Heer GAB on black Panzer Wrapper

[Naxos]

Panzer Obergefreiter Werner Klenzer in May 1942

Hardy

[PKeating]

That's not often seen, Hardy. Nice photograph! He might have been a signaller in another motorised part of the regiment, such as the Aufkl?rungs-Abteilung. Here's a snapshot of another tanker wearing a badge not often seen on a black wrapper. I have several of the same man.

Edited April 23, 2008 by PKeating

[Paul R]

Prosper,

I have never seen that duo before. Is this man ID'ed?

[PKeating]

He was one of four NCOs from the Das Reich Division transferred to SS-Fallschirmj?ger-Btl 500's Field Training Company as instructors late in 1943.

PK

[buellmeister]

Gentlemen,

Interesting and certainly unique circumstances were definately present for these soldier's to have earned their hardware.

Regards,

Joel

[Naxos]

Prosper, what a photographic document - thanks for showing!

Hardy

Edited April 23, 2008 by Naxos

[Paul R]

Hardy,

Yours is interesting as well. I have been thinging about the circumstances behind yours as well... perhaps transport troop who transferred to the Panzer Arm?

[Naxos]

Hardy,

Yours is interesting as well. I have been thinging about the circumstances behind yours as well... perhaps transport troop who transferred to the Panzer Arm?

Or Pionier

Hardy

[PKeating]

Hardy's photo is one of the nicest, most evocative I have seen recently. Do you happen to know more about Klenzer's career? In infantry units, attached specialists like signallers, medics and so on received the GAB rather than the IAB as they weren't "infantry" as such. Artillerymen also received the GAB. Not sure what the criteria were for men in armoured units. I was perhaps mistaken in referring to recce as Aufkl?rungs-Abt personnel in armoured unit received the PKAiB. In this photo, Klenzer has evidently not yet qualified for an PKA but, then again, he might simply not be wearing it.

In this photo of the same Unterscharf?hrer, for instance, he is just wearing his LW Parachutist Badge. Whatever the case, these are all very rare sightings.

PK

[vestae]

Amazing photography !!!! I love

Many thanks

Sebastien.

[nesredep]

Hardy's photo is one of the nicest, most evocative I have seen recently. Do you happen to know more about Klenzer's career? In infantry units, attached specialists like signallers, medics and so on received the GAB rather than the IAB as they weren't "infantry" as such. Artillerymen also received the GAB. Not sure what the criteria were for men in armoured units. I was perhaps mistaken in referring to recce as Aufkl?rungs-Abt personnel in armoured unit received the PKAiB. In this photo, Klenzer has evidently not yet qualified for an PKA but, then again, he might simply not be wearing it.

In this photo of the same Unterscharf?hrer, for instance, he is just wearing his LW Parachutist Badge. Whatever the case, these are all very rare sightings.

PK

Hello!

I agree,very rare,

All the best

Nesredep

[PKeating]

A few months later, on a home leave to see his new baby, promoted to Oberscharf?hrer. Now, who can tell us which maker might have produced his jump badge? Slightly off-topic, I know, and we'll get back to unusual badges on panzer wrap-overs shortly...

PK

Edited April 24, 2008 by PKeating

[PKeating]

Moving back towards Hardy's theme, here are some more badges not often seen on wrap-over tunics. Who can tell us produced the badges in these photos? (Trick question)

PK

[Paul R]

Wow Prosper. Those images are amazing! You are the authority on the non Luftwaffe fallschirmjager!

[PKeating]

I wouldn't say that, Paul! Thanks all the same, but there are a number of people to whom I bow when it comes to non-LW FJ units. Here's one for Hardy! Note the man wearing the GAB on his wrapover just behind the RKT, who also sports a GAB.

And here's another man in a wrapover sporting a GAB. The cloth DKiG looks rather odd, doesn't it? Anyway, we should look into how these men earned GABs. Did they qualify because they dismounted to fight? Two of these men have Tank Destruction Badges so they clearly fought on foot at some point. Therefore, they wouldn't qualify for the Tank Battle Badge in Bronze. Unstuf Scheu, in the colour or colorised portrait, earned his Bronze Tank Badge with the Wiking's Recce Detachment. He also received the CCC in Bronze whilst still with SS-Aufkl?rungs-Abt 5 in 1943 but never received any form of 'footborne' assault badge prior to that. I don't think the award of the CCC depended upon a previous IAB or GAB but it is interesting, nonetheless, that he got a Bronze Tank Battle Badge instead of the GAB. Perhaps it was simply a question of which badge a commander decided to request for his men.

And just to vary it a bit, the Honour Roll Clasp on a wrapover. This award is scarcely seen as it is but there are not many photos featuring it on wrapovers.

PK

Edited April 24, 2008 by PKeating

[Naxos]

Thanks PK for your excellent additions to this thread!

Here is another unusual badge (Reiterabzeichen) on a panzer wrapper (not from my collection)

[kunsho]

Sorry, but...I had to do it ...

[nesredep]

Hello!

Very interesting tread.

All the best

Nesredep

[kunsho]

ok ... something useful I can also contribute...

This is Paul Schmid, Panzer J?ger Abteilung 235

[PKeating]

The other post was useful too: it gave me a smile! That's a nice portrait. A lot of these WW2 tankers were quite small fellows, weren't they? Paul Schmid appears to have the KVK2 and, perhaps, the Ostfront Medaille to go with his S=A.

A blast from the past...when I was still interested in badges and things. This is a Condor Legion Tank Badge I owned, with a photo of the recipient, Paul Zundorf.

And this is one of the photos I didn't manage to get, because the group was split up. OK, it's not a wrapover but how often do you see this badge and medal combination on a field blouse? Can't remember who has this print but I've marked it.

PK

Edited April 29, 2008 by PKeating

[kunsho]

If the thread swich to Legion Condor Badges on Panzer Wrapper, I can keep up:

This is Karl Wald from Panzer Regiment 8

(Schmids ribbon is a EK ribbon)

[PKeating]

He put the Spanienkreuz on the wrong side for the photo! Nice EKII award shot.