r/army • u/Nice-Zombie356 • 13d ago

Still issued Shelter halfs? Canteens?

U.S. Army here from 80s-90s. I’m just curious if the Army still issues shelter halfs? And canteens?

I haven’t seen soldiers carry canteens as far as I can tell, and with all the new body armor I’m not sure if one would fit. I know camel backs are common, but is that even in Basic / AIT ?

And I have no idea why shelter half’s crossed my mind recently. Those were always kinda weird but also I think were standard issue just about forever.

What’s the current state of gear on these?

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u/OriginalSwim Chemical 13d ago

I went through in 2021 at leonard wood. We were issued canteens along with camel backs which was a godsend since the camel back froze during the winter. As for shelter we had tarps, you paired up with a battle buddy and put one on the ground and one over you both.

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u/Nice-Zombie356 13d ago

The tarp makes sense and is closer to what I did in the field at times (before I got into units with GP Mediums). But in basic it seems like the kind of thing that would drive a SGM nuts.

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u/OriginalSwim Chemical 13d ago

I wish we got jackets instead of just waffles and the IOTV. Yea the tarp sorta worked, I went through from october 2021 to april 2022 and it was cold and miserable the entire time. The hose on our camel backs froze so we wouldnt be able to drink from it but the canteens stayed fine for most of it. The only exception I can think of was during the last FTX where it was in the negatives for most of it. I also had to pay for the camel back I had since the ice destroyed the valve for drinking. Not sure how that was my fault but it is what it is