In November, the authorities decided to calculate how much the new military uniform from Valentin Yudashkin, which the army had already tried on at two Victory parades, would cost the Russian army. Forecasts vary widely. So, the chairman of the Federation Council Committee on Defense and Security, Viktor Ozerov, announced in mid-November that more than 25 billion rubles would be allocated from the federal budget for new uniforms for the Russian army within three years. However, it was immediately refuted.
The Deputy Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation, Colonel-General Dmitry Bulgakov, claims that the Russian army will completely switch to a new uniform in 2011 and this requires a maximum of 5.5 billion rubles. The correspondent of Our Version decided to find out what changes are expected in the wardrobe of Russian soldiers and officers, as well as how much and who will have to pay for it. In May 2007, the newly inaugurated Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov was dissatisfied with the appearance of the military and said, that the army needs a fundamentally new form. For the development of military new clothes, it was decided to attract fashion designers - Igor Chapurin and Valentin Yudashkin. The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation announced that 100 million rubles will be allocated to create a new uniform for the Russian army. After nine months of work on the new collection, Vladimir Putin was presented with 80 samples of new military uniforms for the Ground Forces, the Air Force and the Navy, the whole set - winter, summer uniforms, men, women, ceremonial, ceremonial-weekend, everyday. field and work uniforms. Whether this money will be enough is unknown, just as it is not clear how conscripts will pay for the loss of expensive uniforms, because the price of a set of a new uniform has increased on average 3-4 times, a general's one costs from 104 to 295 thousand rubles, and a soldier's - from 11 to 26 thousand rubles. It turns out that the "uniform" 20-25 thousand rubles a year is enough only for contract soldiers. Valentin Yudashkin boasted that the uniform was made of domestic materials on the basis of Russian technologies.
Moreover, the couturier said that traditions were followed, for example, the headdress of Marshal Zhukov became the prototype of the model of the general's cap. The designer also noted that the new form should be not only comfortable for men and women, but also attractive for young people. The collars of winter coats, trimmed with gray astrakhan fur, have become especially chic. The results of the designers' work could be seen firsthand in 2009, when soldiers and officers went to a military parade on Red Square in new uniforms. The dress uniform has undergone changes: there is more gold embroidery on the officer's uniform, the silhouette has become more elegant. At the same time, the first flaws were also revealed: the servicemen complained that the sides on the tunics of the new form were lowered too low and almost all of the chest was exposed to the wind. What looked good on the podium turned out to be out of place in the ranks. Therefore, it was decided to slightly change the cut of the uniforms by raising the sides of the ceremonial tunics. Also, the military abandoned tie hooks and other glamorous tricks. Before the military had time to try on a new uniform, the first scandal erupted. There is information that the Russian Ministry of Defense has ruined the eminent couturier Valentin Yudashkin, because due to the outbreak of the financial crisis, the military department cannot pay him the $ 5 million due for his work. However, it soon became clear that all this time, Yudashkin and Chapurin, as true patriots, were engaged in the creation of the collection completely free of charge, and the money was spent only on sewing experimental parties.
And that the designers will not be able to get money from the production of a new collection, they will only exercise designer supervision. Moreover, it turned out that the new form is the product of cooperation of a large team, namely, the joint work of famous designers and the Central Research Institute of the Textile Industry, the Central Research Institute of Leather and Footwear and the heraldic department of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation.
Soon the new field uniform saw the light, the feature of which was that it was sewn from a digital camouflage blended fabric, which consists of natural and polyester fibers. It was reported that this composition of the fabric makes the uniform lightweight and wear-resistant, and the special impregnation makes it water-repellent. The best domestic fabrics of the world level with the use of membrane materials, as well as light synthetic high-quality insulation were offered for sewing.
As a plus of the design of the uniform from Yudashkin, valves for protective knee pads and Velcro fixers instead of buttons were noted. It was promised that even such unusual clothes for our army as shorts will appear in the new army uniform. And for those who will serve in hot areas, a light light blue suit has been created.
The new protective pattern was named “number”: it consists of small squares - pixels, which allow creating the effect of a smooth transition of color, in contrast to the deforming spots of the usual camouflage. Pixels on the new shape in several shades of khaki - dark and light. As conceived by the developers, all these technological tricks should ensure the stealth of a soldier on the battlefield, since such a coloring is less noticeable both through conventional optical devices and in infrared radiation. However, many specialists doubt that the new tissue structure has any clear advantages.
The birth of the new ammunition was watched very closely by the country's leadership. Before the start of the experimental operation of the field uniform, it was shown to the country's leadership in the mountain motorized rifle brigade of the Dagestan Botlikh. A special feature of the collection was the mountain set, which was made in as many as four versions. Its flat, or foothill, option costs from 35 to 40 thousand rubles. And the mountain along with the equipment - and at all 140 thousand. Moreover, additional equipment like climbing boots with "crampons" has to be purchased in Austria and Germany.
But, as officers of the Botlikh brigade recently told the correspondent of Nasha Versiya, the uniform that was shown two years ago is very different from the one that is issued today. Testing the pilot samples, the soldiers did not sweat, even under intense physical exertion, and the uniform did not lose its appearance after the inevitable repeated washings. The form, which is massively supplied today, has become less qualitative. Apparently, our interlocutors believe, after the launch of mass production, the uniform was sewn from inexpensive fabrics in order to save money.
The usual motorized rifle field uniform is also evolving. A radical change in the new uniform of the military was the absence of the usual shoulder straps. These insignia are now located on the chest and left shoulder. This is due to the fact that when you had to wear the paratrooper's backpacks, duffel bags, unloading vests, shoulder straps were closed and they were not visible. Now they are clearly visible from the side. The lack of shoulder straps in the army is treated with irony, this insignia on the chest was jokingly dubbed a star on the belly.
As explained to Nasha Versiya in the management of the Chief of Logistics of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, there are many innovations in the new form without practical sense, just for external beauty and everyday comfort, and this is more suitable for parades than for conducting real combat operations. Experts note that the new uniform gravitates to modern NATO designs: the headdress resembles a baseball cap, the new army ankle boots are like two peas in a pod similar to the English Invider boots. A lot of controversy is also caused by the overly "civilian", according to the military, a black shiny jacket with a red collar - for the flight crew.
Meanwhile, the presidential decree and the government decree stipulate that the Russian army is planned to switch to a new uniform, taking into account the period of wearing those items that the military has. The Ministry of Defense confirms that next year all servicemen will switch to a new field uniform. It is reported that some of the soldiers of the autumn draft have already received a new uniform, the new recruits of all subsequent conscriptions will be massively changed into it. Officers are also already switching to new uniforms as old uniforms wear out.
The Ministry of Defense says that from 2012 it is planned to change the procedure for providing military personnel undergoing military service under a contract with items of military uniform for personal use. A full set of military uniforms will be provided to graduates of universities, as well as soldiers and sergeants at the conclusion of the first contract. In the future, soldiers and officers will not receive the uniform itself, but funds for its purchase. For these purposes, servicemen will annually receive 20-25 thousand rubles or more, depending on the category of military service. To avoid abuse, only military personnel will be able to buy a military uniform upon presentation of an identity card. Whether this money will be enough is unknown, just as it is not clear how conscripts will pay for the loss of expensive uniforms, because the price of a set of a new uniform has increased on average 3-4 times, a general's one costs from 104 to 295 thousand rubles, and a soldier's - from 11 to 26 thousand rubles. It turns out that the "uniform" 20-25 thousand rubles a year will be enough only for contract soldiers.
