Interesting WWII/Post War Flight Helmet Id'd

[tigerfan]

This is an interesting flight helmet I just acquired with a small group from the pilot this is id'd to. This looks like a modified football helmet and marked Army Air Forces on the leather head pad. I will let the photos tell the rest.

 

[tigerfan]

[tigerfan]

[doinworkinvans]

Now this is an interesting one! It looks post war for sure, but the AAF lining surely throws a loop in that....

 

Maybe it is a late war period item that was a modified sports helmet and had a liner applied....def looks homemade!

 

Very cool

[tigerfan]

I also noticed that this appears to have once belonged to someone else before Major Vacca. Major Vacca was a fighter pilot in the 9th AAF with the rank of Lt. during WWII. His rank of major was after WWII.

[SergeantMajorGray]

Maybe it's a modified football helmet for fighter jets used in 1946-47 the last 2 years of the AAF?

[BEAST]

That's a great looking flight helmet! I believe this is the same man mentioned on the Dayton Holocaust Resource Center site:

 

http://daytonholocaust.org/resourcesexhibits/exhibits/prejudice-and-memory-a-holocaust-exhibit/gabriel-vacca/

 

Gabriel Vacca

(Liberator)

 

Major Vacca was a fighter pilot whose squadron was stationed at a captured base in Weimar just before the end of the war. He was one of the first Americans to see Buchenwald when it was liberated, and he witnessed a famous event: hundreds of civilians from Weimar were rounded up and brought to see the death camp. Born in Youngstown, Ohio, Gabe joined the army in 1941 and worked as an aircraft mechanic. He then went to flight school and was trained as a fighter pilot, sent to England, and then to France after the Normandy invasion. His 406th Fighter Group provided air support for the Third Army. After the war, he visited Israel six times and developed a strong interest in Jewish history and culture. He died in 1999, but his wife still lives in Riverside.

[tigerfan]

That's a great looking flight helmet! I believe this is the same man mentioned on the Dayton Holocaust Resource Center site:

 

http://daytonholocaust.org/resourcesexhibits/exhibits/prejudice-and-memory-a-holocaust-exhibit/gabriel-vacca/

 

Gabriel Vacca

(Liberator)

 

Major Vacca was a fighter pilot whose squadron was stationed at a captured base in Weimar just before the end of the war. He was one of the first Americans to see Buchenwald when it was liberated, and he witnessed a famous event: hundreds of civilians from Weimar were rounded up and brought to see the death camp. Born in Youngstown, Ohio, Gabe joined the army in 1941 and worked as an aircraft mechanic. He then went to flight school and was trained as a fighter pilot, sent to England, and then to France after the Normandy invasion. His 406th Fighter Group provided air support for the Third Army. After the war, he visited Israel six times and developed a strong interest in Jewish history and culture. He died in 1999, but his wife still lives in Riverside.

 

 

Yes, that is the same man. Thanks !

[mr_lits]

Sweet helmet!! Thanks for sharing. Love that modified stuff!!

[Blue Leader]

Hi,

 

This helmet appears to be a USAF Flying Helmet, Pilot's Protective, Type P-1 upgraded to P-1A specification.

 

Mathieu

[tigerfan]

Hi,

 

This helmet appears to be a USAF Flying Helmet, Pilot's Protective, Type P-1 upgraded to P-1A specification.

 

Mathieu

 

 

Thanks for the info. Always like to learn about different things. If this is USAF and upgraded, is the Army Air Forces marking a mistake or was the first production of the P-1 at the end of the AAF era?.

[Blue Leader]

This is the first production of the P-1 at the end of the AAF era in 1946/1947

The original P-1 is identified by its black rubber edge beadind, black leather oxygen mask tabs and AAF text on the internal leather crown tab.

The USAF P-1A is identified by tan colored oxygen mask tabs.

[Bebel]

Matthieu is right.

 

P-1 helmets were issued from 1947/48 for Air Force jet pilots. This one has been upgraded to P-1A version which has been the second version of this type of helmet which is called the "P" serie. Then, later versions succeded: P-1B (almost the same as P-1A, P-3 which is the P-1 manufactured with the external dark visor, P-4 in 1955 with a new radio set, P-4A (1957) and the last P-4B (1958) version. Some early types were upgraded to a later version. For example P-1B to P-4. Also visor were added on P-1A and P-1B which didn't have one originally. From another side, some pilots removed the visor from their helmet. So, it's a bit difficult identifying these "P" helmets. Note that there was never a P-2 version.

 

On this one, original black leather tabs for attaching mask have been replaced by brown leather tabs. The sewn you can see on the rubber edge of the helmet are the old place from where original tabs were going out.

 

Olive drab canvas straps are from the original P-1 design. The radio plug is a later one. Certainly from a P-4. However, radio sets weren't the same on P-1/P-1A/P-1B/P-3 anf P-4/P-4A/P-4B. So, it may be not an original USAF upgrading, i guess.

 

Seeing "Army Air Forces" on these early jet pilots stuffs is relatively common.

 

Original P-1 helmets are higly scarce today. Even one which has been modified is dfficult to get for a collector. Finding the correct A-13A mask which must go with this helmet would be also very difficult if you don't have one in your collection.

 

Congrats for your finding. What are the other items of the group?

 

Franck

[tigerfan]

Thanks for the further info.

 

I have his medals, a couple photos and a dogtag.

[tigerfan]

While looking a bit closer at this helmet I found the manufacture tag. It does read type P-1 and appears this was made by the Switlik Parachute Company. I also see a paper label further inside the helmet that reads pretty much the same thing but was difficult to try and photograph.

 

[doinworkinvans]

Is that really the correct way they were made with string going all through the outside of the helmet? It looks more home made to me! I am not saying it is home made, just looks funny the way its all tied together with shoestrings haha

[Sabrejet]

As a matter of fact, a member here was selling a few unissued leather suspension sets for such helmets just a few days ago. I have a P-1 with just such a suspension....and yes Dan...they do lace onto place!

[Bebel]

Could I share your photos with a flightgears collecors group?

Franck

[tigerfan]

Could I share your photos with a flightgears collecors group?

Franck

 

 

That's fine.

[Bebel]

Thank you very much.

Franck