I was just wondering what colour of boots to wear with DPM’s. I have been issued DPM, and have brown boots. Is this a problem?
Thankyou in advance.
You can only wear black boots with DPM.
Brown can be worn with MTP.
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Unless they issue your boots then they cant enforce it, what are they going to do?, drive you to the nearest store and force you to buy black?
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In my wing brown boots are worn with DPM if that’s what the cadet has. It’s a surprising grasp on the reality that DPM is still in widespread use, but that black boots are much less common - added to which the Issue black boots are of a much lower quality than the issue brown boots, and no one involved in a youth organisation should be advocating that children wear rubbish footwear.
The answer to the OP’s question is ‘the ones that fit…’. Alt-bergs tend to be narrower than the Haix and Meindls. Personally I wouldn’t have my children wearing the old issue black boots for anything other than mooching around the range - they cost the MOD about £7 a pair and are utter rubbish.
I’d talk to your OC about it, and if they get cobby about wearing brown boots with DPM ask your parents to write him a letter explaining that they won’t be buying boots they know don’t fit your feet and that they know to be unsuitable for the tasks they’re being bought for - fieldcraft training, AT, DofE, maybe Nijmegen marches. Be polite about it, but be firm…
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Wear which ever ones you have. Your a cadet and if any jumped up staff member has a go at you, remind them you are still just a cadet.
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Or maybe, their parents can’t afford the cost of the boots?
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Well, yes, that’s a much easier tack to take - but I don’t know if the OP regularly turns up to the Sqn in their parents Range Rover Sport and therefore the cash angle might have less traction…
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Simple answer is this, are RAFAC scaled for MTP/DPM?, no, theyre not, therefore they cannot get stroppy about footwear unless it isnt safe, ie: no ankle support, what a parent drives is irrelevant, if RAFAC want a cadet to wear a certain type of footwear then they should issue it
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That is far too common sense. Someone with a stick of authority will be around to beat you later.
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There has to be a pragmatic balance; But saying “You don’t issue it so I’ll wear whatever the hell I want” would be just as bad as saying “You can only wear ‘military issue’ boots”.
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Socks aren’t issued but most people seem pro-black sock.
Socks cost pennies. Boots cost lots. It is much easier to insist on black socks.
I must be buying the wrong socks!
The socks I wear in DPM are light grey. They’re not visible so who cares?
I also don’t think we should have the restriction on brown boots in DPM. It made sense for the RAF, but they issued the boots to their personnel. We shouldn’t have blindly copied and pasted the regulation.
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I agree totally (to the point where I also wear light grey socks in No3 dress)
My main niggle with our dress regulations is that they slavishly copy the RAF’s wording and take little or no account of the practicalities of life as a cadet.
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Admittedly, these are my No. 3 socks:
They were a last minute solution that I figured out as I passed a Sainsbury’s on my way to some shooting training. I realised I put on my normal socks and my boots were already chafing my feet to death.
as much as i am a uniform nazi…i wouldnt raise an issue with a cadet wearing brown boots with dpm…like everyone else has stated you are not issued them so in my opinion you wear what you can source/afford.
Why do we as an organisation get our knickers in a ywist over tbe colour of boots we wear with no 3 uniform. I have sthat een many a regular in all sports of sorts of style of boot with Mtp. Suede, half suede, many that you could not polish. Hi leg mid leg hiking style.
If a cadet turned up to a shoot in a pair of hiking boots i would not get too bothered. But i do know that there will be many people getting hot under the collar.
With combat boots, my cadets can wear rainbow socks with unicorns on* for all I care. If I can see them they need longer trousers. Plus it is something interesting to comment on.
*Some do take this option.
I know I’m ACF but I spent my entire annual camp (bar 1 parade) wearing AKUs. The only comments are I got were from interested parties asking what they were. You certainly can’t polish them, but I don’t care. Gone are the days were you needed to see yourself in your toe caps and have 24 hours worth of rations in your webbing. I’m not sorry to see those days gone!
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I have never seen anyone get uppity about socks in greens. Blues, sure. But greens? Who has the time?