Beginning in late 2010 U.S. Army soldiers deployed to Afghanistan (starting with the 173rd Airborne Brigade) were issued an Army-developed variant of the Crye Precision "MultiCam" pattern, known as the Operation Enduring Freedom Pattern (OEF), which was far more effective in Afghanistan's terrain.[8] The flame-retardant variants of the uniforms are designed to prevent third-degree burns, along with up to thirty percent of second degree burns. Additionally, all uniforms are treated with the chemical permethrin to help protect soldiers from insect-borne diseases like malaria. Some U.S. Army soldiers during the latter stages of the Iraq War also wore the OEF patterned ACU; some were seen wearing them as late as December 2011, when the United States withdrew its military forces from the country at the end of the war.
MultiCam is currently in use by the U.S. Special Operations Command,[27] and some private military contractors.[28] Several members of the U.S. Army's Charlie Company, 2d Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment were also seen wearing MultiCam when followed by ABC News.[29] In 2010, U.S. soldiers deployed to Afghanistan were issued MultiCam versions of the Army Combat Uniform, as the existing Universal Camouflage Pattern (UCP) was found to be inadequate for the terrain.
In May 2014, the Army selected a pattern similar to MultiCam called Scorpion W2 to replace UCP, naming it the Operational Camouflage Pattern (OCP). The original Scorpion pattern was jointly developed by Crye Precision and the Army for the Objective Force Warrior program in 2002, and Crye made small adjustments for trademark purposes to create MultiCam. Because Scorpion is similar to MultiCam, the same color Velcro, buttons, and zippers can be reused.[30][31] OCP resembles MultiCam with muted greens, light beige, and dark brown colors, but uses fewer beige and brown patches and no vertical twig and branch elements.[32] On 31 July 2014, the Army formally announced that OCP would begin being issued in uniforms in summer 2015.[33] Soldiers are allowed to wear uniforms and field equipment patterned in MultiCam until they can acquire OCP, which is allowed until MultiCam uniforms' wear-out date projected on 1 October 2018.[34] Beginning October 1, 2018, USAF personnel will begin transition from ABU's to OCP until 2021.
Some local, state and federal law enforcement agencies also make use of the pattern, including the Drug Enforcement Administration's Foreign-deployed Advisory and Support Teams (FAST) teams operating in Afghanistan as well as the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Special Reaction Team, the Spokane, Washington Police Department, and the Oregon State PoliceSWAT team.
United Kingdom[edit]
The colors of the Multicam pattern were also used in the development of the British Forces Multi-Terrain Pattern (MTP). British forces deployed in Afghanistan used the Multi-Terrain Pattern from March 2010 onwards. The colors used in Crye's MultiCam technology were determined to be the best performing, across the widest range of environments (by a significant margin) when compared with the two existing Disruptive Pattern Material (DPM) designs in use at the time and was subsequently selected as the basis for the new MTP camouflage, combined with the existing DPM base pattern.
Russia[edit]
Multicam has also been adopted by some Russian Spetsnaz units, including FSB Alpha, the SSO, and by the Internal Troops of the MVD. It's reported that Russia makes their own MultiCam camos.
Australia[edit]
On 19 November 2010, after trials by Australian special operations forces, the Australian Defence Force announced that Multicam will be standard for all regular Australian Army personnel in Afghanistan. Multicam, it is said, provided "... troops with greater levels of concealment across the range of terrains in Afghanistan – urban, desert and green." Previously, depending upon the terrain, Australian troops had to transition between green and desert colored Australian Disruptive Pattern Camouflage Uniforms (DPCU or AUSCAM).[19][20] On 30 May 2011 the Defence Material Organisation announced that they had obtained licence to produce Multicam in Australia for US$4.7 million and Crye would also design a new uniquely Australian pattern for another US$3.1 million.[21]
The Australian Army decided to standardize MultiCam-patterned uniforms starting in October 2014 called the Australian Multicam Camouflage Uniform (AMCU). The AMCU is manufactured domestically by Australian Defence Apparel and Pacific Brands Workwear Group and comes in two variations, field and combat, using a tested Australian Multi-Camouflage Pattern that can operate in bush, desert, and jungle conditions. Previous Disruptive Pattern Camouflage Uniforms and Australian MultiCam Pattern Operational Combat Uniforms will be worn until all Army personnel have been issued with the AMCU.
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