Oman

Sultanate of Oman

The Sultanate of Oman (سلطنة عمان) has long based its own military traditions on those of the British Armed Forces, and this influence continues well into the present era. Although a wide number of camouflage patterns have been worn by the Armed Forces and paramilitary units of Oman, they are all based around the original British Disruptive Pattern Material (DPM) design that was introduced in the 1960s.

Omani Camouflage Patterns

• The earliest usage of camouflage by the Sultan of Oman's forces can be unquestionably linked to the longstanding relationship the nations has with the United Kingdom. Vintage photographs illustrate members of the Royal Guard wearing what appear to be standard British DPM pattern uniforms, either obtained through British military sources or via contract with British manufacturers.

• The standard and the most recognizable Omani DPM pattern is a reddish-brown or orange variant that has been in service since the 1980s. Although several variations have been documented, in general the pattern incorporates black, reddish-brown & pale orange disruptive shapes on a pale green background. This remains the standard Royal Army of Oman pattern. Seen below are three variations, made in England and Asia.

• The Royal Guard of Oman are a special unit of the Armed Forces with specific protective and ceremonial duties to the Sultanate. They wear the unique green DPM camouflage variant seen here, having black, medium brown, and dark green disruptive shapes on a pale green background, but without the stippling ordinarily found in standard DPM-derivatives. The pattern is also attributed to the Sultan's Special Forces, although in practice they seem more inclined to wear copies of the standard British DPM pattern.

• A variant of the above design using an urban grey colorway is also attributed to the Royal Guard of Oman, most likely to units tasked with special protective and counter-terrorist duties. Using the same drawings as the Royal Guard pattern, this version incoporates black, dark grey and medium grey disruptive shapes on a light grey background.

• A three-color desert DPM pattern has been worn by the Royal Air Force of Oman, derivative of the original British Army design (never adopted by the UK).

A four-color desert DPM pattern is also worn by the Royal Air Force of Oman. This design also incorporates a bright mustard yellow color into the scheme. Several variations of this pattern from different production runs have been documented.

• The Oman Police Service are documented as wearing two DPM patterns. The more common of the patterns resembles those worn by many other Gulf States, including Kuwait, Qatar and the UAE. This DPM variant features black, dark grey & lavender-grey disruptive shapes on a pale blue background.

• Another camouflage design attributed to the Oman Police Service is seen here, being what appears to be a blue overdyed version of the standard Royal Army pattern. Whether this overdying was done at the textile factory or by the Omanis themselves is uncertain, as few extact samples have been documented. This may, in fact, have simply been an early stop-gap method to create a unique camouflage for the Police Service to distinguish them from the Army (in which case, it certainly pre-dates the above pattern).

• The DPM camouflage design below is attributed to the Oman Ministry of the Interior. The black, grey & tannish-grey disruptive shapes on a solid white background is, like most of the Omani camouflage designs, derivative of the original British drawings.