Having a simple pack outfitted for bad situations is a good idea. For simple day packs you don’t want an overly large pack, however, you do not want a pack so small that it precludes you from carrying the items necessary to your survival. In my time in the military, I’ve used a lot of different pack designs. I’ve seen a lot of badly designed packs. When it comes to having a pack designed for a gunfight I’ve seen precious few made well. Whether you’re a law enforcement officer who needs a bag to increase his ammunition count or if you’re a military member on patrol; I have no doubt that you will be pleased when it comes to the TAG Combat Sustainment Pack.

The Combat Sustainment Pack can be worn on the shoulder like a typical pack or it can be mounted via MOLLE to a plate carrier or another surface. With larger daypacks such as the Combat Sustainment Pack, I prefer to wear it over the shoulder like a typical pack so that I can more easily refill water, or get to supplies without pulling my plate carrier off. The removable shoulder straps are just the right amount of padding for the amount of weight you’ll be carrying. This is kind of a theme with the TAG Combat Sustainment Pack overall. Weight is trimmed where necessary and weight is added and stitching reinforced where pertinent which makes for a robust package. The shoulder straps feature a chest strap with an elastic piece to hold the pack tight to your body.

The pack itself has one main compartment which can house a 100 oz hydration bladder (loop included to keep hydration bladder upright) or the main compartment can hold whatever else you feel is necessary given your mission set. If you choose to use a hydration bladder, there is a simple slot cut into the upper back of the pouch which allows you to easily route a hydration tube. 3 additional pouches with zippers are included as well as 3 M4 magazines pouches up top with one pistol pouch held horizontally. The middle additional pouch is slightly oversized to hold a Combat Casualty Bag (CCB) a simple mesh bag with a shoulder strap, large enough to hold a downed teammates gear while he/she is being moved, treated and extracted. The inclusion of this bag is needed and perfect for most of us going into harms way. The other two additional pouches house large amounts of medical supplies (hemostatic agents, chest seals, trauma shears, dressings, tourniquets).

The magazine pouches on the top of the Combat Sustainment pack can be used in a variety of ways. They can be used by teammates, they can be used by yourself when you unsling the pack to refill more accessible magazine pouches, or if your arms are long enough you can try to reach back. The pouches feature elastic bungees to secure your magazines during dynamic movements. These are tightened through the inside of the pack, keeping any excess bungee secured. Directly outside the M4 magazine pouches lies a horizontal magazine pouch (or small multi-tool pouch). I’ve alternated between having a Glock magazine or small tourniquet in this position.

What’s hard to convey is how handy this pack is. It balances and carries well and lends itself to hard movement. The bag conforms to the curvature of your back and remains tight against your body throughout the day. For my first-responders / law enforcement guys I’d highly recommend that you take a hard look at this pack. It can be easily donned to give you extra supplies when going into a particularly dangerous scenario. For my mil guys, you might consider this as a small daypack/vehicle dismounted patrol bag. Understand that you’ll be forced to carry the essentials, but that the excellent stitching and materials make this a winning design.

If you’re looking for a well-balanced, simple, but robust bag with excellent design features for direct action I would recommend this bag. It features what you need with strong credentials from it having been used for a long time, across the world, in austere and non-permissive environments. There are several other similar well-made bags out there – but rest assured you won’t go wrong with the Tactical Assault Gear Combat Sustainment Pack.