Personnel Armor System for Ground Troops

Overview

The PASGT helmet is typically olive drab in color and can be fitted with cloth helmet covers to increase camouflaging capabilities, which come in a wide array of varying camouflage patterns, including, but not limited to, Woodland, six-color desert, three-color desert, and winter/snow white, solid black, for tactical police applications, as well as the U.S. Marine Corps's MARPAT and the U.S. Army's Universal Camouflage Pattern.

The PASGT helmet is also used by various SWAT teams, where it is often black, with or without covering. It is also used by United Nations Peacekeeping forces where it is often painted United Nations blue to match the colors of the United Nations flag.

When worn with a helmet cover, the PASGT helmet is also often fitted with a band around it that has two light recharging glow patches (sometimes known as cat eyes) on the rear intended to reduce friendly fire incidents. These bands are also used to hold vegetation or small personal items, as with the M1 helmet before it, during the later decades of its service life. These bands can also have names and/or ABO blood types printed on them to help identify the blood type the wearer in case a blood transfusion is required as a result of blood loss due to wounds received on the battlefield. In the U.S. Army, PASGT helmets often featured a patch with the wearer's rank insignia on it stitched onto the front, and/or a second patch showing the symbol of the wearer's unit on the sides. The U.S. Marines wore the Eagle, Globe, and Anchor branch of service insignia on the front of the helmet as an iron-on transfer, similar to the one worn by Marines on the breast pocket of the BDU. This practice continued with the adoption of the LWH, but fell out of use and was discontinued because the mounting base for night vision devices covered the emblem, and required a hole in the fabric to attach, defacing the symbol.

Development

The PASGT helmet was developed by the U.S. Army Soldier Systems Center^[6] after the Vietnam War during the mid-to-late the late 1970s.^[6] It completely replaced the steel M1 helmet in U.S. military service by the end of the 1980s. It first saw use in combat in 1983 during Operation Urgent Fury in Grenada, and became standard issue for the U.S. military in 1985, and completely replaced the M1 helmet for frontline troops by the end of the decade. Army soldiers stationed in Alaska were some of the last to receive the helmets, some not getting the PASGT until 1988.

Accessories

There are various available add-on accessories for the PASGT helmet, including:-

• A helmet mount assembly to attach night vision goggles, such as the NE-6015 or AN/PVS-14 MNVD, the F5001B or AN/PVS-7B.
• A riot control visor.

Replacement

The PASGT helmet was replaced in U.S. military service by the Lightweight Helmet for the U.S. Marine Corps and the Modular Integrated Communications Helmet by the U.S. Army, which was in turn replaced by the Advanced Combat Helmet, which the U.S. Army currently uses.

Both the U.S. Marine Corps and the U.S. Army are looking at yet another helmet replacement for their PASGT helmet successors: the Enhanced Combat Helmet (ECH) with distribution to start in 2014.

However, the PASGT system is still used by some U.S. allies and still sees some continued limited use in the U.S. military as of 2017, where it serves as one of various vests for sailors assigned to duty on board U.S. Navy vessels.

Usage by civilians

The PASGT helmet and its many derivative variants have become popular with civilian news media reporters and journalists reporting from war zones across the world, who will often wear them, should the situation warrant the usage of a helmet. Additionally, private U.S. "militias" also use them from time to time.

Appearance

The PASGT vest itself is covered with Woodland pattern nylon fabric (a very limited number were made in olive drab but only Woodland versions were issued to US forces);^[8] to increase stealth capabilities on the part of the wearer camouflage covers were worn atop it in various camouflage patterns. Early camouflage covers were in DBDU but later came in the DCU pattern. The prototype versions of the vest from the 1970s were in the ERDL pattern.^[9]

Development

The PASGT vest was designed in 1975^[10][11][9] and was tested by in the late 1970s before being fielded in the early 1980s.^[6]

Accessories and usage

In order to provide protection against high velocity bullets, the PASGT vest was, in 1996, combined with the Interim Small Arms Protective Overvest (ISAPO) pending the adoption of Interceptor body armor.^[15] The ISAPO weighed about 16.5 lb (7,480 g) and consisted of a carrier to hold two protective ceramic plate inserts. A PASGT armor system with overvest weighed more than 25.1 lb (11,390 g)^[16] and was criticized by many U.S. troops as unacceptably cumbersome in combat. The ballistic fill consists of 13 plies of 14 oz. water repellent treated Aramid (Kevlar 29) fabric. The inner and outer cover, shoulder pads and front closure flap of the vest are water repellent treated 8 oz. ballistic nylon cloth.

While it had been phased out as frontline body armor by the start of the Iraq War in 2003, the PASGT vest saw some limited wear and usage by United States military personnel during the early stages of the war, where it was worn behind the frontlines by rear-echelon support personnel and navy sailors such as Seabees. Some U.S. Army soldiers would utilize old PASGT vests as makeshift armor as protection for their vehicles in the absence of purpose-made, designated up-armor kits.

Replacement

The PASGT vest was succeeded in U.S. military service by the Outer Tactical Vest of the Interceptor Body Armor system, which was, in turn, partly replaced by the Modular Tactical Vest, Improved Outer Tactical Vest, and Scalable Plate Carrier. However, the PASGT vest still sees some limited use in the U.S. military as of 2016, where it serves as one of many vests for sailors assigned to duty on board U.S. Navy vessels.

Current

•  Afghanistan: Uses ArmorSource-made PASGT helmets provided through FMS sales.^[17]
•  Argentina: Used by Argentine Army.^[18]
•  Australia: Known to be made by RBR Armor Systems for the Australian Navy's Clearance Diving Team operators.^[19] Variant of the helmet used in service as the M91.^[20]
•  Brazil: Used both American and Brazilian-made PASGT helmets.^[21]
•  Bolivia: Adopted by the Bolivian Armed Forces in the 1990s.^[22]
•  Costa Rica: Used since 1990s by various Costa Rican public security units.^[23]
•  Dominican Republic: Used by the Dominican military, replacing all M1s.^[24]
•  Ecuador: Ecuadorian-made PASGT helmets in use by the military.^[25]
•  El Salvador: Used in El Salvadorian military to replace M1s.^[26]
•  Georgia: PASGT helmets made by STC Delta are used by the Georgian military.^[27]
•  Greece: Used by Hellenic Army.^[28]
•  Haiti: Used by Haitian National Police.^[29]
•  Honduras: Used by most Honduran military units.^[30]
•  Iraq: Used by Iraqi commandos operating under Counter-Terrorism Service mandate.^[31]
•  Israel: Used by the Israeli military, most supplied by the US with some made by Orlite.^[32][33]
•  Lebanon: Standard issue helmet of the Lebanese Armed Forces
•  Mexico: Mexican military uses both American and Mexican-made PASGT helmets.^[34]
•  Nicaragua: PASGT helmets have been used since the 1990s by the Nicaraguan military.^[35]
•  Paraguay: PASGT helmets replaced M1s in the Paraguayan military.^[36]
•  Portugal: Used by Portuguese Army.^[37]
•  Philippines: Some known to be in use with the Philippine Marine Corps.^[38]
•  Saudi Arabia: Used by Saudi Arabian Army and Saudi National Guard.
•  Slovenia: Used by the Slovenian Special Police Unit (Specialna Enota Policije).^[39]
•  Uruguay: Mostly used by Uruguay UN troops.^[40] Some are used by the National Police of Uruguay.^[41]
•  Taiwan: Taiwanese-made PASGT helmets made for the Republic of China military.^[42]
•  Turkey: PASGT used by Amphibious Marine Brigade and Underwater Offence.
•  United States
  •  U.S. Navy: PASGT vests were still used by the U.S. Navy aboard its warships as of June 2016.^[43] The U.S. Navy also uses a PASGT-derived vest known as the "U.S. Navy Flak Jacket".^[12][13] PASGT helmets are still used by the U.S. Navy aboard its warships as of January 2017.^[44]
•  Ukraine: Used by Aidar/Donbas Battalions.^[45]
•  Venezuela: Uses PASGT helmets made in China for the Venezuelan military.^[46]

Former

•  Canada: Formerly used by the Canadian Army in the 1990s during peacekeeping activities in the Balkans.^[47]
•  Singapore: PASGT helmets formerly used by the Singapore Armed Forces made by International Scientific Pte Ltd.^[48] with some refurbished by All Defense Technology Pte Ltd.^[48]
•  United States^[6][49]
  •  United States Army: Replaced by the Interceptor body armor and Modular Integrated Communications Helmet.
  •  U.S. Marine Corps: Replaced by the Lightweight Helmet and Interceptor body armor.
  • Los Angeles Police Department: PASGT helmets were formerly used by the LAPD's SWAT unit.^[50]