Photo: USARMYGERMANY.com.
According to the caption, this is PFC Jim Riebe of L Troop (tankers) at
Kapaun Barracks in 1963, the same time I was there but I don't remember him.
The pink building is the mess hall. Jim's fatigues are exactly like mine
(but a better tailored*): block hat (soon to be phased out), boots with
reinforced toe (ditto), 7th Army patch on the left shoulder, and the special
3rd Armored Cavalry patch on the front left pocket. The hat also has a 3rd
ACR pin. These extra regimental decorations were pretty unusual. Aside
from the boots shown and the soft-toe ones that replaced them, 3rd ACR
members were also allowed to wear "tankers' boots" with a single strap that
wrapped around the shaft several time and buckles at the top, for both speed
and safety.
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*
| Each Troop (i.e. Company) had its own resident tailor, usually a German
lady (so Näherin, I guess) whose job was to sew on patches and stripes and
do repairs; the Army paid her for that, so for us it was a free service.
But soldiers could request special jobs for pay, like tailoring their
uniforms, which are normally much baggier than what you see here. Of course
nowadays fatigues are comouflage in shades of tan, nobody says "Army green"
any more (or OD = Olive Drab).
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