Back to basics, a single-colour combat uniform

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After five decades of tinkering with patterns, from Disruptive Pattern Material (DPM) in the 1970s through Desert DPM (DDPM), Multi-Terrain Camouflage Uniform (MCU), and New Zealand Multi-Terrain Pattern (NZMTP), New Zealand’s uniforms have too often drifted into brand management rather than capability. Our own history shows that print rarely delivers a universal advantage, and that fit, fabric and fieldcraft usually matter more than this year’s geometry.

Should New Zealand return to a single-colour combat uniform, such as a return to jungle-green, but in a modern cut? It would save money, simplify supply, suit our operating environment, and mark out a distinctly New Zealand identity, rather than chasing the camouflage fashion cycle.

Why is this argument timely

In an opinion article for Military.com on 29 October 2025, Robert Billard asks whether the US Marine Corps should “ditch the digis” and go back to a simple, single-colour utility uniform, such as coyote brown or olive drab, to cut cost and complexity and put practicality first.[1] The logic maps cleanly to a small force like ours.

Rethinking Marine Corps Camo (photo by Military.com)

International context, what our peers wear

Among New Zealand’s closest peers, camouflage is the standard field dress. The United Kingdom wears Multi-Terrain Pattern, Australia uses the Australian Multicam Camouflage Uniform, Canada fields CADPAT, and Ireland is moving from DPM to a modern multicam-style design. Austria, long a holdout in plain olive, is transitioning to camouflage across the force. The notable exception is Israel, which still issues olive or khaki fatigues at scale.

A return to a single-colour combat uniform would be unusual, but not without precedent. It would be a deliberate, outcomes-driven choice that prioritises fit, fabric, sustainment and fieldcraft over print. Interoperability would not be compromised by colour. What matters is near-IR compliance, armour and radio compatibility, female-inclusive sizing, hard-wearing fabrics, and weather layers in matching shades. Retaining a small, role-based camouflage pool for specialist concealment and specific deployments preserves the option where pattern brings a real advantage, while keeping the general issue simple, cheaper to sustain, and mission-first.

What our own history shows

New Zealand’s 1960s trials in Malaysia found that no single scheme was effective across all backgrounds. The Army Headquarters concluded that Jungle Greens would remain the standard clothing and that camouflage efforts should focus on field items, such as shelters and parkas.[2]

Comparison of FARELF Combat Clothing 1965 Left to Right: Shirts Tropical Combat, Shirt OG (UK).Indonesian Camouflage, Shirt KF, HQ FARELF Joint Services Public Relations PR/A/372/4 NZ Archived R17187760 Clothing Tropical Clothing and Personal Equipment 1955-67

DPM was adopted for temperate wear, not as a magic camouflage leap

By the early 1970s, the priority was a temperate-climate combat uniform. Formal trials of the UK 1968-pattern DPM led to adoption because it solved the temperate clothing problem and provided a well-designed ensemble, not because it delivered a universal concealment advantage.[3]

The NZ story, from DPM to DDPM, MCU and MTP

New Zealand’s combat uniform journey has been pragmatic, moving from DPM to DDPM, then MCU and finally NZMTP, with each step shaped by mission demands, supply efficiency, and improved fit.

  • DDPM for deployments, 2003. A New Zealand desert DPM variant entered service for Iraq, Afghanistan and Africa, tailored to arid theatres rather than New Zealand training areas.
March 2012, Multinational Force Observers, Sinai: Sergeant Clint Whitewood on deployment to the Sinai.
  • 2008 ACU-style cut. The Army transitioned to a modern ripstop cut, produced in both NZDPM and NZDDPM, which improved pockets, wear, and integration with Velcro backed badges, while still reflecting theatre-driven needs.
  • 2013 MCU. NZ consolidated to MCU across NZDF, a Ghostex-derived, ACU-style pattern with Crye-influenced trousers, aiming for one pattern to cover most conditions.
Royal New Zealand Soldiers with 161 Artillery Battalion, train and prepare for exercise SSang Yong in the Pohang Republic of Korea (ROK) Marine base, South Korea, Feb. 26, 2016. Exercise Ssang Yong 2016 is a biennial military exercise focused on strengthening the amphibious landing capabilities of the Republic of Korea, the U.S., New Zealand and Australia. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by MCIPAC Combat Camera Cpl. Allison Lotz/Released)
  • 2019 NZMTP. NZDF adopted NZMTP, a local MTP/Multicam variant, reverting largely to the 2008 cut and citing supply, fit for women, and performance issues with MCU, plus compatibility with widely available off-the-shelf kit. Changeover completed by 2023.
NZ Army soldiers during Exercise Black Bayonet wearing NZMTP uniforms. New Zealand Defence Force

This arc shows a practical, theatre-led approach, not a fashion contest, and it underlines a core point: uniform colour and cut should serve the mission and the supply chain first.

The case for going back to Jungle Greens

Here is the case for returning to a single-colour Jungle Green combat uniform: it performs effectively across our training and probable Indo-Pacific operational environments, reduces cost and complexity, maintains interoperability, and gives New Zealand a clear identity rather than following a fashion trend.

  • Effectiveness that matches our training ground. A deep, slightly muted green blends acceptably across bush, scrub, pine, tussock and many built-up areas, especially after natural fade. Fieldcraft, movement discipline and signature control matter more than print geometry.
  • Supply and cost discipline. Solid dyeing is cheaper and faster to source, quality assurance is simpler, SKUs reduce, repair stocks are easier to manage, wastage falls, and garments live longer through straightforward patching.
  • Interoperability intact. Greens sit cleanly alongside coalition browns and greens on armour covers, pouches and packs. Radios, reporting and readiness make us interoperable, not a print.
  • Identity over imitation. Jungle green is recognisably ours, grounded in New Zealand conditions, not in a global pattern arms race.

Not a nostalgia trip, a modern uniform

Keep the colour single, keep the cut modern. One single-colour system with female-inclusive sizing, articulated knees and elbows, pocketing that works under armour, near-IR compliance, standard cloth for general issue with flame-retardant variants by task, and weather layers in matching shades. In short, a mission-first design that wears hard, fits well, integrates with armour and radios, and is cheaper and simpler to sustain.

Conclusion

Robert Billard’s case for abandoning digital camouflage in favour of a single solid utility colour to save money and streamline logistics fits New Zealand’s realities. Our own records indicate that there is no universal advantage to different camouflage prints, and that DPM was introduced primarily to address a problem with temperate clothing. Returning to a single-colour uniform, in a modern cut, provides a more cost-effective and sustainable solution with a distinctly New Zealand identity. This is not nostalgia; it is a mission-first choice that simplifies supply, preserves interoperability, and focuses training on fieldcraft and signature management, where the real gains are.

Notes

[1] “Is it Time for the Marines to Ditch the Digi’s?,” 2025, https://www.military.com/feature/2025/10/29/it-time-marines-ditch-digis.html.

[2] “Clothing – Tropical Clothing and Personal Equipment,” Archives New Zealand No R17187760  (1955 – 1967).

[3] “Clothing – Introduction of Combat Clothing Project,” Archives New Zealand No R17187753  (1968-1976).