Free-flex harness

A harness for a back-pack comprises a chest harness A, a strut mechanism in the form of a flexible spine B and a hip belt C. The flexible spine B provides a sprung, damped connection between the chest harness A and the hip belt C, so that the load of the backpack is transferred through the flexible spine B to the hip belt C, while the flexible spine can extend to accommodate movement of the wearer's body. The chest harness A comprises straps 12, 15 which are interconnected at the front of the wearer by a buckle 14. Abdominal straps 15 are connected to the buckle 14 by flexible wands 16 which flex under the breathing action of the wearer to retain the load securely against the wearer's back without restricting breathing.