Desert Camouflage Uniform

Desert Camouflage Uniform
A folded and buttoned U.S. Navy DCU blouse.
Type	Military camouflage patterned uniform
Place of origin	United States
Service history
In service	1991–2008 (U.S. Army)[1][2] 1993–2005 (U.S. Marine Corps) 1992–2011 (U.S. Air Force) 1993–2012 (U.S. Navy) 1993-present (SFOD-D)
Used by	See Users for other foreign military/law enforcement users
Wars	Gulf War (very limited use) Battle of Mogadishu War in Afghanistan Faylaka Island attack Iraq War
Production history
Manufacturer	Propper[3]
Produced	1989–2012
Variants	Close Combat Uniform[4][5]

The Desert Camouflage Uniform (DCU) is an arid-environment camouflage uniform that was used by the United States Armed Forces from the mid-1990s to the early 2010s. In terms of pattern and textile cut, it is identical to the U.S. military's Battle Dress Uniform (BDU) uniform, but features a three-color desert camouflage pattern of dark brown, pale olive green, and beige, as opposed to the four-color woodland pattern of the BDU. It replaced the previous Desert Battle Dress Uniform (DBDU) which featured a six-color "chocolate chip" pattern of beige, pale olive green, two tones of brown, and black and white rock spots. Although completely phased out of frontline use in the U.S. Armed Forces, some pieces and equipment printed in the DCU camouflage pattern are used in limited numbers such as MOPP suits and/or vests.

U.S. Army soldiers in late 2004 wearing the DCU-derived Close Combat Uniform (CCU)

U.S. Army soldiers in May 2005 wearing the Army Combat Uniform, Desert Camouflage Uniform, and a World War II–era uniform (left to right)

U.S. Navy Seabees in August 2012 wearing the DCU

Developed in the late 1980s and first issued in very limited quantity in 1990 as experimental test patterns, the DCU and its camouflage scheme, officially known as the Desert Camouflage Pattern and known colloquially as "coffee stain camouflage",^[6] was developed to replace the six-color desert camouflage "chocolate-chip camouflage" uniform, which was deemed unsuitable for most desert combat theaters. As opposed to the original six-color DBDU, which was meant for a rockier and elevated desert battlefield that was often not encountered, the DCU was created primarily for a lower, more open, and less rocky desert battlefield space which became a common sight throughout the Persian Gulf War. As a replacement pattern, this meant a new arid region had to be utilized to test the effectiveness of the DCU. Desert soil samples from parts of the Middle East, namely Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait, were used as testing locations to find the appropriate color palettes.

Though the DCU did exist during the Persian Gulf War, the vast majority of U.S. military personnel in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Iraq wore the DBDU during the entirety of the war, with the exception of some select U.S. Army generals who were issued the DCU a month following the air campaign in Operation Desert Storm. Norman Schwarzkopf, then CENTCOM commander, and leader of U.S. forces during Desert Storm, was issued an M-65 field jacket as well as coat and trousers in the new DCU color pattern shortly before the war ended.

By 1992, the first wide scale batches of DCUs were issued first by the United States Army, and within a year to the United States Air Force, and replaced the majority of the DBDU by 1993, with the United States Navy and Marines replacing their older six-colored desert fatigues from 1993 through 1995.

First fielded in 1991, the DCU served as the U.S. Army's primary desert combat pattern from 1992 to 2004. In June 2004, the Army unveiled a new pixel-style camouflage pattern called UCP (Universal Camouflage Pattern), to be used on the DCU's successor uniform, the Army Combat Uniform (ACU).

In late 2004, some U.S. Army soldiers deployed in Iraq were issued the "Close Combat Uniform", a variant of the DCU that featured ACU-like features such as shoulder pockets affixed with hook-and-loop "Velcro" fasteners as well as a redesigned collar and chest-worn rank insignia.^[4] They were made by American Power Source, Inc. and only saw brief usage as they were issued shortly before the introduction of the newer ACU in mid-to-late 2005.^[4][5]

In mid-2005, the DCU and the BDU began slowly being discontinued within the U.S. Army. By 2007, most U.S. soldiers were wearing the ACU with both the DCU and BDU being fully replaced by early 2008.^[7][2]

Following the Army, the United States Marine Corps began issuing the DCU from 1993 through 1995 and remained the Marine Corps standard arid combat uniform from 1993 to 2003. In January 2002, the U.S. Marine Corps became the first branch to replace both its BDUs and DCUs with the Marine Corps Combat Utility Uniform (MCCUU), completely replacing them by April 2005.^[8]

Along with the Army, the Air Force began issuing the DCU in 1992 and remained its primary desert uniform until 2011. The U.S. Air Force officially replaced the BDU and DCU on November 1, 2011, with the Airman Battle Uniform (ABU),^[9] though most airmen had been using the ABU for a couple years before that date.

The United States Navy issued the DCU from 1993 until 2010 when it was replaced by the arid variant of the Navy Working Uniform (NWU), known as the NWU Type II. The DCU was retired by the navy in late 2012.^[10]

The DCU was introduced to the Coast Guard sometime in the 1990s. The DCU and BDU were formally retired by the USCG in 2012.^[10]

Macedonian soldiers deployed to Iraq in 2008 wearing the Desert Camouflage Uniform

•  Argentina: Used in a derivative camo pattern by Argentine troops in peacekeeping operations.^[11]
•  Azerbaijan: Used by Azeri peacekeepers in Iraq.^[12]
•  Bosnia and Herzegovina: Used by Bosnian troops in Afghanistan.^[13]
•  Georgia: DCP was Main camouflage pattern employed by Georgian units in Iraq, also saw usage in opening stages of Georgian mission in Afghanistan before being replaced by MultiCam, still in limited usage by Georgian Special Operations Forces.^[13]
•  Israel: Used by Israeli military in OPFOR capacity.^[14]
•  Saudi Arabia^[15]

•  Islamic Republic of Afghanistan: Known to be used by Afghan commandos working in Task Force 444^[16] and in CRU 222/CRU TF 24 to replace their Tiger Stripe camos.^[17]
•  Croatia^[18]
•  Netherlands^[19]
•  North Macedonia^[20]
•  Slovenia: Used until 2013, where SloCam was adopted.^[21]
•  United States
  •  United States Army, replaced by the Army Combat Uniform in the late 2000s
  •  United States Marine Corps, replaced by the Marine Corps Combat Utility Uniform in the mid-2000s^[22]
  •  United States Navy, replaced by the Navy Working Uniform in the early 2010s^[10]
  •  United States Air Force, replaced by the Airman Battle Uniform in the early 2010s

• Larson, Eric H. (2021). Camouflage: International Ground Force Patterns, 1946–2017. Barnsley: Pen & Sword. ISBN 9781526739537.

• GlobalSecurity page detailing DCU

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