Some new Marines aren’t getting uniform items due to the supply chain

It'll come, the body wins the wars.

I hopevthey overcome those supply chain issues! Maybe they should have checked this aspect out earlier before making this change?

LTC Eugene Chu
..."While the service announced the Oct. 1 mandatory wear date soon after that, it did issue modified guidance in 2020, saying that women who planned to leave the service before Jan. 1, 2023, could opt out of buying the pricey new item. The coat retails for about $230, and the unisex look has proved off-putting for some Marines, who have spoken out in defense of the legacy coat.

Supply issues with the coat had emerged in mid-September, said Capt. Danielle Phillips, a spokeswoman for Marine Corps Training and Education Command.

“Fleet feedback to Training and Education Command indicated a lack of Female Dress Blue Coast in stock,” she said in a statement. “This was likely a result of low inventory at the time of ordering and issues in production during COVID to phase the appropriate number of coats.”

The postponed possession date was expected to give Marines “ample time” to get the coat based on stock estimates from the Defense Logistics Agency, she said. No further delays are expected.

The Marine Corps is not the only service to experience shortages in the wake of the pandemic. While the Berry Amendment generally requires military uniform items to be wholly produced in the U.S., global supply chain disruptions due to changes in demand during and following the COVID-19 pandemic have affected domestic suppliers as well as international ones.

In 2021, Stars and Stripes reported that the Air Force was issuing fewer uniform shirts and trousers to new airmen at the end of Basic Military Training due to shortages. The Coast Guard also was forced to switch suppliers in 2020 because of insufficient stocks."