Frag Out! Magazine
Issue link: https://fragout.uberflip.com/i/929822
a whole system called Kandahar, able to rival its counterparts used by the most modern armies in the world. When the MSBS-5.56 rifle was designed, there were also talks about the necessity to design dedicated gear at the same time, but… the enthusiasm somehow died out and the idea was naturally forgotten and abandoned. And although the MSBS/ Grot will become a part of the Polish soldiers' equipment any time now, it will come only with a sling as a standard. Interestingly enough, this is not because of ignorance (although some do under- estimate the significance of gear, argu- ing that a Rosomak IFV or an F-16 fight- erswill be enough), insufficient will or knowledge (which can be supplemented through consultation sessions, as in the case of designing uniforms). As it turns out, the main reason behind the said circumstances was… the impossibility to appoint someone to take care of the project. In other words: pouches are under the responsibility of the one who buys them together with weaponry. If you include gear in a set with a back- pack, the responsibility will rest with the one who buys the backpacks; if it's a set with arms (which is pointless, of course), it will rest with the one who purchases the arms; if it comes with a bulletproof vest, it will be the responsibility of the one buying the vests (who is, in fact, the buyer of arms because vests are classi- fied as weaponry). This led to a stalemate – either nobody in charge, or no works underway (and even if there were any works initiated, their complexity, given the division of authority, would make them go on for years – if not remain unfinished forev- er…). The 2018 sees the appearance of DROMADER, but it is a solution creat- ed on own initiative of PGZ, not of the Armed Forces. Also, since TDF are the party acquiring the gear, it may be easier to include the uniform in the standard equipment. So, what'S the Situa- tion? If we're talking about individual carrying equipment, the answer to the question is simple – it's bad. At present, there is no modern system of individual equipment (except for UKO-M/Kandahar, but it's a vest with extras, not a system). At least no such system introduced officially as it's hard to call one-off sets of par- ticular types of equipment purchased individually by soldiers or units (even analysis