"War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. A man who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing he cares more about than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature with no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself."
As often happened, these close-up photos were taken not during actual activity, in order to keep them as a souvenir of military service.
The net under the cover !!
Another confirmation of the imagination and autonomy enjoyed by these special units.
Note the other distinctive element of the Paratrooper Troops was the jump uniform, designed specifically for them.
It recalled in color and in some details those of WW2.
Regards
Roberto
"War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. A man who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing he cares more about than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature with no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself."
Very nice M33 Roberto so from the 1950's would you know if any pre WW2 parts were used in it's construction like the swivel bails or perhaps the shell ,i did read somewhere that the leather type chinstrap was used well into the late 1980's alongside the canvas type ,Here is my humble Italian helmet collection The bring back Sleeveless Shirt in the Italian Mimetico Roma 90 Camouflage pattern has a Palestinian patch so Possibly used by Volunteers /Mercenaries perhaps but can only speculate , although the label is washed out can see a manufacture date of 1994,not to confuse the sleeveless shirt was placed over an existing display in case you wonder why you see french lizard pattern
Regards James
Thanks James,
I confirm that in my Air Force M33, the steel shell and the metal structure of the liner are from the WW2 period (see photo with the AT = Arsenale of Torino stamp on the chinstrap lug).
The components of the 30s and 40s were used after the war until stocks were exhausted, and coexisted with the newly produced components.
As for the chinstraps, after running out of stock of the leather version of the war period, the Army switched to the canvas version, while some Corps: Air Force, Navy and Police, continued to use newly produced leather chin straps until the end of the 80s; but the color of the post-war productions is clearly identifiable because it is different from the gray-green of the Regio Esercito.
As for your collection, in my opinion you still have some interesting pieces:
-M42 / 60: which has been produced in a limited number and is becoming difficult to find in good condition.
-M33 gray of the Serbian Police, a variant with a special liner produced by the company "Cassoni".
-M33 Spanish: very interesting example of the first version produced before 1936 (see the particular rounded two-tab rivets).
For the Italian camouflage shirt with the Palestinian patch it is difficult to say, keep in mind the fact that for a long time the Italian armed forces have carried out cyclical training missions for the Palestinian security forces and have been engaged in peacekeeping missions on behalf of the UN in Palestine until recent years, this fact could justify the presence of Italian material in that area.
See you soon
Roberto
Hi James,
I would say that it's okay anyway, to be precise, the hood you used is that of the camouflage uniform covering m1958, used until 1975, which was worn over the Italian battle dress.
It was used by all Army units except airborne combat units that had their own unique jumping uniform, in addition to the helmet and special boots.
Regards
Roberto
As a gap filler i am happy for now but will keep my eyes peeled for the rare an elusive Airborne cover Roberto
Regards James
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