Heer GERMAN PARA HELMETS ISSUED TO AXIS FORCES.

[Kev in Deva]

Good evening gentlemen,

I wonder can anybody tell me if German WW2 Helmets were ever issued to Axis Forces, in particular Romanian Para Units in WW2.

I have just started correspondence with a Romanian Militaria buff who states a long time ago he saw a picture of Romanian troops wearing them!!

And did German Para Units ever serve/ or were stationed in Romania ? I believe they were in the Balkans??

Please tell me if I am right or mis-informed,

Kev in Deva.

UPDATE: Photo just into my email from Mihne: This picture is from the book "Armata Romana 1941-1945" by Cornel I. Scafes Horia Vl. Serbanescu, Ioan I. Scafes, Cornel Andonie, Ioan Danila and Romeo Avram. Now to try and find some

Edited March 13, 2006 by Kev in Deva

[PKeating]

That's a very interesting photo. The first Parachute Company of the Royal Romanian Airforce was formed on 10.6.1941, with second and third companies formed in 1942 and 1943 respectively. The 3rd Company was the heavy weapons or support company. In 1943, the 4th Parachute Battalion was formed, comprising these three airborne companies, numbered 8, 9 and 10.

In 1943, the 4th Parachute Bn received M38/40 FJ helmets, MP40s and related equipment, like the pouches in the photo. The Reconnaissance Platoon were issued with Zundapp KS 600 OHV motorcycles, a machine even the Wehrmacht had trouble acquiring. Interestingly, the Romanian paras jumped Irvin 'chutes, like the British, made under licence in Romania. However, from 1943, they may have used German-made RZ 'chutes. By October 1943, there were just 215 jump-trained battalion members. Field-Marshall Antonescu ordered that the battalion be expanded to a regimental strength of around 2,850. By 23.8.1944, with the Soviets at the gates of Bucharest, the 4th Bn was the only operational sub-unit of the regiment, with 861 fully-trained paratroopers and it took part in the fighting around the city.

As for German airborne units in Romania, two companies of Fallschirmj?ger-Btl "Brandenburg" participated in the ill-fated Relief of Bucharest in August 1944, where the German garrison was encircled by pro-Soviet Romanian forces. A spearhead group took control of Otopeni airport at midday on 24.8.1944 and held it until 19:00 hrs, when their comrades were airlanded. I believe that elements of the SS-Jagdverb?nde were involved too although these were not airborne units as such. By 21:00 hrs on 24.8.1944, the encircled German-held areas and HQ were under under German control again and the Romanians promised to allow the German troops to withdraw peacefully to the Yugoslav frontier. However, the Romanians reneged on their promises on 1.9.1944 and allowed the Soviet Army to move against the retreating column. The ORBAT of Fallschirmj?ger-Btl "Brandenburg" was halved in one go as a result and few of any of the Brandenburgers taken prisoner by the Reds ever saw their homelands again.

The Romanian Parachute Regiment was ordered disbanded by the country's new masters in February 1945 because the Soviets viewed the Romanian paras as hostile to the new order.

PK

(Source for info on Romanian airborne forces : http://www.worldwar2.ro/organizare/?article=26)

[Peter_Suciu]

So they never actually took part in any combat jumps during the war? I always believed that to be so.

The Italians and Japanese had limited combat jumps. But (other than the Germans) did any Axis forces take part in any jumps in combat?

And these were standard German para helmets I take it too? Made in Germany and supplied to the Romanians? No insignia I'd assume?

[Theodor]

Maybe even with insignia - the helmets supplied to the Bulgarian paratroopers were standart German FJ helmets, even with the Luftwaffe single decal on the side.

[dragos03]

After the coup on 23 August 1944, the Germans were asked to retreat peacefully from Romania. The Germans agreed but, instead of doing that, they bombed the center of Bucharest and gathered forces to attack the Romanian capital.

Only after this attack Romania declared war on the Germans. So the Romanians didn't "reneged on their promises" as PKeating claims, it was the other way around.

It was the Romanian Para battallion that defeated the elements of the Brandemburg commandos on the airfields around the city and annihilated them, not the Soviets.

They never actually took part in any combat jumps during the war but their performance during the fights in August 1944 shows they were a very good unit.

[Kev in Deva]

Good evening gentlemen,

I wonder can anybody tell me if German WW2 Helmets were ever issued to Axis Forces, in particular Romanian Para Units in WW2.

I have just started correspondence with a Romanian Militaria buff who states a long time ago he saw a picture of Romanian troops wearing them!!

And did German Para Units ever serve/ or were stationed in Romania ? I believe they were in the Balkans??

Please tell me if I am right or mis-informed,

Kev in Deva.

UPDATE: Photo just into my email from Mihne: This picture is from the book "Armata Romana 1941-1945" by Cornel I. Scafes Horia Vl. Serbanescu, Ioan I. Scafes, Cornel Andonie, Ioan Danila and Romeo Avram. Now to try and find some.

Just another update on this photo it is of Romanian Paratroopers at the burial of the fighter ace cpt. av. Alexandru Serbanescu on 19 August 1944.

Edited May 25, 2006 by Kev in Deva