Flight helmet

[Zintenhof]

Hello and Happy New Year!
I´m new here and for a start I´d like to ask some opinions about that Soviet flight helmet...
Is it mid/late war production or early postwar? Canvas combined with leather and some fur...
Greetings

[MAP]

Welcome to the forum. We have some fine soviet era experts here. Be patient and someone will be around in due course

[reneblacky]

I stand to be corrected but this one looks German! variant of, maybe button replacement there. Not sure if the Soviets made a copy?101

[Bagration]

Hello

Indeed look like a lkpw101 of luftwaffe but maybe captured by soviet forces

[buellmeister]

Zintenhof,

Welcome to the forum! Though I'm certainly not in the know on flight caps, there are many in here to give you the information you are looking for.

Regards,

Joel

[Zintenhof]

Why I considered it to be soviet is the reason that in both earphone holes are cyrillic letter L in circle (Л), one earphone cupola has handwritten initials in cyrillic KI (КИ) and because of these greenish brown plastic buttons (US lend lease?).

[Zintenhof]

...captured and Soviet modified LKpW101?

[Bagration]

Hello,

Taken from here :

http://webs.lanset.com/aeolusaero/Ar...ks_NOV2010.pdf

"At least two or three distinct Russian helmet designs emerged with communications headsets built in, one of the most universally liked among pilotsbeing a Russian copy of the LKpW-101leather flying helmet, complete with the characteristic press-molded external leather earphone housings that instantly identify German helmets of this era. Whereas the German versions invariably used lambs‟ wool for insulation, the Russian counterparts used black and brown dog hair, and differing from the German practice of attaching a bilateral laryngophone microphone set-up to the rear of their helmets, the Russians used a separate bilateral laryngophone. These Russian copies of the German LKpW-101 series leather helmets used 4-pin DIN connectors identical to the German versions and in fact the electronic (radio) specifications of their communications gear were identical as well.
For this reason, Russian pilots not infrequently would use a captured German leather flying helmet
rather than a Russian version. Quite popular with the Russian pilots was the lightweight, ventilated Netzkopfhaube summer helmet during hot weather. By 1945, the Russian copy of the German LKpW-101 leather helmet was being produced and in use by Russian pilots and would remain in service until the first "new‟ Russian post-war designcame into service (the type ShL-50 leather flying helmet)."

So maybe captured or post-war production underSoviet control.

[Marcel Banziger]

If captured and re-used German flying helmet there should be traces of a label or where a label has been (usually Siemens) on the inside mid-bottom.
German leather helmets also have different earphones than the one shown on these photos. On top the size-label (57) looks more Soviet but definitely not German.

[Boycie]

It could be my eyes playing tricks or wishful thinking but is it stamped "Л" on both, or is it "Л" and "П"?

Левый Правый = Left Right.

I'm afraid i know nothing about flight helmets though!