armed forces
Lined up for the march into the faux pas: soldiers were given camouflage clothing in size “SS”
Bundeswehr soldiers during an exercise in Ostenholz
© Ronny Hartmann / AFP
According to the “Bild” newspaper, soldiers in the Bundeswehr should work on their camouflage clothing at the weekend – a label with the size “SS” must be removed.
Thousands of soldiers apparently recently received a set of new camouflage clothing. A little later a so-called decision of the Ministry of Defense followed, which the “picture“-Zeitung quoted. In it, Minister Christine Lambrecht orders the recipients of the new uniforms to remove labels manually. Because of a glitch, the size “S-Short” was abbreviated as “SS” there – a no-go for the Bundeswehr.
“SS” on Bundeswehr clothing must go
The soldiers should either remove the labels completely or at least cut out the historically charged “SS” designation. The reason is self-explanatory. Since the Second World War, the abbreviation “SS” has irrevocably stood for the “Schutzstaffel”, an organization founded by Adolf Hitler as his personal “body and beating guards”. During the course of the war, it became the most important terror and suppression organ of the National Socialists and was responsible for countless war crimes .
From Amazon to Volkswagen
These are the most popular employers among non-graduates
The camouflage clothing is part of a procurement contract that the Bundeswehr signed in the middle of the year for a total of 2.3 billion euros. By the end of 2025, the troops will receive 351,000 sets of modular ballistic protective and carrying equipment (MOBAST), 313,000 sets of combat clothing sets for the armed forces (KBS SK), 338,000 backpacks with a volume of 110 liters and 313,000 new combat helmets.
Cause unclear, no cause for panic
Noisy “soldier and technology” the jackets for the KBS SK come partly from the two manufacturers Hexonia GmbH and Gustav Wahler GmbH & Co. KG. Both companies were not available for queries at short notice, so it is unclear how this breakdown could have happened.
A request from the “Bild” newspaper to the defense committee did not yield any further information, but encouragement. A member explained that it was strange that such incidents happened to the Bundeswehr, but it was good that Mrs. Lambrecht had now ended it and that we should now focus on the important things again.