January/February 2022 19GETTY IMAGES (UNIFORMS, GHILLIE); COURTESY U.S. ARMY (OCP)
to confer a huge edge on the armies of the coun-
tries who had the technology. But as the tech
advanced, it became easier to acquire. After the
2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah, Israel
complained that night vision sold by Britain and
Italy to Iran to stem the f low of drugs was discov-
ered in the possession of the terrorist group. By
2012, Iran was reportedly manufacturing ther-
mal imagers of its own.
In 2018, when the top U.S. commander in
Afghanistan, Gen. John Nicholson, accused Rus-
sia of giving aid to the Taliban, senior Afghan
police officers and military figures said night-
vision goggles were part of the gear that Russia
supplied.
Kit 300 camouf lage could give NATO and its
allies their nighttime advantage back. Polaris
is tight-lipped about exactly what goes into the
Kit 300 sheet, stating only that it consists of
“microfibres, metals, and polymers.” The foil-
like material can be formed into rock-shaped
structures for soldiers to hide behind. A large
sheet of the material can hide vehicles as large
as a Hummer.Roughly the size of a twin bedsheet, a Kit 300
sheet weighs around one pound and compresses
into a small roll. It’s also strong enough to be
used as a litter to carry injured soldiers. Plus,
the sheet is reportedly waterproof and has been
tested in rain and high heat.
While armies with thermal-imaging devices
once held a trump card over their enemies, they
must continue to develop countermeasures of
their own to survive. Devices like the Kit 300 will
allow soldiers to once again disappear.A BRIEF
HISTORY
OF SOLDIER
CAMOUFLAGE
CAMOUFLAGE UNIFORMS
For centuries, armies used
brightly colored uniforms to
control troops, allowing leaders
to organize their infantry into
tightly packed columns that
delivered volleys of firepower.
By World War I, as small arms
improved, armies sought more
subdued uniforms and began
experimenting with darker
patterns (brown, khaki) to blend
in with the dirt of trench warfare.
By WWII, U.S. troops in the Pacific
wore camouflage patterns to
blend in with jungle vegetation.OPERATIONAL
CAMOUFLAGE PATTERN
(O C P)
In 2015, the U.S. Army abandoned
the pixelated grays and whites
of the Universal Camouflage
Pattern in favor of a new scheme.
Scorpion W2, developed by the
Army’s Natick Soldier Systems
Center, was a return to the dashes
and flashes of subdued colors
of previous army camouflage. In
2021, Scorpion, or Operational
Camouflage Pattern, became the
official duty uniform of the Army,
Air Force, and Space Force.GHILLIE SUITS
In the 19th century, Scottish
gamekeepers constructed
these loose suits of dyed strips
of fabrics to blend in with their
surroundings and catch poachers.
Lovat Scouts, the first snipers
employed by the British Army,
adopted and used the suits during
the Boer War. The shaggy, dark
suits break up the wearer’s profile
to remain undetected. Today’s
U.S. Army snipers use specialized
suits called the Improved Ghillie
System that consist of sleeves,
leggings, veil, and a cape.AS NIGHT-VISION TECHNOLOGY
A D V A N C E D, I T B E C A M E E A S I E R
FOR TERRORIST GROUPS TO ACQUIRE.
KIT 300 CAMOUFLAGE COULD GIVE NATO
AND ITS ALLIES THEIR NIGHTTIME
ADVANTAGE BACK.