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80-727: The main variants of DPM are a four-colour woodland pattern, and desert patterns in two, three or four colours. The Woodland Pattern DPM was used with the mediumweight No.8 Temperate Combat Dress (c.1966/1968) and lightweight No.9 Tropical Combat Dress (c.1976). The later Desert Pattern DPM (c.late 1980s) was designated the No.5 Desert Combat Dress . DPM has also been produced in black/white/grey Urban DPM, in various blue tones and even in purple. DPM has been phased out in British military service, superseded by Multi-Terrain Pattern . The British Army first used

160-466: A Combat Smock , Combat Trousers , a Combat Hood attached to the smock by two epaulette buttons and a third button concealed under the collar, and, for exceptionally cold conditions, a Parka . A new British DPM was developed in the early 1960s, using the four basic western European temperate colours of black, dark brown, mid-green and a dark sand to make a very effective camouflage that has survived in its basic design, with no more than slight changes to

240-410: A commercially available pattern (Crye's MultiCam) when tested in trials, a decision was made to use MultiCam as the basis of a new Multi-Terrain Pattern for British armed forces, replacing the previous temperate DPM uniforms. Desert DPM uniforms were to be retained but later entirely replaced alongside Woodland DPM. The United Kingdom's Ministry of Defence announced that HM Forces would be issued with

320-668: A condemning memo to the Secretary of State for Air and to the Chief of the Air Staff dated 29 June 1941, Churchill stated he would no longer tolerate the shortcomings of the Royal Air Force (RAF), in which half a million RAF personnel had no combat role. He ordered that all airmen be armed and ready "to fight and die in defense of their air fields" and that every airfield should be a stronghold of fighting air-ground men and not "uniformed civilians in

400-595: A form of DPM for the famous Denison smock issued to the Parachute Regiment and British Commandos from the early 1940s. The first examples of this design were said to be hand-painted. The Denison smock design went through minor changes, and continued in use with the Royal Marines and the Parachute Regiment until the 1970s. From 1960, the British Army was issued with the 1960 Pattern field-uniform consisting of

480-531: A light blue beret displaying a falcon as its emblem. Operation Safe Side developed into the 82nd Combat Security Police Wing, consisting of three "combat security police" squadrons, but was inactivated in December 1968, ending the unofficial use of the light blue beret. Elsewhere, during the Vietnam War, although not an authorized uniform item, some local security police commanders approved a dark blue beret similar to

560-418: A loss in contrast between the colours after washing and wear, and the clothing tends to appear darker when wet than previous types did. Although slight changes have been made to DPM and the colours, the pattern is easy to recognise. There are also jungle versions of DPM where the colours are brighter, and on one variation the tan is darker than the green. From 1990 a system of personal load carrying equipment

640-513: A more yellowish sand base and are greatly sought-after by those wishing to appear stylish, while the final production style in the early 1990s used colours closer to temperate uniforms. DPM items in the Combat Soldier 95 clothing system have similar colours to the 1966 uniform. However, instead of all four colours being printed onto a whitish base, the material is in fact woven in the sand shade and overprinted only with three colours. This leads to

720-765: A part of the Army Air Forces, were still part of the Army's Military Police Corps . Their training was conducted at Camp Ripley . Air Base Security Battalions, the direct predecessors to the USAF Security Forces, were formed to be the ground combat force of the Army Air Forces, much like the RAF Regiment is for the Royal Air Force. The battalions operated machine guns, mortars, grenade launchers, rocket launchers, half-tracks, self-propelled guns, and even light tanks, with

800-460: A revised temperate Disruptive Pattern Material (DPM) using lighter colours, a new three-colour desert pattern with enhanced utility for night-time operations, and a hybrid four colour scheme using two colours from each of the previous patterns for use on webbing in all terrains. Following an Urgent Operational Requirement for a camouflage uniform for the Afghan theatre of operations , and the success of

880-485: A temporary stand-in for the ERDL / M81 Woodland fatigues. The pattern was changed slightly with subsequent issues. On early 1960 Pattern (manufactured from 1966) and 1968 Pattern DPM uniforms the sand coloured base would appear to lighten in tone at night, becoming dangerously conspicuous. This was addressed in the late 1970s, when the sand and brown colours were slightly darkened. The 1985 Pattern has fewer, less precise dots and

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960-548: A third under the collar. In doing this the British Army was the first to adopt a camouflage uniform universally. For the Royal Marines, which had a responsibility for NATO 's northern flank, a Smock, Windproof, Arctic and Trousers, Windproof, Arctic were introduced circa 1972. These were made in a lightweight, but wind-proof, DPM fabric and could be worn over quilted jacket and trousers in extreme cold conditions. The design of both smock and trousers differ radically from both

1040-452: Is a Major General and the highest-ranking Security Forces officer, sometimes referred to as the "Top Cop". The director of Security Forces reports to the deputy chief of staff of the Air Force for logistics, engineering and force protection. The director of Security Forces has the responsibility to develop policy, doctrine, and guidance for Security Forces and serves as the executive agent for

1120-519: Is labelled, like the earlier plain olive green version, Smock, Combat, 1960 Pattern and Trousers, Combat, 1960 Pattern . The 1966 DPM range did not completely replace the plain olive green 1960 Pattern Smock and Trousers, which continued to be worn widely until the 1968 DPM kit was issued. Both the Royal Marines and the Parachute Regiment continued to wear the Trousers, Combat, 1960 Pattern with

1200-415: Is similar in appearance but replaces the embroidered falcon and airfield with either metal "pin-on" or embroidered rank. Main articles: Phu Cat Air Base Security Forces and United States military beret flash The "Falcon over crossed runways" is derived from the 1041st Security Police Squadron of Operation SAFESIDE. This unit evolved into the 82nd Combat Security Police Wing with the mission of providing

1280-469: The 820th Security Forces Group . The heraldry of the 820th SFG then replaced the individual MAJCOM emblems as beret insignia. Enlisted personnel wear the dark blue SF beret which bears the fabric SF "Flash" depicting a falcon over an airfield with the SF motto " Defensor Fortis ", literally meaning "Strong Defender" but taken to mean "defender of the force" according to the Air Force, underneath. An officer's "Flash"

1360-711: The Army Air Forces (AAF) air base security battalions in June 1942. Units were deployed throughout the European, Asian and African theaters and designed to defend against local ground attacks. These units were armed with rifles, machine guns and 37mm guns. On 29 March 1943, General Hap Arnold , the commander of the Army Air Forces, established the Office of the Air Provost Marshal , which established three separate organizations for

1440-677: The Beretta M9 , a 9mm semi-automatic pistol with a standard 15-round magazine, which brought the Security Police in line with the rest of the United States Armed Forces . Also in 1987 the Air Base Ground Defense School was moved from Camp Bullis to Fort Dix, where the Army was given control of the training. In 1989, as a part of Operation Just Cause , Security Police units were responsible for securing airfields during

1520-588: The Cold War . In 1983, during Operation Urgent Fury , Security Police forces were among the first on Grenada, responsible for securing runways and POWs. In January 1985 women were finally permitted to enter the security field - the first since 1976. In 1987 the standard weapon of the Security Police Law Enforcement Branch was changed from the Smith & Wesson Model 15 .38-cal. six-shot revolver to

1600-516: The Denison smock , and examples of these trousers were made even after 1968. These units eventually stopped issuing the Denison smock (in mid to late 1970s) and adopted smocks in the general-issue DPM while still for a time wearing the plain olive 1960 Pattern Trousers. Before the 1966 Pattern equipment had reached all units a slightly revised design of Smock, Combat and Trousers, Combat were introduced as

1680-749: The Iraqi Republican Guard . One variant including a shade of green is also currently worn by members of the Indonesian National Armed Forces assigned to the Garuda Contingent serving in the United Nations peacekeeping missions. A three colour (reddish brown, khaki, and sand) version also exists and was worn by Syrian forces, Lebanese Forces , and the Saudi Arabian National Guard . A development of DPM used by

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1760-553: The Khobar Towers bombing , the Air Force reevaluated how the Security Police was organized, and came to the realization it could not afford to have only a few specialize in the security aspect of the mission. On 31 October 1997, the Security Police became the Security Forces, with all individual specialties being merged into one Security Forces specialist AFSC. The Security Forces brought back the principles of Safe Side, transforming

1840-434: The U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force . The USAF Security Forces were formerly known as Military Police ( MP ), Air Police ( AP ), and Security Police ( SP ) at various points in their history. Due to its significant ground combat mission, Security Forces are sometimes regarded as Air Force infantry . They were formed on the premise of being the Air Force's "Marine Corps", in that they would provide security for

1920-454: The 1968 Pattern range. The 1966 Pattern DPM fabric design was changed very little for the 1968 issue, and it seems that the 1968 Pattern garments were made for some time in the two very similar DPM fabrics. A Hood, Combat, DPM , made of DPM cotton fabric and with a plain olive green lining, was also included in the range, fastened as required to the back of the Smock with the two epaulette buttons and

2000-502: The 3280th TCHTG OLA Air Force Liaison at Ft. McClellan, AL, or attend the Office of Special Investigations basic agent's course at Bolling AFB, Washington DC. In May 1975, Security Police units were tasked with a high priority rescue operation of the SS Mayaguez merchant ship, and with Air Force helicopters, were preparing to perform a boarding of the ship. Prior to the rescue mission one of

2080-512: The 332nd Expeditionary Security Forces Squadron stood up at Balad Airbase, and for the first time since the Vietnam War a Security Forces Squadron assumed full responsibility for the security, both on and off base, of a major air base in a war zone. On 28 September 2005, the 586th Expeditionary Security Forces Squadron became the first combat Security Forces squadron to lose a member in Operation Iraqi Freedom when A1C Elizabeth Jacobson

2160-565: The 786th Security Forces Squadron performed the first Security Forces combat jump in Air Force history, taking Bashur Air Base in conjunction with the Army's 173rd Airborne Brigade. Throughout the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, Security Forces specialists, and airmen as a whole were pressed into more ground combat roles, to include running convoys. This resulted in the formation of The Aerospace Expeditionary Force Transport Company. These companies were not divided into flights, but rather platoons, with

2240-527: The 821st CSPS began a hasty training program at Schofield Barracks , Hawaii, and was in place at Phan Rang Air Base on its TDY deployment by 15 April. The 822nd CSPS was organized, more completely trained and replaced the 821st in August 1968. The 823rd CSPS was trained at Fort Campbell , Kentucky , and replaced the 822nd in March 1969, remaining until August 1969 when it was replaced by the 821st. The vindication for

2320-616: The Air Force began urgent operations focused on air base defense with the outbreak of the Korean War . A buildup of ground combat forces began. The center of this buildup was the expansion of the Air Force Air Police from 10,000 in July 1950 to 39,000 in December 1951. Still, one year into the war the Air Provost Marshal reported that "the Air Force is without policy or tactical doctrine for Air Base Ground Defense." In haste, Air Police serving as

2400-637: The Air Force mission might require point defense elements that the Army could not afford to protect, much less have the Air Force rely on the Army to come to the rescue. After the Korean War, General Curtis LeMay had the Air Police begin the Combat Arms Program, to better train airmen in the use of weapons. On 1 September 1950 the Air Police School was established at Tyndall Air Force Base . In 1952

2480-576: The Air Force similar to how the Marines provide security for the Navy . As outlined in Department of the Air Force publications, Security Forces are responsible for protecting, defending, and fighting to ensure U.S. Air Force, joint, and coalition mission success. They are responsible not only for installation law and discipline enforcement, but also base defense and ground combat. The director of Security Forces

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2560-401: The Air Force the need for whole base defense measures, and demonstrated that airmen, regardless of AFSC, could be vulnerable to attack, just the same as Army and Marine forces. By January 1971 the Security Police career field was split into two separate functions: Law Enforcement Specialist (AFSC 811X2) and Security Specialist (AFSC 811X0). In November 1971 the first female airmen trained into

2640-536: The Air Force with worldwide ground defense capability and became the base model for all modern USAF Security Forces. This symbol was adopted to represent this ground defense mission. The signature blue beret worn by USAF Security Forces shows a falcon above crossed runways. The runways represent Air Force bases and the swooping falcon symbolizes force protection. Inspired by the Strategic Air Command Elite Guard and Operation Safeside Security Police,

2720-528: The Air Police school was transferred to Parks AFB , California, and re-designated the "Air Base Defense School" to emphasize on air base defense capabilities. It soon became evident the emphasis on air base defense was not making much headway. On 13 October 1956 Air Police training was transferred to Lackland AFB , Texas , where it evolved into Security Police training and eventually became the US Air Force Security Forces Academy. Toward

2800-453: The Air Provost Marshal. Immediately twenty-two military police companies were predesignated Air Police squadrons, however the term Air Police did not come into full usage until November 1948. The transfer of personnel fully from the Army to the Air Force was supposed to be completed by December 1948, however it was not fully completed until 1953. In April 1952 Army grade titles and MOS designations were replaced with Air Force AFSCs. In June 1950

2880-909: The Armed forces of the Netherlands Multi-Terrain Pattern (MTP) is a six-colour camouflage pattern intended to replace both the four colour woodland DPM uniform and the desert pattern uniform used by the British Armed forces. MTP was procured and announced in late 2009, predicated around use in the Afghanistan theatre of operations but applicable to other theatres. A range of patterns were tried and evaluated in Britain, Cyprus, Kenya and Afghanistan against DPM, desert patterns and existing commercially available patterns. In April 2010, MTP combat uniforms began being issued to forces deployed in Afghanistan. It

2960-599: The Army back to the Air Force. During Operation Joint Endeavor in Bosnia, Security Police forces conducted convoy operations and acted as a peacekeeping force. In 1996 the Khobar Towers Bombing occurred, with 19 airmen killed and 260 injured. Security Policemen SSgt Alfredo Guerrero, SrA Corey Grice and A1C Christopher Wager received the Airman's Medal for their actions prior to and after the terrorist attack. In response to

3040-616: The Denison smock. At the same time a Smock, Sniper , was introduced, based heavily on the Smock Parachutist DPM and sharing many of its details. It was distinguished by its padded elbows and shoulders, relocated lower pockets, multiple loops for securing natural camouflage material and hooks for the rifle sling. During the late 1970s, batches of the 1968 Pattern camouflage were used by the USAF Police Tactical Neutralisation Teams at RAF Upper Heyford as

3120-514: The Department of Defense Military Working Dog Program. The deputy director of Security Forces acts as the second-in-command to the director of Security Forces. The Security Forces Career Field Manager is a chief master sergeant and the senior enlisted Defender, acting as an adviser to the director of Air Force Security Forces. The USAF Security Forces lineage can be traced to its beginning in WWII with

3200-513: The Department of Defense. By 1965 the USAF had a pool of sentry dog teams available for deployment to South Vietnam . Nightly at every air base, sentry dog teams were deployed as a detection and warning screen in the zone separating combat forces from the perimeter. Nearly all air base defense personnel agreed that the Sentry Dog Teams rendered outstanding service, with some going as far to say "Of all

3280-588: The German blitzkrieg . Blitzkrieg relied on swift attacks by land and air. One of the tactics employed by blitzkrieg was the use of paratroops and airborne forces to capture, or destroy in advance, air bases. A key turning point in air base defensive thinking came with the loss of the Battle of Crete to German forces and capture of the British air base at Maleme in 1941. This single action led then Prime Minister Winston Churchill to study British air base defense policy, and in

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3360-453: The Invasion of Panama and performing drug interdiction and humanitarian missions. In August 1990, Security Police were deployed to Saudi Arabia as a part of Operation Desert Shield , where they were responsible for guarding airbases, dignitary support, and counterterrorism. In August 1995 Air Base Ground Defense Training was moved from Fort Dix back to Camp Bullis, and control was shifted from

3440-537: The Raven program, which attached Security Forces specialists to its aircraft to provide on-site security in hostile or remote environments. After the 9/11 attacks in 2001, Security Forces prepared for additional attacks and combat operations, both in the United States and abroad. On 16 December 2001, airmen with the 786th Security Forces Squadron deployed to Manas International Airport, Kyrgyzstan, to provide security while

3520-572: The SAC Elite Guard beret for their units as a less-conspicuous alternative to the official white Security Police cover for certain specialized personnel. In Thailand during the late 1960s and early 1970s, Military Working Dog handlers assigned to the 6280th SPS at the Takhli Royal Thai Air Force Base sported a dark blue beret with no insignia. Other units adopted a beret to distinguish their guards. In 1975 Brig Gen Thomas Sadler

3600-650: The Safe Side program occurred during the Battle of Tan Son Nhut, as part of the Tet Offensive , on 31 January 1968, when Tan Son Nhut Airbase was attacked by a combined force of seven North Vietnamese Army and Viet Cong battalions, composing an enemy force of 2,500 enemy troops. The combat-trained Security Police were able to hold off the North Vietnamese forces, preventing the loss of the airbase. The Vietnam War demonstrated to

3680-417: The Security Forces into a combat force. In 1997 the Air Force activated the 820th Base Defense Group , a Force Protection unit based at Moody Air Force Base , Georgia . The unit is a trained force protection unit of 12 Air Force Specialty Codes with an airborne capability, and is intended to serve as a quick reaction force, capable of deploying anywhere in the world. Air Mobility Command also activated

3760-565: The U.S. Army was cited as being tasked to control the security of the area around the air base, and after-action scrutiny along with politics served to foster distrust and jealousy between services, chains of command and the U.S. and Vietnamese services. As a result, air bases in South Vietnam were left vulnerable. By striking at USAF air bases the North Vietnamese Army (NVA) and VC employed Giulio Douhet 's military concept, which stated

3840-540: The UK forces. Also announced was that the camouflage pattern would be in Crye's Multicam, not the UK's MTP. The uniform is the off-the-shelf G4 system not sold in MTP as Crye had sold the sole production rights for MTP to the UK. United States Air Force Security Forces The United States Air Force Security Forces ( SF ) are the ground combat force and military police service of

3920-404: The United States. The trials included visual comparisons, objective assessments of the time to detect the different camouflage patterns against different backgrounds, and subjective user opinions on the efficacy of the performance. Crye's " Multicam " pattern was determined to be the best performing, across the widest range of environments (by a significant margin) and was subsequently selected as

4000-486: The air base. The VC fired 60-80 rounds into parked aircraft and troop billets, then withdrew undetected and unabated. The attack killed four US military personnel, wounded 30 and destroyed and/or damaged 20 B-57 bombers. U.S. air bases had become targets and became routine targets thereafter. The Air Force was not allowed to patrol the perimeter of their bases. That role was left up to the Vietnamese Air Force. Also,

4080-463: The airbase was under construction, to support U.S. operations in Afghanistan. Three months later the 822nd Security Forces Squadron assumed the role, and conducted patrols outside the airbase to deter attack and build relations with local villagers. On 19 March 2003 the United States invaded Iraq, and on the same day members of the 161st Security Forces Squadron arrived in country, securing the newly captured Tallil Air Base. On 26 March 2003, elements of

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4160-553: The airbases. The successes of this initial squadron resulted in the creation of the 82nd Combat Security Police Wing and the development of ground combat training for all security policemen. In 1968 the Air Force accepted the Safe Side Program's recommendation to establish 559-man Combat Security Police Squadrons (CSPS) organized into three field flights. Three CSPS were incrementally activated, trained and deployed in 179-day temporary duty rotations to South Vietnam. On 15 March 1968

4240-464: The basis for the new British MTP camouflage, and combined with the shapes of the existing British DPM pattern. Crye designed the new pattern for the UK's MOD, with the MOD holding the licence to print the pattern. The MTP pattern itself was not tried against other patterns and its adoption was based solely on its similarity to the original Crye Multicam pattern. In 2019, a variant of the MTP camouflage pattern

4320-401: The brown is much darker; 1990 and later has a band of new shapes and is smaller; 1994 has an orangey colour instead of a tan. Tropical poly-cotton DPM uniforms varied even more; early versions were very brightly coloured notably with a russet brown and emerald green which faded to rather unexpected pastel tones of blueish green and pink-brown with washing. Late 1970s and early 1980s Tropicals have

4400-439: The cadre of this force were outfitted with armored vehicles, machine guns and recoilless rifles. Air base defense was officially implemented by Air Force Regulation (AFR) 355–4 on 3 March 1953. AFR 355-4 defined air base defense "as all measures taken by the installation commander to deny hostile forces access to the area encompassing all buildings, equipment, facilities, landing fields, dispersal areas and adjacent terrain." However,

4480-446: The colours and pattern, until current times. This design was probably used first on a very small scale for a hooded Smock, Windproof, 1963 Pattern , issued only to special forces. In 1966 the Army introduced, though not universally, a camouflage field uniform. Known informally as the 1966 Pattern, it was in fact identical in design to the 1960 Pattern kit, though now made in DPM fabric. It

4560-499: The concept with personnel. The uniform board approved the proposal, and the beret was officially worn worldwide starting in February 1976. The 1976 beret was worn with the MAJCOM crest of the appropriate major command to which the unit was assigned. It continued in this manner for 20 years until the forming of the Security Forces. In March 1997 the 82nd CSPW was reactivated and re-designated

4640-545: The end of the 1950s and into the 1960s, the Air Police began to reemphasize the security aspect of their mission, with a strong focus being given to protecting the Air Force's strategic nuclear weapons, and a greater amount of centralization regarding training occurred. The Air Provost Marshal was also redesignated the Director of Security and Law Enforcement. On 1 November 1964, between 12:25 and 12:33 am, Vietnamese Communist (VC) troops attacked Bien Hoa Air Base with six 81mm mortars positioned about 400 meters north, outside

4720-449: The equipment and methods used to detect an attacking enemy force, the sentry dog has provided the most sure, all-inclusive means." During their time in Korea and early in Vietnam, the Air Police found themselves in a number of ground combat roles, some of which more accurately reflected an infantry-type role than that of the military police. In 1966 the Air Police were redesignated the Security Police, in an effort to more accurately reflect

4800-405: The first, the 2632nd Aerospace Expeditionary Force Transport Company, deploying in April 2004. Some Security Forces specialists were also attached to Army and Marine infantry units to provide either manpower or military working dogs. On 1 January 2005 Task Force 1041 was formed by elements of the 820th Security Forces Group to execute Operation Desert Safe Side. The objective was to conduct outside

4880-401: The helicopters crashed, killing 18 security policemen, and forcing the mission to be aborted. The loss of this aircraft was attributed to a failure to properly assemble a blade sleeve during overhaul nearly a year earlier. From 1981 to 1989 the Security Police were responsible for protecting the USAF's ground launched cruise missiles in Europe, providing security for them during the height of

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4960-544: The infra-red light spectrum . This reduces the visibility of soldiers to night vision devices , which detect infra-red light, as trees and other green plants reflect deep red and infra-red light (the Wood Effect ). A desert variant was first issued on a limited basis in the late 1980s consisting of subdued sand and khaki hues but was replaced by a two-colour light brown on sand version by 1990 because four-colour (light and dark browns, khaki, and sand) versions had been adopted by some Middle Eastern countries, notably Kuwait and

5040-503: The law enforcement and security role: Guard Squadrons, Military Police Companies (Aviation), and Air Base Security Battalions. Guard Squadrons were assigned to provide interior law enforcement and security to bases within the continental United States, with a technical guard school at Miami Army Air Field and a military police school at Buckley Field. Outside the United States the duties of law enforcement and internal security were carried out by Military Police Companies (Aviation), which, while

5120-463: The law enforcement specialty, and in November 1976 100 female airmen were trained as security specialists. Although the female security specialist program was soon after shut down, they have the distinction of being the first women permitted into any combat role in the entire U.S. Armed Forces. Law enforcement specialists, who had excelled in their career field, could be selected as criminal investigators and attend Military Police Investigations training at

5200-443: The new British Army uniform for operations in Afghanistan with personnel serving under the 4th Mechanised Brigade; initially issued to personnel deployed on Operation Herrick from March 2010, then issued more widely to HM Forces from 2011 onward replacing all DPM including Woodland and Desert variants of the Combat Soldier 95 uniform by 2013 along with the introduction of the new Personal Clothing System. The MTP camouflage design

5280-402: The official history of the USAF Security Forces referring to them as the Army Air Forces' "infantry" When the Air Force was created with the signing of the National Security Act of 1947 , all members of the AAF were transferred to the new branch, to include military police attached to the Army Air Forces. On 2 January 1948 the Military Police were reformed into the Air Police and established

5360-399: The only effective way to counter air power was to destroy its bases on the ground. This concept has also been proven effective during the Indochina War from 1946 to 1954, when the Viet Minh regularly and successfully attacked French air bases. The USAF Sentry Dog program was a product of the Korean War . On 1 May 1957 the Air Force gained responsibility for training all working dogs in

5440-524: The prime of life protected by detachments of soldiers." Churchill's directive resulted in formation of the RAF Regiment . On 12 February 1942 the United States adopted the British air defense philosophy. The Army Chief of Staff, Gen. George C. Marshall , approved the allocation of 53,299 African-Americans to the Army Air Forces with the "stipulation that air base defense 'for the number of air bases found necessary' be organized and that 'Negro personnel' be used for this purpose as required." This order formed

5520-422: The regulation did not include provisions for sustained ground defense operations. Performance of this mission fell to the provisional base defense task forces to be organized and equipped like infantry. It was the Strategic Air Command 's (SAC) October 1952 edition of the SAC Manual 205-2 that rejected the notion that the USAF's ground defense mission conflicted with Army functions. SAC officials felt that success of

5600-563: The security and combat aspect of their mission. Shortly after the creation of the Security Police, in 1967 the "Safe Side" program was activated, which resulted in certain Security Police squadrons being trained in the use of light infantry tactics and special weapons to better enhance air base defense. Many of the squadrons that were part of the Safe Side project, such as the 1041st Security Police Squadron (Test), established observation posts, listening posts, conducted reconnaissance and ambush patrols, and served as mobile response forces to protect

5680-427: The standard and para designs. The smock is long and loose-fitting, and incorporates a voluminous wired-rim hood, while the trousers have zips in the lower leg to allow them to be put on over boots. In the mid-1970s a new Smock Parachutist DPM (Para smock) was introduced for the Parachute Regiment and other airborne units. Though made in the 1968 Pattern cotton fabric, its design was closer to that of its predecessor,

5760-536: The standard army disruptive pattern material and the desert DPM to determine the best balance of colours. The current HM Armed Forces camouflage were then tested alongside off-the-shelf multi-terrain camouflage. The tests were against terrain that soldiers are likely to encounter across the landscape in Afghanistan. A wide range of camouflage colours were tried in Britain, Cyprus, Kenya and Afghanistan. Camouflage patterns were compared with in-service and commercially available patterns—including those from Crye Precision in

5840-399: The wire "kill or capture" missions in one of the most violent areas of Iraq. At the end of the operation, they had reduced attacks on the local airbase to almost zero, while capturing 18 high-value targets, eight major weapons caches, and 98 other insurgent or terrorist targets. Units, such as the 824th Security Forces Squadron, were responsible for training Iraqi security forces. In Summer 2008

5920-412: Was appointed Air Force Chief of Security Police with the task of bringing the Security Police career field into the mainstream of the Air Force. One tool he employed was recognition of members of a distinctive portion of the force, with the beret proposed as a uniform change. Significant opposition to the beret from senior colonels and Major Command (MAJCOM) Chiefs was gradually overcome by the popularity of

6000-745: Was intended for DPM to be phased out completely for British Regular and Reserve forces by 2016, but the use of jungle pattern DPM could still be retained by special forces for jungle operations. Multi-Terrain Pattern The Multi-Terrain Pattern ( MTP ) is the standard camouflage pattern of the British Armed Forces . As part of the British Ministry of Defence's (MOD) Personal Equipment and Common Operational Clothing (PECOC) programme, three new camouflage patterns were considered for issue to British forces . These were

6080-528: Was intended to perform consistently across a wide range of environments encountered, particularly for operations that the military had been deployed in during 2009. Initial concept was made with the environment of Helmand Province in mind. British Troops in Afghanistan operate in a mixed landscape, including desert, woodland, mountains and urban. The development team at the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory tested various camouflage variations against

6160-485: Was introduced, initially produced in olive green. The olive type was quickly replaced in production by a disruptively patterned version, and now almost all British issue webbing and rucksacks are disruptively patterned in the Multi-Terrain Pattern (MTP). Current issued DPM equipment is IRR ( Infrared Reflective) coated. This coating has a specific reflective wavelength in order to blend in with natural colours in

6240-622: Was killed in action near Safwan, Basra Governorate, Iraq. - Emergency Service Teams; - Phoenix Raven; - Stinger Missile Program; - The Elite Guard; - Close Precision Engagement (CPE) teams; - U.S. Air Force Tactical Response Force (TRF); - Deployed Aircraft Ground Response Element (DAGRE); - Security Forces Marine Patrol Flight; - E4 B NEACP/NAOC Duty; - Military Working Horse Units; - Military working dog teams; - Base Honor Guard. The Strategic Air Command's Elite Guard , an Air Police unit first established in December 1956 to provide security at USAF SAC headquarters,

6320-527: Was selected by the New Zealand Defence Force to replace the current issue MCU service uniform across all services by 2023. Designated NZMTP, the new camouflage has a modified colour palette better suited to New Zealand's landscape. The UK's Royal Marines announced in June 2020 that they would be procuring new uniforms specifically for the Marines, taking them away from the standard PCS uniforms of

6400-482: Was the first USAF unit officially authorized to wear a blue beret (with affixed SAC patch) in 1957 as part of their distinct Elite Guard uniform. The Elite Guard's dark blue serge wool beret was worn on duty, at both guard and ceremonial functions, from 1957 onwards. In 1966–67, during Operation Safe Side, the first Security Police beret was issued by the 1041st Security Police Squadron. This experimental and specially trained Air Base Ground Defense (ABGD) unit adopted

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