Finally, US Army makes progress for women in uniform

[Kadie]

Finally, US Army makes progress for women in uniform

by Virginie Montet – 1 hr 40 mins ago.


FORT BELVOIR, Virginia (AFP) – The US Army is testing its first-ever combat uniform expressly designed to fit the female figure, a move seen as an overdue effort to make 160,000 US women soldiers more comfortable.

Don't expect a camouflage haute couture revolution for America's military women; the changes will be visibly slight, although they are important, said the first person to try on the women's army combat uniform, or ACU.

"The unisex uniform was a little bit baggy," Major Sequana Robinson told AFP, undoubtedly summing up the attitudes of thousands of female soldiers who for decades have had to make do with ill-fitting fatigues.

"The goal is not to have female soldiers accentuate their curves, but... it alleviates some of the excess material" that had come to typify the unisex uniform worn by far more men than women.

For years the US Army offered standard-issue unisex ACUs, which sought to neutralize gender differences but were often considered uncomfortable and unwieldy by female troops.

more...
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20101016/lf_afp/usmilitarywomenuniform_20101016183423



The prototype of a new female specific uniform (L) is compared with the current unisex standard issue uniform on the right in Fort Belvoir, Virginia. The US Army is testing its first-ever combat uniform expressly designed to fit the female figure, a move seen as an overdue effort to make 160,000 US women soldiers more comfortable. (AFP/Tim Sloan)


The prototype of a the new female specific combat uniform has a pleated shoulder contoured for women. The US Army is testing its first-ever combat uniform expressly designed to fit the female figure, a move seen as an overdue effort to make 160,000 US women soldiers more comfortable. (AFP/Tim Sloan)


The prototype of a new female specific combat uniform has an elastic section in the waist band at the hips. The US Army is testing its first-ever combat uniform expressly designed to fit the female figure, a move seen as an overdue effort to make 160,000 US women soldiers more comfortable. (AFP/Tim Sloan)

[katandmoon]

1. Somehow -- I can't consider that progress.