Conway approves several uniform rules changes

By Amy McCullough - Staff writer
Posted : Sunday Dec 20, 2009 12:05:37 EST

You are going to have to get your own winter coat and hat to keep you warm off duty, because Marines are now prohibited from wearing the extreme cold weather gear and the associated accessories while in civilian attire.

That is just one of several recommendations Commandant Gen. James Conway approved from the most recent uniform board, which met in February. More than 2,500 Marines and 15 units provided feedback on each of the 11 recommended items, and the final decisions are outlined in Marine Administrative Message 704/09, said Mary Boyt, the uniform board program manager.

Here are the highlights:

• Marines are now authorized to wear white synthetic undershirts, such as the sweat-wicking Under Armour or Danskin, with the service “C” and blue dress “D” uniforms. Originally, the recruit depots offered up the recommendation hoping drill instructors would be able to wear the shirts, but the board “voted overwhelmingly” in favor of expanding the recommendation to all Marines, Boyt said.

• The aviation community will be happy to hear that the board authorized several cover options to go with the desert flight suit, which was first identified as a requirement in 2007. A desert garrison cap was never developed, so the only option available, until now, was the green garrison cap.

“Marines requested the option to wear the seasonally appropriate Marine Corps Combat Utility Uniform cap — garrison or boonie — with the flight suits, as well as the garrison cap,” Boyt said.

• The board also voted to change the placement of the Marine gunner bursting bomb collar insignia for infantry weapons officers. The insignia should now be located on the left collar of khaki shirts and utility coats about ½ inch from the sides of the collar of the utility uniform and ¾ of an inch from the sides on the khaki shirt, according to the message.

• Added guidance was given for women’s ribbons and medals on the female dress service coat without the faux pocket. Now the top of the bottom row holding the bar must be placed on a horizontal line 1 ½ to 3 ½ inches above the top of the first visible coat button and centered, according to the uniform board Web site.

“When the faux pocket was removed from the female dress and service coats female Marines lost their measurement point for aligning ribbons, medals and badges,” Boyt said. “The regulations were vague and most Marines ended up ‘eyeballing it.’ The new regulations provide more concise measurement instructions and better graphics.”

• Two recommendations were approved for one-time allowances to purchase additional uniforms for Marine instructors at the ranger school and for Marine Corps combat instructors at the infantry schools.

However, Conway did not approve a request to establish an allowance to purchase medium blues for color guard and funeral details, Boyt said.

• Conway declined requests to eliminate use of the officer sword. There have been complaints about the sword being difficult to obtain, Boyt said, because there is only one certified manufacturer left — a German company called Weyersberg, Kirschbaum & Co.

• Marines couldn’t seem to agree on whether they wanted to replace the olive green undershirt with a coyote brown undershirt. Conway sided with the naysayers, most likely because a color change from green to brown would have required the Corps to re-evaluate the color of the physical training uniform items. Marines also “would lose the ability to wear the service sweater with the utilities,” Boyt said.

This is why I joined the Navy. They gave me a peacoat, and I can wear it when in civvies.

The USMC never authorized field jackets with civvies. I'm suprised that ECW gear was ever allowed with civvies. Wearing the piss cutter with flight coveralls never made sense to me. It's a working uniform, the utility cover would be more appropriate.

I know the ECW jacket could be worn by itself while over in Iraq, back in the good ole USA its not issued unless youre deploying so its not really an issue.  Although I can see quite a few Marines getting their asses chewed out seeing as how many wear a very similar wearing jacket while in civilian attire.

ECWCS in civilian attire goes back to when ECWCS wasn't an issue item and most people who had them had privately purchased them.  I am surprised when ECWCS II became standard issue it wasn't prohibited from wear in civilian clothing.

The Cabelas version is actually better made than the older PEKHAM USGI ones.



I've got the OD Cabelas and the Black and coyote Peckhams. Great fall jackets. Yes, I see lots of active duty Marines wearing them with jeans this time of year.

The t-shirt thing astounds me. we had brown t shirts authorized back in the 90s. i recieved them in bootcamp. then it was green only because that was tradition. MARINES WEAR GREEN T SHIRTS PERIOD!!!


edited to add:  Who in their right mind would have the unmitigated balls to suggest retiring the mameluke...seriously?

At leat the USMC gets the option to wear a garrison cap in a flight suit. In thr USN E6 and below wear the god aweful ball cap. About as military looking as a pair of chuck taylors. About as practical too.

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Yeah no shit...  

I always wondered if it was legit but just assumed I'd get yelled at either way. USMC unform stuff gets insanely stupid at times. For some reason it seems like it is 98% due to POG, dark-green, SNCO's. I will never understand why.

Are you serious?
You need to go take a piss test, you've been smoking crack.

Any of the "cunt caps" look like shit as far as I am concerned, I was so glad I never had to buy or wear one before I retired.
A ball cap can keep the sun out of your eyes, let's see a cunt cap do that.

WTF?



Retire the officer sword?

I think much of this is the SgtMaj of the Marine Corps doing, he was my BN SgtMaj years ago and this sounds much more like him than the Commandant.

Until we have a minority commandant, the SMoMC will remain a minority, it just the way it is going to work.

I was an Army officer, not a Marine, and even I know that NO COMMANDANT is gonna be "That Commandant" who retired the mameluke sword.


The Marines do a lot more commonsense things than the Army, but on the things that they stick to tradition on, they stick to it a lot harder.

Not once you make PO4 and up and you have to have your rating badge on the sleeve. At least that was the rule when I got out in 03. Love the peacoat though. I still wear mine sometimes.



 

Huh? The white tees are for the charlies, not utes.

ETA:  DISREGARD, I MISSED THE LAST ITEM!

This is the part I find interesting. They can't get anyone else interested in making these things?

probably not a huge market.  How many USMC officers are commissioned each year?

Seems like this commondant are very spit and polish uniform nazi types. I could be wrong as I'm not a Marine.