IMPROVING NAVY7 UNIFORMS

Press, Volume XCIV, Issue 28013, 6 July 1956, Page 12

IMPROVING NAVY 7 UNIFORMS

EXPERIMENTS BEING CARRIED OUT (New Zealand Press Association) WELLINGTON, July 5. White plastic topped caps will be issued to officers, ratings and Wrens as soon as they became available, the Navy Office announced today. The complete uniform of the seaman in the Commonwealth navies is under review. Trials were being made to see if the uniform could be improved without losing its traditionally smart appearance.

Most of the trials were being carried out by the Royal Navy and the Royal Canadian Navy and were being watched closely by New Zealand Trials were being made with seamen’s jumpers fitted with zips so that the garment could be put on like a coat.

Trousers, too. were under review. In addition to testing zipped front instead of the present flaps, the Royal Navy has decided to replace for a best suit the present rather coarse serge of which trousers and jumpers are made, with a finer and more easily tailored serge. A similar change in material was likely in New Zealand.

Perhaps the greatest change of all was still under review. At present, only junior members of the sea and engineering branches wore the traditional “square rig” that the public associated with the Navy. Members of all other branches wore a jacket with collar and tie. Consideration was being given to placing all junior ratings in the same seaman’s uniform.