Splittertarnmuster Splittertarnmuster or simply Splittertarn ( splinter - pattern ) was a four - colour military camouflage pattern developed by Germany in the late 1920s , and was first issued to the Reichswehr in 1931 . It was first printed on the newly designed and issued triangular tent / poncho called the " dreieckszeltbahn " ( " 3 - corner tent " ) . Known in German as " Buntfarbenaufdruck 31 " ( " colourful print 31 " ) , for its year of introduction , " splittertarn " was later issued on a very wide basis to practically all regular military ( Wehrmacht ) units . The pattern consists of a disruptive , zig - zag pattern of hard - edged wood - brown and medium green polygons printed on a light field - grey or tan background . A random pattern of green dashes , called " raindrops " , was applied in places to improve the camouflage effect . Proposed in 1931 and introduced in 1932 , the four - colour camouflage patterns incorporated " splinters " on top of the 1918 colour pattern . This pattern included ochre , rust , and brown overlaid on a green foundation , with sharp corners between coloured patches . This new pattern was printed on " zeltbahn " ( triangular tent ) material , and could also be used as a camouflage rain poncho in the field . Both sides of the material showed the same pattern , but the printing was brighter on one side . A subdued grey - beige tint replaced the yellow - ochre colour . On top of this background , green and brown irregular patterns were screen - printed . A final innovation applied to this camouflage colour printing were the " splinters " irregularly printed on the fabric . Directional , dark - green dashed lines ( " grass " ) were printed in selected areas to help break up the silhouette . During the war , cost - saving measures required textiles to be printed with changed colours . In addition , many of the lower - cost two - colour options were abandoned . These cost - saving measures caused significant deviations from the original colour patterns . Equipment in the stained colour printing units were issued to the following : Heeres - Splittertarnmuster 31 , and Luftwaffen - Splittertarnmuster 41 . Heeres - Splittermuster 31 . The zeltbahn was the only official Army camouflage until 1942 , when they added the " Tarnhemd " ( smock ) and " Tarnhelmüberzug " ( helmet cover ) , both of a lightweight herringbone twill linen . Only one side of each was printed in splittermuster , while the other side was left white for snow camouflage . In April 1942 a Wintertarnanzug suit consisted of a padded jacket , trousers , separate hood and mittens . These were also printed only on one side and were left white on the other side . However , only a small amount of these were produced , a similar set made in mouse grey or field grey were more common . Many unofficial garments and helmet covers were produced as field expedients or were tailor - made , mostly from zeltbahn material . These included versions of the service dress uniform , parachute - jump smocks , field jackets , rucksacks and panzer jackets . Later materials included rayon . Luftwaffen - Splittermuster 41 . Luftwaffen - Splittermuster 41 ( also : " Buntfarbenaufdruck " ) is a Luftwaffe version with a smaller splinter and a more - complicated pattern , from probably not earlier than 1941 . The Luftwaffe ' s variant of splittermuster 31 is known in the literature as " splinter camouflage B " . The main difference to the 1931 splinter camouflage is that the smaller factions spots . The complexity of these spots is obvious . The pattern was used for the Fallschirmjäger ' s parachute Knochensack jump smock and Luftwaffe Field Division field jacket to be manufactured . Other material produced with this equipment included camouflage helmet covers , ammunition bandolier s , grenade bags , and helmet covers . The production of the splinter camouflage B ended in 1944 . Foreign variants . Bulgaria . During World War II , Bulgarian paratroopers were equipped with Luftwaffe - Splittermuster 41 . Its typical square look with the dashed lines has been the national camouflage of Bulgaria and has continually evolved . It was worn as a one piece boilersuit and as a two piece suit for paratroops , border troops , and mountain troops . The mountain troops ' version had large patches of reinforcing materials located on the knees , elbows , wrists , and shoulders , and black patches under the arms , around the collar , and in the crotch . A Soviet style large beret , pulled down to the left , was worn . For the paratroopers in 1953 , a three - color pattern was introduced , which had been derived directly from the bright colors printed in 1941 for the German paratroopers . The dashed lines here were not aligned uniformly in one direction , but could vary within a limited framework . The colors were based on the model , but used other tones . The Bulgarian splinter 53 was later issued to special forces and worn until 1991 . The Bulgarian Splittertarnmuster was developed in the 1960s and 1970s , with varied shapes and colors . In 1979 , the army released another version of the Bulgarian paratroopers colored imprint of 1941 with wavy dotted lines , which was again closer to the German model . In 1991 the production of the pattern was started . In 1997 , the current three - color printing for bright colors was launched for the entire Bulgarian army , with the dashed lines appearing again in a spidery waveform . Sweden . Since 1990 , the Swedish armed forces carried a four - color M90 Splittertarnmuster , which is close to the bright colors printed 31 through the resumption of sharp linear triangular patches . The differences are in the schematic , because the spots are not distributed freely , but directly abut and are not crossed by the dashed lines . Black , grey and light green patches are distributed on a dark green background . This camouflage pattern was exported to Latvia for wear as part of SFOR forces in Bosnia and Herzegovina .