That doesn't make sense to me. They have the pattern already. When you order a pack they sew it. Unless they are doing away with cordura material or something, it doesn't make sense to say it is no longer practical. It shouldn't matter what pack you order. If the argument was old pack styles compete against new styles on the market- I might could see that. But if old styles bite into the new styles market share- well then, maybe the old style is what they should keep making?
Either way, not my company, so they will do as they will.