Kriegsmarine Late war Kleinkampfverbande beacon lamp

[joetauchretter]

Hello ,

I would like your help in identifying this hand held flashlight / beacon lamp . I was told that this was a very late war Luftwaffe or Kleinkampfverbande light beacon . This is made from sheet steel and has a brittle plastic dome cover on the top . It is water proof and due to it's long length and the battery in the lower half this will float in an up right position . I do not see any markings on this lamp . The battery does have a paper label and is all in german . This is very old and the battery was made for this lamp . My question is , has anyone ever seen one of these and it is 100% German but is it Pre 1945 or post war ?

Best Regards,

Joe

[joetauchretter]

Here is a picture of the battery paper label .

The only shread of proof that I have that this was used by the K-men , mostly the Linsen or Sprengboote when they jumped off their boots would use these to help in being spotted by the pick up boat is a bad copy of a film clip on the web site You Tube with the title " KARL D?ENITZ " .

Best Regards,

Joe

[joetauchretter]

OOOPPPSS ! Wrong picture !

Here is the picture with the battery .

[nesredep]

Hi

Wery interesting item,hope you can take more pics of the paper label.

Nesredep

[joetauchretter]

Hello . Here are more pictures of the battery label .

Best Regards,

Joe

[joetauchretter]

Hello . Here are more pictures of the battery label .

Best Regards,

[joetauchretter]

Hello . Here are more pictures of the battery label .

Best Regards,

[

[joetauchretter]

Hello . Here are more pictures of the battery label .

Best Regards,

[joetauchretter]

[

Hello . Here are more pictures of the various parts to this signal beacon . .Please see the You Tube web site at this URL address http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3OtZa4W4RlE , I believe this to show the same beacon lamp as I show here , If anyone has this film clip I would sure like a copy of it !

Best Regards,

[Snoopy]

Hello

Very nice and interesting lamp. I have never seen this one before.

Snoopy

Edited May 21, 2007 by Snoopy

[joetauchretter]

Hello ,

Did you view the movie clip on the web site You Tube yet ? The movie is a poor quality copy but my flashlight / beacon looks like what is hanging from the man's life jacket . I have seen a tauchretter said to be from a K-man and it had the same exact rope lanyard attached ( light was missing ! ) It is very interesting that in the You Tube movie clip the K-men in the spreng boats are wearing LW para helmets still sporting the LW eagle insignia on them ! So the K-men did wear / used borrowed LW equipment . I do hope that this is a late war beacon light , if someone could say that it is post war I would like to know the country , make and model of this . If you hold this in your hand you can tell it is very old and the battery is 100 % German and the light/ beacon was made to fit this battery . Maybe post war Bundesmarine ?

[Snoopy]

I have seen the video clip several times today. When the crewman exit's the boat, something that looks very much like your lamp, can be seen hanging from a lanyard. You mentioned Bundesmarine. If the Bundesmarine was reactivated at the same time as the Bundesluftwaffe and Heer, I believe that would make it, late fifties. Please, correct me if I am wrong. I think that your lamp looks older than that. I must add, that I am no expert, so it's only my personal thaugts, but if it was from the fifties, wouldn't it have some sort of Nato style number, and maybe a synthetic lanyard? I think that you have a very interesting lamp, and as you say, it might be late war Luftwaffe, or it might be a lamp specially designed for the K-men. I have seen a few of the more "ordinary" Luftwaffe beacon lamps, and I seem to remember, that these lamps allso lacks the Luftwaffe Fl. number. I really hope that you can get it confirmed as a K-man's beacon lamp. That would make it a real rarity, I think.

Snoopy

Edited May 22, 2007 by Snoopy

[joetauchretter]

I have seen the video clip several times today. When the crewman exit's the boat, something that looks very much like your lamp, can be seen hanging from a lanyard. You mentioned Bundesmarine. If the Bundesmarine was reactivated at the same time as the Bundesluftwaffe and Heer, I believe that would make it, late fifties. Please, correct me if I am wrong. I think that your lamp looks older than that. I must add, that I am no expert, so it's only my personal thaugts, but if it was from the fifties, wouldn't it have some sort of Nato style number, and maybe a synthetic lanyard? I think that you have a very interesting lamp, and as you say, it might be late war Luftwaffe, or it might be a lamp specially designed for the K-men. I have seen a few of the more "ordinary" Luftwaffe beacon lamps, and I seem to remember, that these lamps allso lacks the Luftwaffe Fl. number. I really hope that you can get it confirmed as a K-man's beacon lamp. That would make it a real rarity, I think.

Hello,

Yes , I must admit that this is a very rare item ! I have never seen one like this before . I have this in my tauchretter collection until someone can say for 100 percent certain that this is not a German light or it is post war . I feel that it is very late war and it sure does look like the object in the You Tube movie clip . I would like to find that movie on CD to see if I can see a better , clearer view of what I think is this light . I have purchased at least 4 books on the k-men , but most of the information and pictures are about the frogmen and not the spreng boat men . I feel that this beacon , which will float upright would be needed to rescue these men after they jumped out of their bomb laden boats . This item looks great in my collection but I would love to have an original picture of this in use next to my beacon lamp !

[joetauchretter]

Hello,

Well , after buying every book on the K-men I could find I think I have the picture that I have been searching so long for ! These beacon lamps seem to have been worn by k-men using the linsen / sprengboote . I think these would be used after the boat crewjumped over board so they can be seen in the water so the pilot boat can pick them up .

Best Regards,

Joe

[nesredep]

Hello,

Well , after buying every book on the K-men I could find I think I have the picture that I have been searching so long for ! These beacon lamps seem to have been worn by k-men using the linsen / sprengboote . I think these would be used after the boat crewjumped over board so they can be seen in the water so the pilot boat can pick them up .

Best Regards,

Joe

Hello!

Good eye,thanks for nice photos.

All the best

Nesredep

[Fafnesbane]

Any more info on this?

[Chris Boonzaier]

The question is.... at that late stage in the war did they really have the time/means/material to design and put something like this into production for such a small group of men, or did they use an item that was already in existence?