British Army to get new all-environment camouflage uniform by 2011

London, Dec. 21 (ANI): The uniform of the British Army is to be changed for the first time in almost 40 years.

According to The BBC, the new Multi-Terrain Pattern (MTP) will replace the traditional four colour woodland uniform known as No.8: Disruptive Pattern Material (DPM).

Forces in Afghanistan will start to get the new uniforms in March next year, with the whole army upgraded by 2011.

The MTP is designed for a wide range of environments, including the volatile "green zone" of Helmand province.

British troops in Afghanistan currently use a mix of desert camouflage and temperate DPM, depending on which area they are operating in.

There are three main types of terrain in Helmand - desert, the agricultural "green zone" either side of the Helmand river, and residential areas with dusty buildings and mud huts.

One soldier said that the mix-and-match was far from ideal and made units stand out, especially in the "green zone".

Lt Col Toby Evans - a military advisor with the Government's Defence Science and Technology Laboratory - told the BBC the new uniform was a compromise between having a uniform that was perfectly suited to a specific environments and one that would work well across a wide range of conditions.

The Army's Infantry Trials and Development Unit and the government's Defence Science and Technology Laboratory tested a number of different designs in the UK, Cyprus, Kenya, and Afghanistan before selecting the MTP design. (ANI)