The 1942 Officers Guide lists this as a field bag for commissioned officers. However, due to the unpopularity with the haversack, many soldiers opted to use one of these bags as their field pack. The Musette bag has a large main compartment that is covered by a large flap. The flap is held down by canvas buckle straps. The inner compartment is seperated in to two halves by a piece of material, often which may have smaller slot compartments sewn in to it. From the bag are two straps that have hooks which can attach to the M36 Suspenders and form a backpack. If one takes a general purpose strap that ends on either side with D-Rings, the Musette bag becomes a shoulder bag. On the side of the Musette bag is a smaller pocket with either a snap or a button.
Musettes are made popular by paratroopers. However, because the bag was a better option to the awkward haversack, any soldier who could get their hands on one took it. Later, a pair of eyelets in which a shovel carrier could be attached were sewn on the top the flap.
Musettes in good condition can be tricky to find, especially in the lighter OD #3 color scheme. If you can afford to find and buy one, it is permissable to not buy the haversack (although you'll never truly appreciate these bags, let alone any other bag, until you've tried running and fighting with a haversack on your back). Darker, OD #7 bags usually have the eyelets sewn in on the flap, although it's possible to find some without.
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