A ghillie suit is a type of camouflageclothingdesigned to resemble the background environment such as foliage, snow or sand. Typically, it is a net or cloth garment covered in loose strips of burlap, cloth, or twine, sometimes made to look like leaves and twigs, and optionally augmented with scraps of foliage from the area. Military personnel, police, hunters, and nature photographers may wear a ghillie suit to blend into their surroundings and conceal themselves from enemies or targets. The suit gives the wearer's outline a three-dimensional breakup, rather than a linear one. When manufactured correctly, the suit will move in the wind in the same way as surrounding foliage. Some ghillie suits are made with light and breathable material that allows a person to wear a shirt underneath. A well-made ghillie suit is extremely effective in camouflaging its wearer. A ghillie-suited soldier sitting perfectly still with local flora attached to their webbing is nearly impossible to detect visually, even at close range. However the suit does nothing to prevent thermal detection using technologies such as FLIR. In fact, the warmth of the heavy suit can make a wearer stand out more than a standard soldier when viewed using these methods.
Although highly effective, conventional ghillie suits are impractical for many situations where camouflage is useful. They tend to be very heavy and hot. Even in moderate climates, the temperature inside the ghillie suit can reach over 50 °C. The burlap is also flammable, unless treated with fire retardant, so the wearer may be at increased risk from ignition sources such as smoke grenades or white phosphorus. What is more, conventional ghillie and 3d leafsuits are made using fabric, so they retain water, and this dramatically increases weight. Another impractical side effects is that conventional ghillie suits are not designed to work under IR spectrum, so they are highly detectable using nightvision devices. To enhance safety, the US Army Soldier Systems Center has developed an inherently fire-resistant, self extinguishing fabric to replace the jute or burlap. This material was field tested in late 2007 at the Sniper School at Fort Benning and has been standard issue since June 2008. However, larger achievements has been reached in 2015 by the italian company ProApto. ProApto introduced new lightweight and waterproof-breathable design for Ghillie Suit, enableing the users with more reliable and functional camouflage systems. ProApto Ghillies are extremely lightweight. In fact, a ProApto full body Ghillie is between 700gr and 1200gr, whereas an upper body Ghillie is between 300gr to 900gr. Additionally, ProApto Ghillies are not made using fabric, so they are more durable, highly breathable and they do not retain water. Furthermore, another innovation brought by ProApto is the multipurpose design, indeed when not used as personal concealment, ProApto Ghillies can be used also as suspended platforms, emergency litters, spotting shelters and hammocks. Civilians have purchased ghillie suits to commit crimes. Police arrested an Australian man after they found that he had assaulted women while wearing such a suit.
