Camouflage Central-Europe

Camouflage Central-Europe
A CCE swatch fabric sample
Type	Military camouflage
Place of origin	France
Service history
In service	1994–present
Used by	See Users
Wars	Bosnian War War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) Operation Serval
Production history
Manufacturer	1991–present
Variants	See § Variants

The Camouflage Central-Europe (French : Camouflage Centre-Europe) is the standard camouflage pattern of the French Armed Forces. ^[1]

It is also used for vehicles of the French Army but with different shapes, since 1986, ^[2] it took six years to generalize it to the entire military fleet. It is now being replaced since 2020 by the "Scorpion Camouflage" which is intended for new generation vehicles. ^[3]

History

Camouflage Central-Europe (CCE) was introduced in 1991, ^[4] replacing both TAP 47 pattern camouflage and khaki F2 uniforms as used by the French military. But the pattern was brought to service by 1994. ^[5]

In 2018, a contract worth €50 million was made for new combat suits in CCE camo pattern. ^[6]

Two variants of the CCE are used in French military uniforms, which consist of the Uniform T3 and the Uniform T4. ^[7] In 2019, the Tenue Combat F3 uniform was announced to be the standard uniform in CCE for the French Army. ^[8]

In 2024, the CCE is being replaced by a Multicam-based camo called the BME. ^{[9] [10]}

Design

The French Army's Tenue De Combat F3 uniform in CCE.

It is suggested that the design of the CCE was primarily based around the summer foliage of Fontainebleau forest. ^[11] The design is made of black branches and large horizontal medium green and brown colored elements on a tan background, ^[11] being inspired by the U.S. Woodland pattern. ^[12]

• 
  French body armour and helmet covers in Camouflage Central-Europe.
• 
  Moussa Dadis Camara of the Guinean Army wearing CCE in 2009.

Variants

Camouflage Daguet

Main article: Camouflage Daguet

Users

•   Austria: Vests with the pattern used by Austrian Stabilisation Force in Bosnia and Herzegovina soldiers in 2004. ^[11]
•   Cape Verde: Used by the Cape Verdean National Guard. ^[13]
•   Central African Republic: CCE clones used by CAR military units. ^[14]
•   Comoros: CCE clones used by Comoran military units. ^[15]
•   France: Introduced by the French military in 1991, ^[4] but only adopted in service in 1994. ^[5]
•   India: Used the similar camouflage pattern inspired by CCE for Indian Troops from 2006, officially designated as PC-DPM ^[16] Being replaced by new disruptive digital pattern made by NIFT from 2022. ^[17] To be retired by 2026. ^[18]
•   Russia: Used by Alpha Group.
•   Qatar: Used by Qatari troops deployed to Lebanon in 2006. ^[19]
•   Ukraine: Used by Maksym I.(surnom - Français) and Kastuś Kalinoŭski Regiment. ^[20]
•   United Arab Emirates: UAE troops wore CCE uniforms in Kosovo during peacekeeping operations. ^[21]

References

1. "Armée de Terre et projet « Combattant 2020 »".
2. "Armée de Terre : Révolutionnaire, le "camouflage adaptatif en milieu terrestre" pourrait être prêt en 2025". Zone Militaire (in French). 2021-11-29. Retrieved 2022-01-15.
3. "La couleur de l'été, c'est le Brun Terre de France". lignesdedefense.blogs.ouest-france.fr (in French). Retrieved 2022-01-14.
4. "The Complex Guide to Camo". Complex Networks .
5. "UF PRO Begins Producing Limited Quantity of Striker X BDUs in High-Performing French CCE Camo Pattern - Soldier Systems Daily". 25 March 2022.
6. "French Central European Camo Combat Suits". 17 December 2019.
7. "Uniforms | French Foreign Legion Information".
8. "French Army Introduces New Combat Uniform - Soldier Systems Daily". 14 June 2018.
9. "French Army adopts new BME multi-environment combat uniform | Defense News May 2022 Global Security army industry | Defense Security global news industry army year 2022 | Archive News year". 13 May 2022.
10. https://www.defense.gouv.fr/actualites/larmee-terre-se-dote-dun-nouveau-camouflage ^{[ bare URL ]}
11. "kamouflage.net — Centre Europe". 2014-03-22. Archived from the original on 22 March 2014. Retrieved 2022-01-08.
12. "Little Known Facts and History about Camouflage of the Western World". 2 March 2016.
13. Larson (2021), p. 15.
14. Larson (2021), p. 16.
15. Larson (2021), p. 21.
16. "India - Camopedia". www.camopedia.org. Retrieved 2022-01-15.^{[ better source needed ]}
17. "Army displays new combat uniform for first time". Hindustan Times. 2022-01-15. Retrieved 2022-01-15.
18. "Stock not exhausted, Army extends deadline on use of old combat uniform by a year". The Indian Express. 2024-08-13. Archived from the original on 15 August 2024. Retrieved 2024-08-15.
19. Larson (2021), p. 305.
20. "Kastuś Kalinoŭski Regiment", Wikipedia, 2022-10-06, retrieved 2022-10-21^{[ circular reference ]}
21. Larson (2021), p. 340.

Bibliography

• Larson, Eric H. (2021). Camouflage: International Ground Force Patterns, 1946–2017. Barnsley: Pen & Sword. ISBN   9781526739537.