Ground team uniform

[Dragoon]

T shirts aren't much help.  If you're in the woods,  a long sleeve BDU blouse is a good thing. 

GTM visibility is more about being able to see and control your own people, rather than avoiding getting lost.  We don't lose that many folks off of search lines...

Vests are nice.  From an appearance standard, it would be nice if they all looked the same (since they cover up the uniform)

Colored hats perhaps even nicer - the grass has to be awfully tall before your head is hidden from view.

[LittleIronPilot]

I have seen this refrain, over, and over, and again regarding CAP. Mission, mission, mission.....people say things like "mission first, everything else second", blah, blah, blah. So does the military dump their regs because they have a "mission" to do? Nope.

Mission is important, even paramount, but it can, and should, be done within the confines of the regulations as much as possible. Sure you can have someone freezing in the winter and safety and sanity dictates you put them in whatever you can to keep them warm, but outside of that, wear by the regs. THAT is what professionalism is all about.

Another thought...

Why do we get so wrapped around the axle on these things?  So it's not in the Regs... so what?  It's clothing based on mission requirements.

Look at the pictures here:  http://www.dvidshub.net/?script=video/video_show.php&id=16151



Now show me in AR 670-1 where that uniform is authorized?

Several reasons.

First, CAP isn't quite the High Speed, ball to the wall, Semper Vi, Hooray! Search and Rescue agency slash Special Air Force Branch that some people want it to be. Thus, our need for specialized uniforms, or "Clothing based around mission requirments" is just extra fluff. BDUs, DFUs, or the utility suit with a hi-viz vest and a orange cap (which is authorized in our regulation) is as good as an orange shirt, that in most areas of the country, will end up under a jacket anyway.

Second, and this is gonna kinda conflict with point number one, we are a paramilitary organization, and we've been the full time Air Force Auxiliary longer then we've been part time semi AFAux/CAP corporation. So, we do/should have a culture of following regulation, at least when it comes to something as simple as uniforms. If we can't get a member, or a commander to enforce, the wear of a proper uniform, then what else are those members and commanders going to violate? Will he violate the health service regulations? Will he violate crew rest regulations?

That picture depicts woodland firemen unless I'm mistaken, who have a specific need for person protection gear. Does a CAP ground team really need to spend money on extra clothing? Have we lost that many ground crews in the woods? I do ground team, and I love it, and I next week I finally can get back to my squadron.

Actually that picture depicts soldiers, sent on a firefighting mission during training.  And my point is that there are plenty of examples of wearing clothing not foreseen by regulation which are appropriate to the mission at hand.  I read the posts here, and I see a whole lot of people who are more concerned with playing jr lawyer about regulations than accomplishing the mission that we have to the best of our collective ability.

My point is NOT that we should *require* folks to go out and spend even more money on even more things.  My point is that mission requirements should dictate actions. E.g.  If a simple addition of an orange T-Shirt to the BDU pants makes sense from a mission perspective (I'm not saying it does or it doesn't) telling folks that they have to go out and buy a different set of pants to be in a "corporate uniform" versus an "Air Force uniform" is ludicrous.