AIR FORCE SWITCHING TO NEW LIGHTER ABUs

A lighter, more breathable airman battle uniform is being put in motion. In November of 2011 the United States Air Force officially adopted the Airman Battle Uniform (ABU) which consists of an ABU pant and ABU Coat. The USAF made the switch in order to provide Airmen with a single uniform that could satisfy various climates and utility needs. However, due to an overwhelming amount of complaints about its weight, a new ABU fabric is being introduced. The complaints about the ABU started in the summer of 2007, just months after the Air Force adopted the uniform. About 10,000 uniforms went to airmen in Iraq and they sweltered. The material was just too heavy for the heat.

This newer, lighter ABU fabric will be a ripstop weave composed of a 50/50 nylon-cotton blend. Found in the ABU and other military uniforms, Near Infrared Compliant (NIR) technology allows soldiers to appear at the same radiation level as the surrounding terrain, which makes it much harder for enemy forces to detect them. The NIR technology also makes the uniforms less visible in low-light environments by reducing the reflection of light.

The 50/50 nylon-cotton ripstop is much more breathable than the original ABU fabric, a 50/50 nylon-cotton twill weave that has been found especially ineffective in war environments such as Iraq and Afghanistan. The most important factor this new ABU plays is the fact that it will allow Airmen stationed in hot climates to better perform at their jobs inevitably keeping Airman more confident
and secure.

The new ABU can only be worn inside the wire in a war zone. Incoming recruits will be the first ones to receive one of the ABUs in the new fabric because it will be issued during basic training. For everyone else, it will be phased in eventually; until then Airmen may continue to wear the original weight ABUs.

For those who can't wait for this lighter ABU to be phased in you can pre-order the nylon-cotton ripstop ABU coats ($39.90)  and ABU pants ($39.90) in Men's and Women's at BDUDirect.com. The first orders are expected to ship by April 16, 2012.