The 75th Ranger Regiment has undergone a massive transformation in recent years. As a result, their training, and equipment has been massively upgraded. They are one of the nations premier light infantry and raid forces. Keep reading to see the specific equipment, total costs, and best places to pick up some of this sweet gear.
Before we get into the nitty gritty of the gear these soldiers wear, we need to discuss what we mean by the term Ranger. This is a term that generates some confusion for many people, as there are two ways you can earn the title Ranger.
The first, is to attend the US Army’s Ranger school in Fort Benning. This is an incredibly grueling school that focuses on small unit leadership and infantry operations, at the squad level. This school is open to nearly anyone in the Army, and a wide variety of combat arms soldiers will attend it.
The second way to earn the term Ranger is to join the 75th Ranger Regiment. You will go through many months of incredibly difficult training and then you will earn the title Ranger, and become a member of the Regiment. Interestingly enough, you can be a member of the Ranger Regiment, and not have gone through Ranger School. The easiest way to remember the distinction is that Ranger School trains small unit infantry leaders, while going through the Ranger training pipeline means you are a member of an elite light infantry unit that is tasked directly from Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC).
For the purposes of this article, we will be covering the average loadout for a rifleman in the 75th Ranger Regiment. As you will see, they are issued some high speed gear, with a fair amount of leeway to personalize their kit.
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Helmet and Night Vision Systems: Total Cost $16,391
If you’ve read any of my other loadout articles, like this DEVGRU loadout, or this Special Forces loadout, you’ll know that helmet systems are the most expensive pieces of kit that are issued to individuals. There is also a lot of commonality between various special operations forces and their helmet systems.
The Ranger Regiment wears an Ops Core high cut helmet and an Ops Core mesh helmet cover. They also utilize the PVS 31 binocular night vision device, paired with a manta IR strobe. See the photo below.
Interestingly enough, the majority of special forces units, like Marine Raiders, and SEALs use Comtac III headsets from Peltor, but the Ranger Regiment doesn’t. They have been issued the newest Ops Core AMP headset, as seen in the picture below.
I’m sure other cool guy units are wearing these, but I haven’t seen any photographic proof. You can also see the plate carrier, and a Harris PRC 153 Radio in this image as well. We’ll talk a little more about these items below.
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The Plate Carrier and Tactical Equipment: $10,337
As in many SOF units, the plate carrier these operators wear can vary widely, but if you look at enough photos, you’ll notice that they generally wear the Crye AVS plate carrier with Crye MBAV plate bags. You will also see Crye JPC plate carriers, but those are likely to be either personally purchased, or issued to select units like snipers, or Regimental Recon.
These soldiers are issued a lot of Crye Precision Gear. Their plate carriers, come with a Smart Pouch Suite, which provides a variety of pouches to carry everything from radio’s, to ammo on their plate carrier. Here is an example zip on assault panel.
Crye Zip On Panel
You can also see that these soldiers often carry the PRC 153 Radio by Harris. This radio is voice and data capable and it can be paired with smart phones as depicted in the video below.
These phones are definitely not used by everyone, but they are generally used for terminal attack guidance, and enhanced communications with higher element head quarters, ISR, and aerial assets. Check this article out from SOFREP for more info on these systems.
75th Ranger Regiment First Line Gear: $1,074
This gear is the same as nearly any other special operations force in the United States. They are issued Crye G3 combat tops and bottoms in multicam. You guys are probably noticing that quite a lot of this loadout is made by Crye Precision. You know what they say, if it isn’t broke, don’t fix it!
Crye Combat Tops and Bottoms
I’ve noticed that many operators are wearing Salomon Forces XA boots. However, some guys are still wearing normal army issue boots. Foot wear has always been one area where troops are given a fair amount of latitude to choose what suits them.
Salomon Boots
The other interesting thing is you can actually buy almost every piece of first line gear that a Ranger Regiment guy would wear from Amazon. It’s always odd to think that this stuff can just be shipped to your front door so quickly. Next, we’ll cover the best stuff. The rifle and pistol!
Ranger Regiment Rifle and Optics: $6,848
This is one are that is fairly different from other JSOC, and special operations forces. Generally speaking, a rifleman will carry only a rifle, and not a rifle and pistol as many other units do. I was able to view photos of Rangers that carry both, but for the general soldier, they were carrying a Daniel Defense Mk18 CQBR Rifle, Surefire RC Suppressor, PEQ 15 Laser, and a Surefire Scout light. Some operators did have FNH SCAR rifles, but those seem to have fallen out of fashion lately.
There is also a fair bit of individual choice on sighting systems. In the photo above you can see, Aimpoint red dots, EOTech red dots, as well as the ELCAN Specterdr. You can also see that not all rifles are suppressed as well.
Rifle Optics and Lights
The Final Tally: $35,679
The 75th Ranger Regiment is one of the units that has made the most progress during the Global War on Terror. Prior to 9/11 they were seen as light infantry that specialized in things like limited raids and airfield seizures.
Due to their heavy operational tempo, and extensive combat experience, they were gradually used to fulfill similar roles to the Army and Navy’s special mission units (SMU) aka Delta Force, and DEVGRU. They’ve planned and executed thousands of raids, and continue to be heavily deployed in the Middle East, and other areas.
This increase in capability was matched with an increase in training, and equipment. It is no surprise that they are wearing a nice down payment down on a house, during combat operations. Just remember you can get all this gear free, just join up!
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when I was a 11Bravo dude the whole platoon may have had 35000 bucks worth of gear.these guys nowadays are on a whole other level all the way around they impress the hell outta me my respect for these guys is unlimited even the new goofy ones that are planning to marry a stripper as soon as they get back home! Sua Sponte.
When I was an 11B in the Arctic Light 172nd Brigade in Alaska, our winter clothing was leftover from the Korean War. Thick cotton pants (yes, they get wet and stay wet), Green wool shirt, VB boots, and sometimes snowshoes or skis. And cotton long Johns. Total cost probably under $350. Thankfully the local REI store had polypropylene long Johns. Thankfully these guys today get the best equipment available.