniper community a while ago, so my knowledge is about a decade old.

Thanks guys!

I have a picture of a SEAL wearing what I think is Stika Cloudburst but he has no LBE or rifle and has a red sleeping bag on his pack so I think he is just camping. When I get home I will post it anyway so you guys can make up your minds.

Alleged Seal Afghanistan
Mossy oak hand warmer sleeve


SEAL, unknown team or time.
Something attached to his back, I think mossy oak.



Alleged Devgru, 2010
Mossy oak

Chief Petty Officer Collin Trent Thomas DEVGRU
All these camos look the same to me


DEVGRU Red Squadron
Natural Gear by Beyond and a Mossy Oak MAP


SEALs "mark owen" on the right, not sure who's on the left or what team or camo.


Alleged CCT


Thomas A. Ratzlaff DEVGRU
Sitka Cloudburst I think


Thomas A. Ratzlaff DEVGRU


24th Special Tactics Squadron, Afghanistan Early 2002
Mossy Oak


alleged SF ODA


what unit insignia is this?


?

what unit insignia is this?

Combat Controller (CCT)

Static line wrote:

what unit insignia is this?

Combat Controller (CCT)

Thank you!

Sitka 2nd from left


Robert O'Neal Devgru Red Squadron Ramadi 2007
looks like the seal cut off on the right has a hunting camo suspender


NSW Multinational Readiness Center, Hohenfels Germany, 1 May 2017, During Excercise Saber Guardian 17
Sitka hat and Verde 2.0 Shirt

The picture with the red sleeping bag might be a hunting trip. Looks like a ram's horn attached to pack. The last picture in that same post with the question mark (#14). Pretty sure I know the large gentleman in the middle. Former Marine. SF CWO.

The hunting lightweight 3D realtree ghillie suits, had a contract with US. Military. They have NSN tags. Unfortunately I do not have an example. Some photos show US. Army Snipers in Afghanistan wearing them.

Senior Chief Petty Officer Thomas J. Valentine. East Coast Seal
Beyond Tactical Snake Skin

The seal next up "mark owen" up above is wearing a sitka jacket in Mothwing Mimicry'


OPFOR during Urban Warrior LEO2 in 1999.
Treebark camo

Kyle Defoor DEVGRU Afghanistan

Cap Camouflage Pattern I wrote:



allegedly DEVGRU
Realtree Under Armour Shirt

DEA FAST not DEV.

Senior Chief Heath Micheal Robinson. DEVGRU.


Kevin Holland Army SMU 2010s

DEVGRU??

Alleged DEVGRU Gold

Allegedly a recon element of Delta

does this count?

Not sure how I didn't see that before, that is super cool! Thanks for posting it taucco!

US Navy, Conus, sometime recently before 9 Sept 2011

Devgru Gold