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Army photo by C. Todd Lopez<\/p>\n
\nThe Army Jungle Combat Boot, now under development, features a low-height heel to prevent snags on things like vines in a jungle environment; additional drainage holes to let water out if it becomes completely soaked, speed laces so that soldiers can don and doff the boots more quickly, a redesigned upper to make the boots less tight when they are new, an insert that helps improve water drainage, a lining that helps the boot breathe better and dry faster; a ballistic fabric-like layer under a soldier’s foot to help prevent punctures, and a foam layer between the rubber sole and the upper to provide greater shock absorbing capability. The boot will initially be issued to two full brigade combat teams in Hawaii, part of the 25th Infantry Division, for evaluation.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Hopefully\u00a0this Jungle Combat Boot does not include the tear-off “Made in China” tag.<\/p>\n
Indictment: Military boots made in China said ‘Made in the USA’<\/a><\/p>\n
Fernald said that sometime between April and June of 2018, a final purchase description for the JCB will be developed — based on feedback from soldiers who wore it. He said he expects that in fiscal year 2019, an indefinite delivery\/indefinite quantity contract will be signed with multiple vendors to produce the final version of the JCB for the Army.<\/p>\n
Bryan said the JCB, when it becomes widely available, will be wearable by all soldiers who want to wear it — even if they don’t work in a jungle.<\/p>\n
“From the get-go we have worked… to make sure we all understood the Army wear standards for boots,” he said. “One of the pieces of feedback we have gotten from soldiers before they wear them is they look a lot like our current boots. That’s by design. These will be authorized to wear.”<\/p>\n
While the JCB will be authorized for wear by any solider, Bryan made it clear that there will only be some soldiers in some units who have the JCB issued to them. And right now, those decisions have not been made. Soldiers who are not issued the JCB will need to find it and purchase it on their own if they want to wear it.<\/p>\n
“We are not directing commercial industry to sell them,” Bryan said. “But if they build to the specification we’ve given them for our contract, they can sell them commercially and soldiers are authorized to wear them.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Maybe some Army peeps can chime in on the revised M1966 Vietnam-era jungle boot.\u00a0Will the troops\u00a0only have to pay\u00a0“cost”\u00a0if they are not issued to them?<\/p>\n