It’s out of the desert and into the jungle for soldiers stationed in tropical areas as the Army’s new jungle boot is field tested by the 2nd and 3rd Brigade Combat Teams with the 25th Infantry Division in Hawaii.
The new boots, made with polyurethane, boast a low heel to prevent snagging. And the best news is that they will prevent trench foot with water-draining inserts and a fast-drying liners. They will feature a new tread pattern that sheds mud more easily, fits without having to be broken in, and has better shock absorbency.
Belleville Boot Company and Rocky Boots were selected in December 2016 to supply the Army with 36,708 pairs of the new jungle combat boots.
Each soldier participating in the field testing has two set of the boots. When fully implemented, they will be available in sizes three to 16 with narrow, regular, wide, and extra wide options. Troops in the first phase of fielding will receive sizes 7-12, but all sizes will be available by June or July.
“We are really, really excited about the jungle boot program,” Lt. Col. John Bryan, product manager for Soldier Clothing and Individual Equipment at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, said during a press event with reporters on March 1.
“This is important to the Army,” he added. “It’s important to soldiers in a hot, high-humidity, high moisture area, and we are responding as quickly as we possibly can with the best available, immediate capability we can get on soldiers feet quickly and then refine and improve as we go.”