Soviet Cold War Uniform Guide (1960s

How Soviet Cold War Uniform Changed After WWII

The Soviet Cold War uniform changed a lot after World War II. New weapons, new conditions, and new military goals forced the army to adapt. From simple WW2 gear, soldiers moved to more practical uniforms, better boots, and specialized equipment for different roles.

Articles this series:

How the Soviet Army Uniform Changed from 1955 to 1991

Cold War Soviet Army Uniform Insignia: Shoulder Boards (1969-1988)

Cold War Soviet Army Uniform: Why It Was Uncomfortable for Daily Service – Part 1

Guide of the Soviet Afghanka Uniform (M88)

The 1960s were marked by rising global tensions. The Cuban Missile Crisis, the arms race, and the Vietnam War all made the situation along the borders of the Soviet Union more serious. Border troops found themselves on the front line of the confrontation between the socialist and capitalist worlds.

During this period, not only combat readiness mattered, but also equipment and supply. A lot of attention was given to improving uniforms, gear, and overall military standards.

Soviet Cold War uniforms motor rifle and tank troops soldiers parade and field uniform — Soviet soldiers in different Cold War uniforms: parade, dress, and field clothing used by motor rifle and tank troops

Private of Motor Rifle Troops in Parade Uniform (on duty)
Private of Armored Troops in Parade-Dress Uniform
Private of Motor Rifle Troops in Field (working) Uniform

In April 1967, Marshal of the Soviet Union Andrei Grechko was appointed Minister of Defense. One of his first initiatives was to change the appearance of Soviet soldiers.

Andrei Grechko Soviet Minister of Defense portrait Cold War — Marshal of the Soviet Union Andrei Antonovich Grechko, Minister of Defense of the USSR (1967–1976)

After reviewing new uniform designs, the Ministry decided to introduce a single olive color for all clothing. Parade uniforms were redesigned without chest pockets, a ceremonial belt was added for formal use, and soldiers, sergeants, and cadets received sleeve insignia showing their branch and years of service.

Soviet border guard lieutenant parade uniform sea green reconstruction — Lieutenant, graduate of a Soviet border guard school, wearing a sea green parade uniform (reconstruction)

On July 26, 1969, Order No. 190 of the USSR Ministry of Defense was signed, “On improving the uniforms of servicemen of the Soviet Army and Navy.” From this date, the final Europeanization of Soviet military clothing took place, and the uniform became more functional and convenient.

New uniform

With Order No. 190, it was finally possible to eliminate the dark blue color of trousers, which had been attempted to replace since 1954. At that time, the military leadership considered blue trousers one of the centuries-old traditions of the army.

From 1969, the tunic became single-breasted.

Soviet motor rifle troops field uniform summer Cold War soldiers equipment — Soviet motor rifle troops in summer field uniforms with combat and marching gear during the Cold War

1. Private in summer field uniform (in combat gear)
2. Guards Lieutenant in summer field uniform
3. Private in summer field uniform (in marching equipment)

Soldiers wore simple kirza boots like these

Soviet Kirza Boots

Classic Soviet military kirza boots inspired by the simple footwear worn by Red Army soldiers.

View Soviet Kirza Boots

Soviet soldiers summer everyday uniform Cold War marching formation — Sergeants and conscript soldiers in summer everyday uniform marching in formation

The gymnastyorka used for field uniform was replaced by an olive single-breasted tunic with a turn-down collar and a fastening with five buttons in protective color (golden for privates). For officers and long-service personnel it was made of wool, while for conscripts it was made of cotton.

The sleeves had cuffs, and for privates they were fastened with two small buttons. Side slit pockets were covered with flaps.

To improve appearance, the tunics were tailored to fit the body, but this slightly restricted movement.

As for the olive trousers worn with boots, officers were issued wool trousers with light green piping, while privates had cotton trousers with reinforced knee patches and no piping.

Soviet summer military uniform motor rifle lieutenant artillery officers Cold War — Soviet summer military uniforms: motor rifle lieutenant and artillery officers in everyday and dress uniforms

1. Motor Rifle Troops Lieutenant in everyday uniform (in shirt)
2. Junior Sergeant of Artillery in parade-dress uniform
3. Captain of Artillery in parade-dress uniform

For generals, a double-breasted open tunic was introduced, similar to the everyday one, with red piping on the collar and cuffs, but with olive buttons and embroidery on the collar. The trousers worn with boots had red stripes.

Soviet captain summer everyday uniform coat Cold War off duty — Captain in summer everyday uniform outside formation, wearing a coat and trousers over shoes

For generals, officers, and long-service personnel, the double-breasted summer coat in steel color was replaced with a single-breasted wool summer coat in olive color, with a belt, turn-down collar, and open lapels. The coat was equipped with shoulder boards in olive color and colored collar tabs according to rank – red or light green.

The standard everyday overcoat for generals became a steel-colored greatcoat with gray shoulder boards.

Soviet winter field uniform motor rifle troops Cold War soldiers clothing — Soviet motor rifle troops in winter field uniforms adapted for cold weather conditions

1. Lieutenant in fur hat and sheepskin coat
2. Lieutenant in tank battalion wearing greatcoat
3. Private in camouflage winter clothing

The cut of soldiers’ greatcoats was changed by making them more fitted at the waist. Five large decorative buttons were placed on the front.

The cloth became slightly darker and now included wool fibers, while cotton was partially replaced with 10 percent nylon.

Soviet motor rifle troops winter uniform Afghanistan 1986 soldiers Cold War — Soviet motor rifle troops in winter uniforms, including combat and everyday clothing, Afghanistan period

1. Private in field uniform (during exercises)
2. Captain in everyday uniform
3. Sergeant in field uniform (Afghanistan, 1986)

Decoration.

Soviet border troops shoulder boards PV insignia green Cold War — Shoulder boards of Soviet Border Troops with “PV” insignia and green branch markings

Many bright elements appeared, intended to make the uniform more visually appealing. In addition to shoulder boards and collar tabs, sleeve insignia (chevrons) with branch emblems were now sewn onto the tunic.

For the border troops, this took the form of a heraldic shield made of green cloth, featuring a red star with a hammer and sickle framed by a wreath of oak leaves. KGB servicemen wore blue chevrons and collar tabs, while border guards wore green ones.

Cadets of military schools were assigned stripes showing their years of study, known as “kursovki,” while long-service personnel wore angle chevrons indicating years of service. By the personal initiative of Marshal Grechko, shoulder boards of sergeants, cadets, and privates received letter markings:
SA – Soviet Army, PV – Border Troops, VV – Internal Troops, GB – State Security Committee.

For officers and long-service personnel, a single-breasted parade uniform was introduced with sea-green trousers of the previous design, featuring light green piping on the cuffs and trousers, and gold piping on the collar tabs. The uniform of aviation officers became blue.

The new uniform was first demonstrated during the parade on Red Square on November 7, 1969.

Standardization

Soviet border guard cap enlisted soldiers green peaked cap red piping Cold War — Soviet border guard visor cap worn by enlisted soldiers and sergeants, featuring green fabric and red piping

The changes also affected everyday and field uniforms.
Piping on headgear and shoulder board stripes for all branches could now be only one color — red.

For example, the famous border guard cap was changed for the first time in many years: its traditional raspberry piping was replaced with red.
Light blue piping and stripes were kept only for the air force.

Work Uniform

To keep regular uniforms clean, conscript soldiers were issued a summer work uniform set.
It included a cotton jacket and trousers in protective color.

The work jacket was originally single-breasted, with a turn-down collar, no collar tabs, and a hidden button closure.
It had two chest pockets with flaps, straight sleeves without cuffs, and light green shoulder boards.

Later, the work jacket design became similar to the standard service tunic.

The trousers were straight-cut, semi-wool, in protective color.
They could be worn with boots tucked in or with shoes untucked as part of dress uniform.

Soviet military field uniforms VAI officer medical lieutenant engineer sapper Cold War — Soviet servicemen in field uniforms: VAI officer, medical lieutenant, and engineer sapper sergeant

Black and Brown Footwear

The color of footwear also changed.
With everyday uniforms, generals, officers, and long-service personnel wore brown low shoes.
Parade uniforms remained paired with black footwear.

At the same time, a strict hierarchy of military footwear developed in Soviet structures, especially when it came to boots.

Kirza boots vs Yuft boots Soviet Army comparison Cold War military footwear — Comparison of Soviet Army Kirza boots for soldiers and Yuft boots for officers. Differences in material, weight, and intended use during the Cold War period.

Conscripts (soldiers and sergeants) were issued kirza boots.
Cadets of higher military schools wore yuft leather boots.

For field use, officers were issued yalovye boots, while for everyday and parade wear they used chrome leather boots.

Soviet soldiers winter parade uniform Ratmanov Island 1980 USSR border troops — Senior lieutenant and conscript soldiers in Soviet winter parade uniforms, Ratmanov Island, 1980

Warm and Practical

In winter, the uniform was supplemented with a jacket, commonly called a bushlat.
It had sewn-on shoulder boards, collar tabs, and a strap with gold buttons.

Notably, the gold buttons were not ideal for camouflage.

Border guards often chose the bushlat over the long overcoat.
The shorter jacket made it easier to run, chase intruders, and even fight hand-to-hand.

A long overcoat simply did not allow that level of mobility.

Soviet border guards bushlat jacket installing signal device Cold War USSR — Soviet border guards in bushlat jackets setting up a signal device in the field

Modernized Kalashnikov

AKM Kalashnikov rifle Soviet automatic weapon Cold War USSR — AKM Kalashnikov rifle, the modernized Soviet automatic weapon introduced in 1959

AKM Specifications

Caliber: 7.62 mm
Cartridge: 7.62×39 mm
Combat rate of fire: up to 100 rounds per minute
Muzzle velocity: 715 m/s
Effective firing range: up to 1000 meters
Feeding system: detachable box magazine (30 rounds)
Weight (empty magazine): 3.1 kg

In 1959, the Kalashnikov rifle was upgraded with several improvements.
A hammer delay mechanism was added, the bolt carrier was slightly modified, and the receiver was changed to a lighter stamped design instead of a milled one.
The magazine was also made from a lighter alloy.

Soviet motor rifle troops field uniform Afghanistan 1986 AKM body armor radio operator — Soviet motor rifle troops field uniforms in Afghanistan, 1986

Field uniform of motor rifle troops (Afghanistan, 1986):

1. Winter, with light body armor
2. Summer, with field cap
3. Summer, with panama hat and hood

Afghan soldiers used combat boots like these

Soviet M88 Combat Boots (Afghanka)

Soviet military combat boots introduced later, designed with nailed soles and field conditions.

View Soviet M88 Combat Boots

A muzzle compensator was added to the barrel, improving accuracy during automatic fire, especially from unstable positions.
This was supported by a new “straightened” stock, positioned slightly higher.

Later, night shooting attachments were introduced: a flip-up rear sight with a wide notch and a front sight with glowing points.

The rifle also received a new bayonet-knife, replacing the older blade type.
It included a saw edge and a tool for cutting wires and barbed wire.

At the same time, it remained compatible with suppressors for silent and flashless firing.

In addition to the standard AKM, several variants were developed:
– AKMS with a folding stock (down and forward)
– versions equipped with mounts for night vision sights

Soviet camouflage field uniform airborne VDV motor rifle soldiers AKM Cold War — Soviet camouflage field uniforms of airborne and motor rifle troops

Degtyaryov Light Machine Gun

The extensive combat experience gained during World War II allowed Soviet designers to create a new and more powerful weapon chambered for the 1943 cartridge.

In 1944, during a competition organized by the Main Artillery Directorate of the Red Army, the light machine gun designed by Vasily Degtyaryov was selected as the best.
It was tested in real combat conditions at the front, and the identified issues were quickly fixed.

One of the key features of the weapon was its belt-fed system combined with relatively low weight.
Mobility was further improved by the option to attach a metal ammunition box under the receiver.

Shortly after the war, the weapon was officially adopted as the
“7.62 mm Degtyaryov Light Machine Gun” (RPD).

It remained in service until the late 1960s, was модернизирован, exported to more than 40 countries, and produced under license.

Soviet tank troops field uniform black tanker suit USSR Cold War gas mask — Soviet tank troops in field uniforms with black tanker suits and protective gear

Field uniform of armored troops:

1. Senior sergeant (in summer uniform)
2. Military school cadet (in winter uniform)
3. Lieutenant (in summer uniform) with isolating gas mask

During the Cold War, Soviet pilot gear changed because of jet aircraft like the MiG-21. These planes flew faster and higher, so pilots needed better protection. Pressure suits were introduced to handle high altitude and G-forces. Helmets and oxygen systems also became more advanced. Instead of one uniform, pilots started using different flight suits for summer, winter, and high-altitude missions.

Soviet air force flight suits MiG-21 MiG-23 pilot and ground crew Cold War — Soviet pilots and ground technician in flight suits used in front-line aviation

Flight suits and work uniform in the USSR Air Force:

1. MiG-21 pilot (front-line aviation)
2. MiG-23 pilot (front-line aviation)
3. Ground technician in work uniform

Soviet air force flight suits all season summer winter pilot gear USSR — Soviet Air Force flight suits: all-season, summer, and winter versions

Flight suits in the USSR Air Force:

1. All-season
2. Lightweight (summer)
3. Winter

The Cold War perioud, the USSR prepared for a possible nuclear and chemical war, so huge numbers of gas masks and protective suits were produced and stored in warehouses. Almost every soldier – and even civilians – had access to this gear. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, many of these stockpiles were sold or spread around the world. Today, Soviet gas masks are popular for collections, reenactments, Halloween costumes, and even games like S.T.A.L.K.E.R.

Chemical protection suits:

and 2. General military protective suit (OZK) with OP-1 cloak
Light suit for chemical reconnaissance L-1

Articles this series:

Telnyashka: History of the Russian Navy and VDV Striped Shirt
Guide of the Soviet Afghanka Uniform (M88)
Field Uniform and Equipment of the Soviet Army (1968–1991) – Part 1
Field Uniform and Equipment of the Soviet Army (1968–1991) – Part 2

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Cold War Soviet Uniform: Real Equipment and Army Changes