US Military Uniforms of the Vietnam War

American Fighting Uniforms Of The Vietnam War - The Vietnam War, also known as the Second Indochina War, was a Cold War military conflict that may be said to have occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from September 26, 1959 to April 30, 1975. The war was fought between the communist North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of South Vietnam, supported by the United States and other anti-communist nations.

The American fighting uniform saw a great deal of changes during the Vietnam war. This period represents the most advances in the field since WWII. This page is provides a comprehensive study of the time period.

This section is dedicated to documenting the US fatigues employed by various branches of the service during the vietnam conflict. Fortunatelly for the collector, most of these uniforms are still fairly easy to obtain and are still inexpensive. An exception to this rule would be any special forces uniforms or the early war fatigues. These items can command much higher prices.
The Vietnam war witnessed the use of non-rip popplin for the first time. This material is very light weight, allows air circulation and is composed of a threaded grid that helps top the cloth from ripping once a cut has occurred. The uniforms worked particularly well in the heat of the jungle. This information is brought to you free of charge by MilitaryItems.com, the source for military antiques and collectibles from various time periods and countries.

This section of the website provides an in-depth analysis of the military uniforms employed by the United States armed forces during the Vietnam war.

TOPIC	DESCRIPTION
Materials	View the types of materials and colors for the uniforms.
Buttons	View the buttons employed in the uniforms.
Tags	List of clothing tags used in the uniforms.

The illustrated history of the American Combat Uniform during the Vietnam war (1957 to 1975).

This information is brought to you courtesy of MilitaryItems.com , the source for military antiques and collectibles.

US COMBAT UNIFORMS OF THE VIETNAM WAR
The combat uniforms employed by the United States during the Vietnam war were a whole new breed of uniforms. The tropical heat of the area demanded a different type of material. One of the most notable differences from other conflicts were the use of slanted front pockets. A type of camouflage known as ERDL was also introduced in large quantities.

This section of the page divides the uniforms in sateen ( which was a leftover from the Korean war), Slant pocket (refers to the Olive Drab shirt with slanted pockets, comes in poplin and rip-stop) and ERDL (which refers to the rip-stop camouflage patter. Initially used by the US Marinesa and later adopted by the army and air force.)

Some of the uniforms remained in use even after the next generation came out. That is the case for th sateen shirt and pants. They saw service until the 1980's.

VIETNAM WAR ERA SATEEN TUNICS - STAIGHT POCKETS

1963 USMC SATEEN SHIRT - This is an early version of the tunics employed by the Marine Corps. All green plastic button construction. Two pocket design with the EGA stamped on one pocket.	1965 USAF SATEEN SHIRT - US Air Force sateen shirt. Early war design with the two pockets. Blue with white letters strip sewn above pocket. Colored rank patches on sleeves.	1966 US ARMY SPECIAL FORCES SATEEN SHIRT - This is a special forces sateen shirt. Complete with rank and infantry collar patches. Airborne tab over special forces patch on shoulder.	1967 USMC SATEEN TUNIC - In the early days of the Vietnam war soldiers were using Sateen tunics. These were left over from the Korean war and did not serve well in the tropics.

1968 USAF AUXILIARY CIVIL AIR PATROL SATEEN SHIRT - This is a Civil Air Patrol (CAP) shirt. Sateen construction. Two pocket design. A patch for the "Auxiliary Civil Air Patrol" is found above one pocket.	1968 USAF NEW YORK CIVIL AIR PATROL (CAP) SATEEN SHIRT - This is a sateen type shirt used by the Civila Air Patrol in the state of New York. Two pocket type with a colorful patch on one sleeve.	early 1970's US ARMY SEARGENT SATEEN SHIRT - This is an early war sateen shirt. Two pockets each having a flap closed via the use of a plastic green button. Long sleeves. Colored Seargent patch on one arm.

VIETNAM WAR ERA POPLIN TUNICS - SLANT POCKETS

1965 US ARMY POPLIN EXPERIMENTAL TUNIC - This is an early Vietnam war poplin tunic. Complete with the waist adjustment. Two different types of thread.	1965 US ARMY POPLIN SLANT POCKET TUNIC - The standard tunic of the US armed forces during the Vietnam war was knwon as the "Slant pocket" due to the angle at which the pockets were placed.	1966 US ARMY 5th RANGER SPECIAL FORCES POPLIN TUNIC - This is a slant pocket tunic used by the Special forces in Vietnam. Dates back to pre-1965. Complete with theater made Fifth ranger Battallion and Ranger tabs.	1966 US AIR FORCE POPLIN TUNIC - This is a Third pattern slant pocket tunic with theater made Air Force rank patches. The sleeves have been shortened. Complete with nametag and US Air Force strip.
1966 US ARMY POPLIN RANGER TUNIC - Of cotton poplin construction. slant pocket design. Retains all the original tags. US Army Ranger patches Airborne qualified.	1966 US AIR FORCE POPLIN JUNGLE TUNIC - This is a US Air Force modified slant pocket tunic. The sleeves have been shortened, COmplete with "US Air Force" and name tag strips.	1966 US ARMY SLANT POCKET POPLIN TUNIC - This is a US Army Third pattern jungle tunic. As used during the vietnam war. The name tag is left blank.	1969 US ARMY POPLIN COMBAT TUNIC - Of cotton poplin construction. slant pocket design. Retains all the original tags. Olive drab color.

VIETNAM WAR ERA RIP STOP TUNICS - SLANT POCKETS

1960-63 US ARMY FEMALE TUNIC - Female personnel were very limited in the US Army during the Vietnam war. This tunic was used by female soldiers. Two lower pocket design.	1968 US ARMY TUNIC 193rd BRIGADE - Of rip-stop material construction. Four pocket design. Retains the original tags. Dated 1968. Complete with 193rd Brigade patch.	1969 US ARMY 82nd AIRBORNE TUNIC - This is a slant pocket, rip-stop tunic used by Airborne forces of the 82nd Infantry Division. Complete with the "All American" shoulder patch.	1969 US ARMY JUNGLE TUNIC - This is the standard tunic issued to all armed forces in Vietnam. Four pocket construction. No insignia. Complete with name strips.
1969 US AIR FORCE JUNGLE TUNIC - This is a rip-stop tunic with theater made US Air Force rank patches. Sleeves have been shortened to better cope with tropical heat.	1969 US AIR FORCE TUNIC WITH THAILAND PARTICIPATION PATCH - This is a tunic used by the Air Force during the Vietnam war. The long sleeves have been cut-off. Thailand diamond placed inside the rank patch.	1970 US ARMY SPECIAL FORCES TUNIC - Complete with the "Special Forces" and "Airborne" patches. Four pocket construction where the two top pockets are slanted.	1970 US ARMY TUNIC "BIG RED ONE" - This is a tunic used by the world known "Big Red One" division of the US army. Standard construction tunic.

VIETNAM WAR ERA KHAKI SHIRTS - STRAIGHT POCKETS

LATE 1960's US ARMY FIFTH ARMY KHAKI SUMMER SHIRT - This is a two pocket khaki dress shirt. Brown plastic buttons are employed all throughout. Cotton blend construction. Fifth army patch. Issued for summer wear.	1960'S US ARMY KHAKI SHIRT - US Army Summer Khaki shirt. Short sleeve heavy duty cotton blend construction. Two pocket type. Collar insignia and shoulder patches are found.	LATE 1960'S US ARMY KHAKI SUMMER SHIRT - This is a heavy duty cotton construction shirt. Khaki color issued for summer wear. Light brown plastic buttons. First Army patch on one sleeve.

VIETNAM WAR ERA CAMOUFLAGE (ERDL) TUNICS

MID 1960's US ARMY ERDL JUNGLE TUNIC - This is an ERDL pattern slant pocket tunic with a theater made patch on the arm. All green plastic buttons are present. Retains the original tags.	1968 US ARMY ERDL JUNGLE TUNIC - This is an ERDL pattern slant pocket tunic.	1969 ARMY RANGER ERDL TUNIC - This is a US Army ERDL camouflage tunic. A theater made ranger patch is sewn to one arm. Second Batallion, 75th Infantry, Airborne Ranger.	1969 ARMY ERDL CAMOUFLAGED JUNGLE TUNIC - This is a US Army ERDL camouflage tunic. Of four pocket construction. Rip-stop material.

1970 US MARINE CORPS ERDL TUNIC - This tunic is design in the standard camouflage pattern employed by the US Marine Corps during the Vietnam war. Black ink stamped EGA in front pocket.	1970 US ARMY FIRST BRIGADE AVIATION ERDL TUNIC - This is a US Army aviation ERDL shirt. Issued to a captain on the First Aviation brigade.

VIETNAM WAR ERA PANTS

1964 US ARMY FIELD PANTS - Of cotton construction. Two front pockets and two rear pockets. Olive drab color.	1968 US ARMY ERDL JUNGLE PANTS - Of rip-stop construction. Six pocket design. Retains all the original tags. ERDL pattern.	1969 US ARMY JUNGLE PANTS - Of six pocket design including two large side pockets. Green plastic buttons are used all throughout. A zipper is placed in the front.

VIETNAM WAR ERA FIELD JAKETS

1958 US ARMY FIELD PARKA - Of heavy duty cotton construction. Oversize designe to go over equipment. Two pocket type. Zippers, snaps and buttons secure the front closed.	1960 US AIR FORCE FIELD JACKET - Of cotton nylon construction. Gray color. Retains original gold over black tag. Built in hood.	1963 US ARMY FIELD JACKET - This is an example of the double draw string design field jacket. Olive drab construction. dated 1963.	1964 US AiR FORCE FIELD JACKET - This is a heavy duty cotton construction field jacket. Early blue US Air Force nametag.

1964 US AIR FORCE FIELD JACKET LINER - Of cotton nylon construction with a heavy white cotton liner. Black leather enforcements in the pull string area. Olive drab color.	1966 US AIR FORCE CWU-7/P JACKET - This is a jacket issued to pilots and flight personnel during the Vietnam war. Four angled pocket design. Each has a flap with a metal snap.	1966 M-1965 US ARMY FIELD JACKET - Of cotton construction. Olive drab color. Four pocket style wit flaps over each pocket. With the rounded collar. Dated 1968.	1966 US AIR FORCE FIELD JACKET - Olive drab field jacket. Complete with the blue color and white letters tag. Includes a Tactical Air Command color patch. Waist draw string.

1969 US ARMY M-65 FIELD COAT - This was the standard US Army field jacket during the Vietnam war.	1975 US ARMY FIELD SWEATER - This is a heavy duty wool construction field Sweater.	1975 USAF FEMALE FIELD JACKET - This is a four pocket field jacket. Double draw string design. Issued to female personnel. Complete with blue and white strips.

US DRESS UNIFORMS OF THE VIETNAM WAR
The dress uniform employed by the United Stated military during the Vietnam war were considerably different from those used during the Korean war. The use of heavy wool was eliminated from the US Army and Air Force clothing. The design developed in the 1960's has remained virtually untouched clear into the first decade of the 2000's.

1957 US ARMY CLASS A DRESS JACKET - This is the standard Class A tunic employed by the US Army. Complete with the manufacturing tags. Cloth ribbons are attached to the breast area.	1959 USMC COLONEL GALA UNIFORM - This is a beautifully constructed USMC uniform. High quality construction. Very rich materials. Bullion accessories applied to cuff area and shoulders.	1967 101st AIRBORNE US ARMY CLASS A DRESS JACKET - Standard class A US Army tunic. Complete with 101st Airborne patch. Enlisted man type. Dated 1967. This was a standard production tunic.	MID 1960's US AIR FORCE OFFICER PILOT DRESS JACKET - Of wool and nylon blend construction. Complete with the pilot wings, rank insignia, ribbons and patches. Plastic blue nametag included.

1960'S US ARMY DRESS UNIFORM - Traditional dark blue US Army officer dress uniform. The sleeves bear command stripes. This is a tailor made uniform.	MID 1960's US ARMY SUMMER UNIFORM - US Army khaki summer dress uniform. Issued to officers during the Vietnam war. Gold metal buttons. Quilted liner. This is a teailor made uniform.	MID 1960's US NAVY SUMMER DRESS UNIFORM - This is a US Navy khaki dress uniform. One arm has a nicely embroidered rank patch. The uniform was tailor made.	MID 1960'S US NAVY WHITE UNIFORM - This is the standard all white uniform issued to US Navy officers. The buttons are gold in color and of metal construction. High neck design.
1960's US WEST POINT RAIN COAT - This is a US West point cadet rain coat. Gray rubberized material. Retains the original tag. Gray plastic buttons.

NON-STANDARD ISSUED UNIFORMS OF THE VIETNAM WAR
Camouflage clothing was not widely available during the early days of the Vietnam war. Alot of the clothing were left overs from the Korean War. Those uniforms were not well suited for the combat needs of South East Asia. As a result, soldiers were allowed to purchase their own uniforms at sporting goods stores in the US. The type of camouflage pattern sold there was known as "Duck Hunter" because of its intended use by hunting community.

Another set of special uniforms introduced during the conflict were knonw as "tiger stripes". No one knows for sure where the pattern was originated. The style became quite popular among the American special forces.

VIETNAM WAR ERA DUCK HUNTER UNIFORMS

MID 1960's US ARMY DUCK HUNTER PANTS - two rear pocket Duck Hunter pattern pants. Black metal 13-star buttons are left over from WWII. No tag is available.	MID 1960's US ARMY DUCK HUNTER UNIFORM - This is a South Vietnamese worn Duck hunter shirt. Complete with multiple patches which include a white name tag and South Vietnamese special forces pocket patch.	MID 1960's US ARMY DUCK HUNTER SHIRT - KAMO - Of cotton construction. This example was manufactured by the Kamo company. Black metal 13-star buttons. HBT material.	MID 1960's US ARMY DUCK HUNTER SHIRT - This is a Duck Hunter shirt. 13-star black metal buttons. HBT construction. Two lower pockets. The tag is missing.

MID 1960's US ARMY DUCK HUNTER UNIFORM - Manufactured by the Camo Clothing company. This is a tunic and pair of pants. Designed for hunting purposes.	MID 1960's US DUCK HUNTER SHIRT - In the early days of the war the US military did not have camouflage uniforms available. Soldiers went to stores like Sears and bought hunting uniforms.	MID 1960's US DUCK HUNTER SHIRT AND PANTS - This is a set of Duck Hunter pants and shirt. Brown plastic buttons. Manufactured by the Red Head company. Retains the original tag.

VIETNAM WAR ERA OTHER UNIFORMS

These are uniforms of the Vietnam war era that have unique characteristics that differentiate them from other uniforms of the same period.

US ARMY SOY TAN RAIDER UNIFORM - This is the unform that was issued to personnel who participated and supported the Soy Tan raid.	MID 1960's US ARMY TIGER STRIPES UNIFORM - This is a standard tiger stripe uniform. Pants and tunic. Green plastic buttons. Black ink stamped American sizes.	MID 1960's US ARMY RARE TIGER REVERSIBLE STRIPE PARKA - This is a very unique clothing item from the Vietnam war. One side is tiger striped while the other is Olive drab. High quality construction.	1960's US ARMY TIGER STRIPE PANTS - This is a US Army tiger stripe pair of pants. As used by special forces during the Vietnam war. No markings found.

US ARMY 10th SPECIAL FORCES UNIFORM - This is the field unform that was used by 10th special forces personnel prior to 1961.	US ARMY 10th SPECIAL FORCES ADVISOR FIELD JACKET - This is an M-1943 field jacket that was used by 10th special forces personnel prior to 1961. Camouflage liner.

MID 1960's US ARMY ERDL FIRST CAV TOUR JACKET - This is an ERDL jacket with an embroidered back. The First Cav insignia is placed in the center with a large helicopter just above.	1966 US AIR FORCE FLIGHT COMPETIEION JACKET - The Air Force held flight competitions among the different squadrons. Jackets would be purchased by each team for spirit purposes. Of Nylon construction.	1966 US AIR FORCE FLIGHT COMPETIEION SHIRT - The Air Force held flight competitions among the different squadrons. Jackets would be purchased by each team for spirit purposes. Of Nylon construction.	1966 - 1967 VIETNAM ERA KID'S TOUR JACKET - Soldiers serving in Vietnam would purchase tour jackets to bring back to their kids. Of cotton construction. Map of Vietnam embroidered in back.

FLIGHT SUITS AND FLIGHT JACKETS OF THE VIETNAM WAR
Aviation played a pivital role during the Vietnam war. Helicopters were the backbone for many of theoperations. In addition, bombers, jet fighters, trasporters and scout aircrafts were invaluable for waging war. Along with these aircraft came the development of flight suits for pilots and crew members.

The following section displays a series of flight related clothing. The information is displayed in chronological order and an attempt is made to group similar things together.

1960 US AIR FORCE K2-B FLIGHT SUIT - Of cotton construction. Multiple zippers and pockets. black/gray color. The tag is black with gold letters.	1961 USAF K2-B FLIGHT SUIT - Twill sage green construction. Used in the early days of the Vietnam war. Retains the original black tag with gold letters.	MID 1965 US AIR FORCE TIGER STRIPE FLIGHT SUIT - This is an in-country made flight suit. Manufactured from tiger stripe material. This was used by helicopter and airplane pilots.	1966 US AIR FORCE EXPERIMENTAL FLIGHT SUIT - Very interesting Vietnam war era experimental flight suit. Blue color rayon/polyester material. Retains the original "experimental" tag.

MID 1960's US AIR FORCE D1-B FLIGHT PANTS - This is a set of high altitude pilot/crew flight pants. Nylon outer shell with cotton interior. Brass zippers attached to the side.	MID 1960's US NAVY WINTER FLIGHT PANTS - Manufactured by the Bower company. This is a set of winter trousers. Nylon construction. Retains original black tag with gold letters.	1960'S US ARMY TIGER STRIPE FLIGHT SUIT - This is a theater made tiger stripes flght suit. Identical construction as standard flight suit. No markings are found on the outfit.

MID 1960's US NAVY G-1 FLIGHT JACKET WITH PATCHES - This is a G-1 flight jacket. Full of squadron patches. All leather construction. Front zipper is made of brass.	MID 1960's US NAVY G-1 FLIGHT JACKET - This is a G-1 flight jacket. Front zipper is made of brass. Back of neck has USN painted in white.

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