The U.S. Army, responding to complaints from soldiers, dumped the beret today as part of the official headgear for the Army combat uniform and replaced it with a patrol cap, Army Times reports.

The newspaper says the change follows complaints from "thousands of soldiers" through surveys, social media and discussions.

The change was outlined on the official website of the U.S. Army. Other uniform changes include making Velcro optional for attaching rank insignia, name and badges to unforms. Those can be sewn on.

Units that have historically worn the beret -- Rangers, Special Forces and Airborne -- will still be allowed to wear the beret as their standard headgear.

The beret became standard headgear in 2001, but soldiers almost immediately groused that it takes two hands to put on and can't be carried in a pocket.

Unlike the patrol cap, which has ventilated sun protection, the beret isn't even included on the deployment packing list, the newspaper notes.

In a survey by Sgt. Maj. of the Army Raymond Chandler, most soldiers said they weren't opposed to wearing the beret with the service uniform but wanted to dump it as part of the Army combat uniform.

When Army Times asked soldiers last year for their views on the beret, Chief Warrant Officer 3 Mark Vino of Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash., was blunt: "I hate wearing a wet sock on my head. Plus it makes my head/skin break out."