Aggressor Helmet

[The Rooster]

2 hours ago, MattS said:

Linking this thread to one I did on OPFOR uniforms and headgear. Not sure when the name changed from "Aggressors" , but it was OPFOR by the 90s.

 

 

++ on OPFOR being the term used in the 80's and 90's.

At the NTC Fort Irwin we were OPFOR and we wore Green pickle suit uniforms black Berets with a commie insignia hammer and sycle red star thing.

But we wore standard helmets. And they had visual modifications attached to the vehicles and armor etc.

And everyone and everything vehicles aircraft etc had miles gear on.

In my guard unit one year at McCoy.....

They had fiberglass copies of BRDMs etc and we put them over and bunggy corded them to humvees.

 

[patches]

A Bundeswehr Kanonenjagdpanzer with the Aggressor Insignia on it, photo  from member CaptCav taken by him I'm gathering in October 1970.

[sgtdorango]

😲👍🏻

[patches]

Scanned these incredible photos from the November 1981 Issue of SOLDIERS Magazine in an article on an field problem called Solid Shield, a inter service FTX

 

Here's a summary of the 1976 one.

http://www.9websites.com/airforce/ss76.htm

 

 

Here we see Marines wearing that plastic Russian helmet, with the USMC Eagle Globe and Anchor Ornament affixed to the front of them, affixed on some unidentifiable medium, a piece of cloth a piece of plastic??? Marines are from the 2nd Mar Div at Lejeune and are even wearing articles of obsolete uniform items, such as the Long Sleeve Khaki shirt, they stopped wearing them like in the early 70s right. They also are wearing small sewn on  (Or maybe Glued???) khaki collar patches it looks like with the rank pinned on it, Pfcs in this case, the one in the foreground wears his plastic OPFOR shell with an Airborne Liner as we see..

 

And a truck loads of Marines in the set up, albeit wearing ponchos and or field jackets, again we see the EGA Cap Device on them.

 

And finally from the same 1981 field problem, an 82nd Abn Div M60 Gunner, here wearing the variant plastic type with Red Star on the front, has OPFOR ranks there right, on the collar or pinned to the shoulders, probably the collar.

[FDR32]

These are interesting. I had never seen one until I saw this thread. Until then, this is what came to mind when I heard OPFOR helmets mentioned. 

[fight]

I recently picked up an example to add to this thread. This is my first one. Ever since I saw this thread I've enjoyed the looks of these.

[Brian Keith]

Excellent example fight,  with the insignia painted on the side! Thanks for adding it.

BKW

[644td]

Very nice

[Mr.Jerry]

That is very cool.  I am still looking for one!

[Persian Gulf Command]

Well no helmets but you may like seeing these, all are c. 1949-1950.  In the last photo my dad is second on the right taking photos as an observer.

[patches]

@Persian Gulf Command, those are some fantastic photos, one of a kind.

 

Say  this tank, is it a tank, or is it one of those WWII Era Blow Up Dummy Tanks?

 

[patches]

3 hours ago, patches said:

@Persian Gulf Command, those are some fantastic photos, one of a kind.

 

Say  this tank, is it a tank, or is it one of those WWII Era Blow Up Dummy Tanks?

 

Is this the "Tank"

[Persian Gulf Command]

The tank that is in the photo with the group of Aggressors is an inflatable "blow up dummy tank".   The photo with the object being inflated is probably going to be something smaller like a jeep.  In the foreground is the "glacis plate" of the inflated tank where you can see the shadow of the barrel.

[MattS]

And that last APC/tank appears to be a turret-less M18 Hellcat.

[patches]

10 hours ago, MattS said:

And that last APC/tank appears to be a turret-less M18 Hellcat.

That there is the old M39 Armored Utility Vehicle. as you observed it is off the chassis of the old Hellcat TD.

[patches]

Hey just noted the Pink Dyed Garrison Cap there on the right

 

[Persian Gulf Command]

There are also pink caps in two other photos, blowing up the dummy jeep and an officer addressing the group.  Might be pink color as  traditional Armored color as in the German Army.

[MattS]

Indeed, black dyed coveralls and pink caps and trim does have a "panzertruppe" feel to it. 

[patches]

An interesting one, Bundeswehr Troops on maneuvers around 1957 wearing the Aggressor Comb on there helmets like in the U.S. Army, probably the liner as  they're wearing either U.S. Helmets with the separate liner or the West German made type. The one Lanzer is armed with the Belgian FN FAL rifle with Bipod attached, called the G1 in West German service.

[patches]

Aggressor marked M75 Armored Personnel Carriers of the old 371st Armored Infantry Battalion in West Germany in the mid-sh 50s, the 371st Armd Inf Bn was a Separate unit, maybe under V or VII Corps, or 7th Army, not sure.

[patches]

Troops of the 1/14th Inf 25th Inf Div wearing the Soviet Plastic Aggressor shell along with just the MILES Suspenders, some, the ones not wearing the rain stuff, got modified shirts with OPFOR Shoulder Straps, late 1982, I think South Korea.

 

More from the same FTX.

[Salvage Sailor]

Period photos, Island Assault Exercise MIKI late 1949 in the Hawaiian Islands

 

 

MIKI (loosely translated) is the Hawaiian word for Readiness and E HELE KAUA means "Let's Go"

 

 

 

[patches]

A 80s example of the Plastic Liner Shell, this one with additional decals applied.

[Nickman983]

Here's another pic of them in use, showing an Ohio National Guardsman leading a captured "aggressor". Looks like this might be one of the liner style helmets though it doesn't look to have a brim. Could be the angle/lighting though. This was posted in the Dayton Daily on 6/24/1973

 

[patches]

On 9/15/2022 at 8:40 PM, Nickman983 said:

Here's another pic of them in use, showing an Ohio National Guardsman leading a captured "aggressor". Looks like this might be one of the liner style helmets though it doesn't look to have a brim. Could be the angle/lighting though. This was posted in the Dayton Daily on 6/24/1973

 

Wow 1973, the Ohio NG finally got the M16 Rifle and finally put away the M1 Rifles and M2 carbines they carried since the late 1940s