During operations in Afghanistan men would find themselves having down time at Forward Operating Bases and in camp, temperatures were high so a more relaxed form of dress became common with t-shirts and shorts worn. This included taking off combat boots to allow feet to be aired and get some rest, but footwear was still needed and to prevent a flurry of odd sandals and flip flops, the army issued their own sandals. These were simple ‘Jesus’ style sandals, with black soles and brown straps to secure them to the feet:

The sandals secure with two velcro straps and have thick soles for protection to the feet, with a pattern on the inside to prevent the foot from slipping and deep treads on the outside:

As military issue footwear, these sandals are marked inside with NSN number, contract numbers, sizing and date of manufacture:

These sandals were issued widely to troops being deployed to Afghanistan, but use was sporadic, with many continuing to use civilian sandals, flip flops and trainers off duty alongside the issue sandal. With the draw down of operations in hot climates, they are no longer routinely issued and are now readily available on the collector’s market.