Soldiers prefer buttons to Velcro

WASHINGTON, June 15 (UPI) -- Velcro may be the most up-to-date fastening, but U.S. soldiers say it does not work as well as the old-fashioned button in the dust of Afghanistan.

After listening to complaints about the maintenance required for "hook-and-pile tape," as Velcro is called generically, the military is issuing new pants in August with pockets that button, USA Today reported. Debi Dawson, a military spokeswoman, said the biggest problem was the tendency of pockets to come open, often at critical moments.

That will please Sgt. Kenny Hatten.

"Get rid of the pocket flap Velcro and give us back our buttons," Hatten wrote on a Web site. "Buttons are silent, easy to replace in the field, work just fine in the mud, do not clog up with dirt and do not fray and disintegrate with repeated laundering."

In a test of prototype pants with 2,700 soldiers, military designers found 60 percent preferred buttons for pockets, 29 percent snap-fasteners and only 11 percent Velcro.

Buttons have another advantage -- using them will save 96 cents for each uniform, Dawson said. Hatten would like to go even further, saying the military should let soldiers sew on their own name tapes instead of using ones attached by Velcro.