Combat Couture Under Fire

Soldiers make heavy going of their new look in fatigues

American servicemen do not expect to make the cover of Gentlemen's Quarterly, but they do want their combat wear to be both practical and neat. The latest Army fatigues appear to be neither. The half-nylon, half-cotton outfit, with its amoebic pattern of green, brown, tan and black, is unacceptably hot, even in temperate climates. It was designed to be an "all-service, all-purpose" uniform, but clerks, mechanics and drill sergeants alike bemoan its uncomfortable cut and slovenly look. It was supposed to be the pride of the Pentagon, but the battle dress uniform (B.D.U.) has been rapidly unraveling as a dud. Or so suggests an internal Army cable.

After questioning soldiers from Bremerhaven to Grenada, combat command officers from Fort McPherson, Ga., reported that the response to the current B.D.U., introduced in 1981, was "universally unfavorable." That was putting it mildly. During last October's Grenada invasion, Marines temporarily equipped with the B.D.U. instead of the appropriate tropical gear complained that the fabric was heavy, sweaty and unkempt. Even soldiers in cooler climes agreed. Once wet, the uniform takes an excessive time to dry. The sleeves are too narrow to roll up easily, the collar too wide and the pants pockets hard to reach. Seams unravel, buttons fall off. The trousers come with a reinforced crotch that strengthens the garment but constricts its wearer. After a few washings, the fabric shrinks, its colors fading to a mottled purple.

A morale problem has been added to the practical difficulties: a chemical agent has been embedded in the fabric to protect troops from nighttime detection by enemy heat-seeking infrared devices. But this precludes the use of starch. "It hangs like a pair of pajamas," moans Specialist Fourth Class Richard Russell of Fort Benning, Ga. Although new recruits are given their uniforms, enlisted men have to purchase them at a cost of $16.30 for the pants, $14.75 for the shirt and $31.13 for the field jacket.

The new B.D.U.s replaced the popular and battle-tested green cotton-and-poly-ester fatigues, which had been in service for 24 years. The Army has spent $205 million on 6.4 million sets and is pressing on with plans to buy 7 million more at a cost of $227 million. The Army plans to provide at least four sets to each of the more than 778,000 regular soldiers, both men and women, and to 670,000 National Guardsmen. The uniform will also be used by the other services. Nonetheless, alterations are planned. A new line will do away with the reinforced crotch and will place pants pockets lower. A lightweight tropical version will soon be introduced.

Some Army officials are willing to give the B.D.U. a chance. Said Brigadier General Jimmy Ross: "It's a fine uniform, and it's getting better with each innovation."

Troop grumbling about uniforms is hardly new but often justified. World War I doughboys suffered puttees, tight leg wrappings that all but cut off circulation. Their helmets offered minimal protection. In World War II, G.I.s complained about suffocating ponchos that kept out the rain but kept in perspiration.

Officers have little sympathy with the latest complaints. Says Captain Allan Havrilla at Fort Lewis, Wash.: "The U.S.

Army has never been a fashion warehouse for fatigues." The question is whether they are well designed for combat.