80s ERDL Wear

[Longhorn92]

Very nice piece.

 

I think the ERDL pattern is one of the coolest around. I wonder why the army went to the "woodland" pattern--which is obviously different but not so dissimilar to the ERDL that it makes a huge difference (IMO)--instead of just having the manufacturers begin reproduction of the ERDLs in the ripstop (summers) and then make winters. I would imagine the woodland pattern was considered a tweaked and improved ERDL pattern?

 

I never saw ERDL but I did see guys still wearing the OD jungle boots as late as '93 or '94.

[TrenchfootJoe66]

Awhile back I posted a photo over at MilitaryPhotos.net that showed a group of SF reservists (from Maryland I think) somewhere in Europe. Just about every possible uniform type was in the picture. OD Jungles, ERDL, RDF pattern and one poor bastard who was wearing the first generation of BDU's w/ the "Elvis" collar. From the same source Id also found pics of SF types wearing both ERDL and OD Jungles with the Special Forces arc clearly visible.

[patches]

A RDF being worn in the Fall of 1980, an GI of the 82nd Airborne on REFORGER 80.

[Martinjmpr]

On 11/25/2011 at 6:30 AM, MPage said:

 

 

There was, however, a Col Joseph J. Stetz who, according to his obituary, became a medical doctor in 1968 and spent 30 years in the 19th Special Forces Group (National Guard). I don't know how accurate that obit is, regarding the time spent in the 19th SFG.

 

I'm wondering if ERDL was still in use in the NG SF units, and Stetz became active duty around the early 80s.

 

Thoughts?

 

Yes, it was.  I was in 5/19th SFG Headquarters from May 1983 to May 1984 at Camp George West in Golden, CO, working in the S-1 (PAC) section.  In 1984 I transferred (literally across the street) to the 220th Military Police Company.  

 

At that time, the BDU was the standard Army uniform.  However, there were still a lot of guys who had served in the unit prior to 1981 when the BDU was introduced.  And you have to remember that at this time, the National Guard was at the very tail end of receiving new Army uniform items - it's not like nowadays where we expect the National Guard to be deploying every few years, back then the Guard NEVER deployed except maybe to a state emergency like a wildfire or a civil disturbance.  

 

So many soldiers were still wearing the old OG-107 "Pickle suits" as late as 1983.  AND, the older soldiers (some of whom had served in Vietnam) still had old ERDL cammie uniforms that they wore.  I remember in particular, our S-1, who was a Captain, had previously been an enlisted Marine in Vietnam.  He typically wore an ERDL slant-pocket uniform (green dominant pattern) with his 3rd MARDIV patch on the right sleeve. 

 

(Of course, those of us who know Army regulations know that USMC combat patches would not have been authorized at this time, but who's going to tell a Vietnam vet to take his patch off?  Nobody, at least not in an SF unit.) 

 

It was also very common to see soldiers wearing RDF-style camo uniforms at this time (mostly because being 100% cotton they were more comfortable in hot weather - the HWBDU was not introduced until 1986 or 87.) 

 

So, making a short answer long, YES, ERDL uniforms were worn by National Guard SF personnel in the early 1980s, I can attest to this.