Flecktarn (
German pronunciation: [ˈflɛktaʁn]; "
mottled camouflage"; also known as
Flecktarnmuster or
Fleckentarn) is a family of 3-, 4-, 5- or 6-color
disruptive camouflage patterns, the most common being the five-color pattern, consisting of dark green, light green, black, red brown and green brown or tan depending on the manufacturer. The original German 5-color pattern was designed for use in European temperate woodland terrain. A 3-color variation called
Tropentarn (formerly Wüstentarn) is intended for arid and desert conditions: the German
Bundeswehr wore it in Afghanistan.
The original German 5-color flecktarn has been adopted, copied and modified by many countries for their own camouflage patterns.
Modern patterns[edit]
German Flecktarn uniform in 2015
In 1976, the
Bundeswehr in
Germany developed a number of prototype camouflage patterns, to be trialled as replacements for the solid olive-grey "moleskin" combat uniform. At least four distinct camouflage patterns were tested during
Bundeswehr Truppenversuch 76 ("Bundeswehr Troop Trial 76"). These were based on
patterns in nature:
[2] one was called "Dots" or "Points"; another was called "Ragged Leaf" or "Saw Tooth Edge"; another was based on pine needles in winter.
[2]
Designed by the German company Marquardt & Schulz, several patterns were developed and tested by the German military. The pattern named "Flecktarn B" was chosen as the final pattern for use. The word flecktarn is a composite formed from the
German words
Fleck (spot, blot, patch or pattern) and
Tarnung (camouflage). The Bundeswehr kept its green combat dress throughout the 1980s, however, while trials were conducted.
Flecktarn was only widely introduced in 1990 in a newly reunited Germany.
[2]
In Germany, the
Flecktarn camouflage pattern is used by all
Bundeswehr service branches, the
Heer (army), the
Luftwaffe (air force), some
Marine (navy) units and even the
Sanitätsdienst (medical service). Its official name is
5 Farben-Tarndruck der Bundeswehr (5-color camouflage print of the Bundeswehr). This temperate
Flecktarn 5-color scheme consists of 15% light green, 20% light olive, 35% dark green, 20% brown and 10% black.
[4] It is also used by
snipers of the
Österreichisches Bundesheer (
Federal Army of
Austria) and
Belgian Air Force ground personnel and
airborne infantry. Albania used 5-color German flecktarn while participating in
IFOR in Bosnia in 1996.
[5][better source needed] France tested
Flecktarn for use, but rejected it; the
Dutch army also tested and rejected it, allegedly because it was "too aggressive".
[2] Flecktarn was seen as controversial because of its resemblance to the Waffen-SS
"peas" and "oak leaves" patterns, which also used dots in various colors.
[2.
Flecktarn is the basis for the Bundeswehr's Tropentarn desert camouflage.
Tropentarn, formerly known as
Wüstentarn, is a
camouflage pattern used by the
Bundeswehr in arid and semi arid regions.
[1] It is the desert variant of the
Flecktarn 5-color temperate climate camouflage print of the Bundeswehr.
Tropentarn's official name is
3 Farben-Tarndruck der Bundeswehr (3-color camouflage print of the Bundeswehr) – Instead of the 5-color scheme of greens, brown, and black of temperate Flecktarn,
Tropentarn uses only three colors: a base color of 70% khaki tan with 20% medium brown and 10% dark green spots.
[2]
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| Multicam camo |
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