page_title: Royal Lao Navy
section_title: Headgear
hierarchical_section_title: Royal Lao Navy / MRL uniforms and insignia / Headgear
caption_attribution_description: English: Royal Laos Defence Forces emblem
context_page_description: The Royal Lao Navy was the naval component of the Royal Lao Armed Forces, the official military of the Royal Lao Government and the Kingdom of Laos during the Laotian Civil War between 1960 and 1975.
context_section_description: Laotian Navy Officers and Petty Officers initially received a service peaked cap copied after the French M1927 pattern (French: Casquette d'officier Mle 1927) in both light khaki and white summer top versions with a black lacquered leather peak and gold cord chinstrap, to wear with the khaki working dress and the white high-collared full dress uniforms, respectively, and later with the Navy Blue overseas service uniform.  The peaked caps were worn with the standard gilt metal ANL cap device, a wreathed Airavata crest bearing the Laotian Royal Arms – a three-headed white elephant standing on a pedestal and surmounted by a pointed parasol – set on a black teardrop-shaped background patch.  After September 1961, the MRL replaced the old ANL crest with the standard gilt metal FAR wreathed "Vishnu" trident cap badge. French M1946 and M1957 light khaki sidecaps (French: Bonnet de police de toile kaki clair Mle 1946 and Bonnet de police de toile kaki clair Mle 1957) were also worn by all-ranks. An American-style "Dixie cup" white hat was worn with the Navy Blue service uniform by enlisted ranks.
  Laotian Navy personnel frequently wore in the field a mixture of French M1946 "Gourka" light khaki tropical berets (French: Bérét de toile kaki clair Mle 1946), baseball cap-style khaki cotton field caps, and French M1949 bush hats (French: Chapeau de brousse Mle 1949) in Khaki or OG cotton cloth.  During the 1960s and early 1970s, a wide range of OG "Boonie hats" and baseball caps from the US, South Vietnam and Thailand were adopted by MRL officers and enlisted men.
  The steel helmet models worn by Laotian Navy vessel crews in the mid-1950s were the WWII-vintage US M-1 or the newer French M1951 NATO (French: Casque Mle 1951 OTAN) models, standard issue in the ANL.  In the later 1960s, the MRL standardized on the M-1 1964 model provided with the US Army Mitchell "Clouds" camouflage pattern cover (usually removed on the field), though many boat crewmen retained the older US and French steel helmets throughout the war.
caption: Royal Lao Armed Forces cap badge 1961-75
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