The newly minted U.S. Space Force unveiled its uniform on Friday — and defended its fashion statement against Twitter criticism that the camouflage color scheme should have been more spacey.
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Less than a month after the sixth branch of the U.S. armed forces came into existence, the Space Force showed off the utility uniform in a tweet, saying that the service’s nametape and U.S. Space Command patch have “touched down at the Pentagon.” The uniform will presumably be worn by thousands of Space Force personnel as they go about their duties, monitoring America’s space assets from ground-based installations around the world.
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The uniform received rave reviews from other armed services. “That’s out of this world!” the U.S. Navy tweeted. But Twitter wags were quick to pick up on the fact that the woodland-toned look wasn’t all that out of this world. “Why do we need camo in space?” Voyager Space Holdings CEO Dylan Taylor asked. “Star Wars” star Mark Hamill tweeted, “Han wore it better.” (Do a Twitter search for “Space Force” plus “camo” for much, much more.)
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But the folks behind the Space Force’s Twitter account put up a strong defense. “Space Operators are on the ground, on Earth working with joint partners like the @usairforce and @USArmy, Hence utilizing their uniform,” they explained. They also pointed out that they’re saving money by adapting existing uniforms rather than creating a new set of star-spangled duds. As for Hamill’s “Star Wars” comparison, the Space Force seconded his hashtag: #MayTheSpaceForceBeWithYou.