101st Airborne Helmet Markings [Explained]
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- čas přidán 7. 06. 2024
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Sources:
• www.skylighters.org/encycloped...
• www.dday-overlord.com/en/batt...
• www.ww2-airborne.us/
• www.nationalww2museum.org/war...
Intro: (0:00)
Rationale: (0:42)
Division Organization: (2:14)
Helmet Markings: (3:09)
Division Dropzones: (5:27)
Except from Sgt. Eugene Smith's memoir, June 6th, 1944:
"After landing, I pulled together a mixed unit from the troopers I could find around the open French field, which was represented by our eclectic helmet markings. I saw two other hearts from my 502nd, but we were joined by three privates sporting diamond-marked helmets from the 501st, an aptly-characterized-square designating the unarmed and nervous clerk from Headquarters, and the strange sight of a PFC with a lyre insignia. I was somewhat suspicious about the large case he insisted on dragging along, but, by God, he showed his worth when we ran into an unsuspecting German patrol. The sudden explosion of Tchaikovsky coming from a tuba on their flank drove the Krauts right into our gunline. From that point onward, I vowed to never go into combat without support from a brass section."
Could you share the name of the memoir please?
@@tomaskovarik7966 Theres no real memoir. I just made up this entry as a bit of satire!
@@nibblerseven thats unfortunate, your writing is great btw
@@tomaskovarik7966 lol thanks
Tuba might be kinda loud, but Doc Severinsen’s trumpet had pinpoint accuracy, along with high volume of crisp notes that caused the krouts to rise hands 🙌 overheads…
502nd INF vet here, wanted to add that prior to the 2003 Iraq invasion the 101st brought back the tradition of helmet markings. One unit not with the division in WW2 was the 187th Infantry (they jumped in the Pacific), but they adopted a Torii (Japanese temple) as their insignia.
I'm with 2-506 for my second time. After 4th brigade was disbanded and the 506th was moved to the other three brigades 2-506 was moved to 3BCT and although they inevitably made us put tori on our helmets our helmet patches still include the Spade, that change was made around spring/summer time of 2015
By unit SOP I have to leave this here. ⛩
I still say they should have given 2/320th TWO cannonballs... Balls, guys!
I was with the 118th MP Co (ABN) at Bragg - and man... the *history* you can feel walking around that place. I was there in the late 90s, so a *lot* of the D-day Veterans were still around, and would come in for Airborne Week.
A few of the guys in my unit has mustard stains from Panama, but they got pretty quiet when the guys with four and five stars on their wings started walking around! One of the old guys walked up to our Ops MSG, who was a Master Blaster with his Panama wings, and said to him, "Huh, you must be a Cherry, kid!" - MSG got a little puffy (in a completely friendly way) - and pointed to his mustard stain, "Hey, I ain't no Cherry! Got my Combat Jump!" (He probably knew full well what was coming and who he was talking to.) The Vet puts out his knuckles, with a silver ring of Airbone Wings with *FIVE* stars. Sarge says, "Yep. I'm a Cherry. Honored to meet you Sir!" 😄
It was cool to be able to catch all that history before it was gone forever. I highly encourage anybody, especially those assigned to Bragg or going through, to visit all the museums there. It's amazing stuff.
www.82ndairbornedivisionmuseum.com/
@@wallaroo1295 I remember a History Channel documentary showing an Airborne reunion. The current guys were talking about how many jumps they had. Then one of the veterans stated he only had 3 jumps: Sicily, Normandy, and Holland.
I'd noticed those helmet markings before, but I did not know of their significance or history. I learned something new today. THANKS!
true!
me too!
@@surplus2720 me too! Jk lol Curahee AIR ASSAULT!
Thanks like learning the little things that make things work.
9mH
n:
I want to add to this video about the markings on the back of the helmets. I figured out the other day that NCOs had a horizontal white bar on the back, while commissioned officers had a vertical one. I felt prompted to share because you are absolutely spot on that organization on the group was crucial. So awesome to learn the history behind things like this, and that markings were added for far more than just decoration!!
If you have an original, and and the markings looks like a dirty very pale green, do not clean them with chlorine or bleach based cleaners. One collector did so and the markings turned red. Apparently Gas reacting paint was used in at least some of these helmet markings. It was an early warning system to indicate a gas attack.
@Jon-Paul Filkins
That's just the paint reacting. It wasn't put on there to detect gas attacks. You guys will believe anything. When you are under gas attack you will artillery shells going off and see big clouds of smoke. You're also going to smell it. The fact that you werent able to process how dumb that statement is... Then went on to repeat it... Wow.
@@marcburns508 It was a thing and painted on panels in view of the driver of tanks, the sort of person who's own sense of smell is already being bombarded by the vehicles own array of olfactory ordinance.
How the Infantry got hold of it is not entirely clear. Supplies Taken in Excess of Authorised Listings no doubt played a part of it. Certainly from the number of collectors that have cleaned helmets and had some of the pale markings turn red when they cleaned them shows it was a thing. A good number seem to be helmets with Medic markings on them, so it might have been an "undocumented policy".
@@marcburns508 you are half right.
The paint being mentioned is called Vesicant. (You can still buy ww2 cans of it)
Depending on manufacturer it would come out a light khaki to a medium olive drab when dried. It was used on vehicles to denote gas. It turns some variation of orange or red depending on manufacturer.
I've never seen a paratrooper helmet with anything else but white markings, so I think the original comment may be a rare case or a mis remembered story
I’ve got a great piece of beachfront property in Arizona for you sir…
If you’re interested in the story of a unit rather than insignia and organization, I highly recommend the US WWII 442nd RCT. Highest decorated unit in the US by size. Amazing backstory and a motto of “go for broke”
My great uncle was in the 442nd during WWII actually lol
Ur talking abt those Japanese Americans. Their motto is from a Hawaiian board game if I remember
My late father-in-law was in the 101st Airborne in WW2. Sadly, my husband (his son) was never able to learn which regiment he was with. All we know is that Harold Craig used to say he had "jumped from a perfectly good airplane" on D-Day into Normandy. I miss that man. He was a true gentleman, and a wonderful father-in-law and grandfather.
I am one of the 1-502nd INF "BLACKHEARTS" ('97-'05) that hopefully followed in the Bootprints of these HEROES !!!
THANK YOU, SCREAMING EAGLES, for doing what you did, so that I could follow in your historical footprints in our Rendezvous with Destiny !!!
First Strike !!!
Airborne !!!
All The Way !!!
Thank you for sharing this !!!
Rakkasans ⛩️
Bastogne ♣️
‘97-‘01, C Co. and HHC (S-3, BC/CSM/S-3 RTO). Now you got me scrolling through the comments to see if anyone else was there at the same time!
@@EmperorPrinc3 nooo😂
First strike!!!!
Really damn proud I wore the Black Hearts of the five-oh-deuce (502) for 10 years.
2BCT!
Bravo 1/320th FA
Was also proud to wear that heart
2/502 here. I was a Medic.
1/506Th Currahee Spade. Thank y'all for your service brothers. 11B
Cute
My wife’s grandfather was Captain Fred Hancock who commanded Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 502 PIR, 101st Airborne. They named a park in Carenten after him for his actions during that action. He received the Bronze Star and a Purple Heart there as well.
did one of my first deployments at 18yrs old with C-1-502 "Cobra Company" back in 2003
During WW1, the French were the first to use playing cards on their FT tanks. I am not aware of any other usage by other militaries beforehand.
I was stationed with 3-187 IN a few years back when I was assigned to 101st. Probably my favorite group to be with.
Rakkasans
@@gilbertiniguez2544 Leg.. Red Leg!!!
Rakkasan ⛩⛩⛩
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0:50 their gear looks so cool
Love these types of infographic history vids.Can't wait to see where else in history you go (Napoleonic, WWI, Cold War etc.)
Great video! earned yourself a sub! The map of where the units landed was really interesting, didn't realise how far out some of the drops were.
That was an interesting map. I had to pause the video and take a close look. They were all over the place. Looks like group “A” had a particularly rough drop.
TC Thank you for this. Very well done, both commentary and production. Really liked the landing zone maps and actual landing site layover. Never seen this before.
Thank you, Brendan, your superb presentation will really enhance all my future looks at any 101st ABN Division photos or documentary footage. A+
Outstanding video post!❤️❤️ Thanks for the educational and entertaining explanation of how the famed 101st helmet markings worked. Best of luck 🍀👍🏼
The playing cards markings were to identify the paratroopers’ regiment upon landing in the early dark hours. Vertical tabs, at 12, 3, 6, 9 of the clock, were added to identify each battalion. The 187th RCT in Korea made two combat jumps using helmet markings for battalion identification.
Good explanation of designations, very helpful in understanding deployments during D-day.
Glad you liked it!
This is a great illustration of unit markings and unit roles. I have an uncle that was assigned to B Anti-Tank Battery, of the 81st AAA BN, of the 101st. Thanks for sharing this great info.
You got me in the beginning with the Medal of Honor music. Good memories.
Was just going to say that. Good ear. Makes me want to go back and play allied assault again. That spy mission was something else.
Interesting point in the history of this practice within the US military, it started in the Civil War.
Gen Hooker instituted a policy of using symbols to break each of a Corps 3 divisions into a type of simple shape, and then a color based in its division number. Symbols were adopted for a single form distinctness similar to the use of card suites by the 101.
It was one of the only things Hooker did right during his tenure as commander as shortly thereafter he lead it during Chancellorsville.
Using play card suits reminds me of the French and their armored units which painted them on their tanks to identify what tank belonged to what unit.
Very informative as always.
Glad you think so!
Very nice, Battle Order! Keep em comin!
Hyped for this!
Cannot tell you how much I enjoy and appreciate videos like this.
watch on you tube ----c47 wing mounted go pro watch chutes see the exit and chutes open i was in 52-55 saw 1 chute failure he used his reserve he missed me about 30 ft i watched in horror as he fell about 1000 ft then his reserve poped open we usualy jumped at 1500-to 1800 ft i jump twice on my 19 th birth day also packe d last chute i jumped
Outstanding video about US parachute regiments, markings and planned (plus actual) deployment on D Day. Thank you!
Video idea: evolution of the military phonetic alphabet. I fan find the WW2 era stuff but before that is a black hole
Before ww2 the use was rare and non standard. The use of radios and code is where it started. In today's time, phonetics is different than ww2 and Korea. The current use of words and how to say numbers is chosen based on an enemy's difficulty in pronouncing certain words. Five being pronounced fife. Three being tree. Nine being nine as it may sound like five or fife. Quebec being key bec. Note, in an actual countdown for most things, five is silent. Reason being it sounds too much like fire on a staticky radio. Won, too, tree, fower, fife, six, seven, eight, niner, and zero. There is no ten or twenty, so on. They would be won zero, too zero. In aviation, if more than 2 zeros are used consecutively, it is called 3 ball, 4 ball and so on.
Auto correct kept changing niner to nine and fife to five. Hope this helps.
I always wondered about the "Thunder" "Flash" challenge words in Saving Private Ryan: whether they used those because Germans would have trouble pronouncing them like an American ( Soonda! Flawsh!)
@@Justen1980 something like that, they used challenge words that were complicated for translation, yet at the same time, they would change them to throw off the Germans, if they used an old challenge word, it would mean that they were not aware of the change and were trying to deceive the Americans.
@@josephburke7224 The current "NATO spoken alphabet" was created by the ICAO to make communication in aviation easier. The words were not chosen because of the "enemy's" difficulty in saying them but because the pronunciations are universal. NATO changed a couple words and adopted it, ICAO adopted the changes as did the ITU.
Great video, thanks and also I love the Medal of Honor soundtrack in the back, nice touch.
1:22 the medal of honor: allied assault menu screen song made me feel nostalgic.
Im always so surprised youre only at 40k something subscribers because these videos are consistently so well done
Can you do the helmet insignias of the 82nd? I’ve been trying to research them for years but the info is so fragmented and sometimes contradictory that it’s maddening.
The 82nd Airborne helmet markings seemed to vary regiment to regiment and were probably more of a unit pride thing over drop zone identification (hence why they weren't standardized across the division). Could be an interesting video though
I know I am a fan of the skull and cross bones of my Regiment. The 504th.
I have a complete uniform of the 503rd PIR, including the M1C helmet with the Gingerbread Man.
@@MothaLuva The “Gingerbread Man” was symbolic of the 509th PIB. What you have may be from the predecessor 503rd PIB that was reflagged as the 509th literally as the unit was on it sway to its first jump into North Africa as part of Operation Torch. The BN made a 1600 mile flight from England to North Africa. I believe the re-designation from 503rd PIB to 509th PIB was made to eliminate confusion with the 503 PIR that was assigned to the Pacific
@@geodes4762 Thanks!
Wow. I learned some thing new!
Thanks for the icon brake down.
The cool new thing I learned. Some of the division landed in Higgins boats. I never new that.
Yes that is true. Units of the 82nd Abn Div also landed by boat on Utah Beach. They were led by Col Edson Raff who earlier in the war commanded the 509th PIB that made the US first parachute assault of the war.
A shortage of gliders meant the portions of the 327th/401st and other support elements came over the beach. One of the ships being used (USS Susan B. Anthony) hit a mine and sank, but all aboard were rescued.
Love these detailed history military videos.
Just found your excellent video by chance. Nicely done sir!! Airborne All The Way!
Great video! Love the Medal of Honor theme music in the background !
A greatly researched subject. Well done.
Having spent time in 101st and 82nd....82nd has a lot to brag about, BUT 101st made history....They still wear those patches to this day....82nd has so many various helmet patches it can not be tracked if anyone wants to know...It has changed so much....101st still has pretty much the same since WWII...
You should do a video on the Commando concept and how it lead to many modern special forces around the world. Good video btw.
Strangely enough, elements of the 3rd Infantry Division also used playing card suits in 1944 before Operation Shingle. Only their markings were used to differentiate between battalions instead of regiments, and the markings were placed on the back of the helmet instead of the side. Makes me wonder how far back suits have been used for identification in the Army, or if it had just started in WWII.
Had a precursor in the US Civil War. Union Army adopted marking for their Corps. See "American Civil War Corps Badges"
@@jpjpjp453 The French put playing card insignia on tanks, in both WW1 and WW2.
Tasty good stuff !! Would love an explanation of where 81st & 101st were supposed to land (and why) and where they did (and how they did). Good start though. Many t(h)anx!!
It's amazing! Great video 👍🏻
Amazing great work guys... Wish u all the best!!!
Glider Field Artillery Batallion? Sounds wicked. Would love to see videos on the different WW2 Airborne suborganizations! Love your videos!
I always thought Glinder was the only means to deliver heavy equipment in those days until I was surprised by the airborne artillery battalion. Did some research on the unit and realised that they dis-assembled the howitzer (probably like mountain div) and air drop it in different pieces.
@Marcelo Henrique Soares da Silva I don't think there were airborne horse! Pull by the men themselves or if they could find any horse from poor French farmers.
@Marcelo Henrique Soares da Silva My wife's uncle was in a Pack Howitzer battery (605th Field Artillery Battalion, Pack) in the 10th Mountain Division. They used mules.
The majority of them perished during landing. Later the glider units became Divarty, then they were broken down Into brigades. I got to serve with 2/320 FA BALLS OF THE EAGLE. Was the best name in the Army.
@@cyrilchui2811 that what PAC stand for take it apart and pac into horses
damn that medal of honor theme song just makes u feel stuf.. just brings back memories dude
Woah this is in depth and I love it
The 801st Airborne Ordinance Company had callsign "Kildare" as in County Kildare Ireland where I am at this very moment. Definitely some Irish-American Officer had that idea.
You mention the 321st Glider FA, 907th Glider FA, and the 377th Parachute FA battalions; I could be mistaken but I believe that the field artillery is always referred to as a battery rather than a battalion.
A battery is the artillery equivalent to the company echelon. An artillery battalion in the US Army is composed of multiple batteries.
@@BattleOrder My wife's uncle was in Hqs Battery of the 605th Field Artillery Battalion (Pack) in the 10th Mountain Division in WW2. they used the same 75mm Pack Howitzer used by the 101st, but carried (broken down) on mules.
Battery(Artillery)/Troop(Cavalry)/Company(Infantry/Other) are the subordinate units to Battalions (as Battalions are to Regiments and Regiments to Divisions)
Now i know those helmet markings in the WWII thank you for this video.
Bro! I love your vids!
Mate. I’ve been here since you had
Legend!
Dang this is my first time watching 😅
@@BattleOrder Yes. Thank you. This is a very well done, informative video. This is off topic, but I have a question for you. How much do you know about military 'hills?' I was always curious how hills during world war 2 and other wars got numbered, for e.g hill 20, hill 30, hill 50 and so on
@@danielmoung9098 Basically it'd be a piece of elevated terrain (a "hill" if you will) and the number would be the elevation above sea level. During World War II, I believe that number would have been in meters (during World War I I believe they were generally in feet when talking about the Americans or Brits). So Hill 400 was 400 meters tall
I am sure that you are able to write, without resorting to blasphemy.
They probably got the playing card design from their use as Corps insignia in the Union Army during the Civil war. The "clubs" was the insignia of the 2nd Corp, the "diamond" was the 3rd Corp and the "heart" was the 24th Corp.
Ah Yes what make me happy is medal of honor vanguard theme on the background
Wow, really cool. I was with the 3/506 in 'Nam.
*i was 2nd plt "Black Sheep", C co "Hard Core Charlie" 3rd bn "Battle Force'/327th inf (aaslt) fron November 1984 to January 1986 as "Elite Eagle"* - 1:57 am Pacific Standard Time on Sunday, 24 January 2021
⛩ 1-187 Leader Rakkasan ⛩
finding silly callsigns for units has to be the funniest job in time of war ^^Just thinking about the hq officer who spent his day going through the dictionnary to look for them hahaha
Yeah I noticed that they all began with “K”
Informative. Thanks for the Gen.
Good shot of MG McCauliffe (101st Division Artillery Commander) there displaying the Ball (Artillery) and the Top tick mark (Denoting HQ) at 1:25, They are also missing the 320th FA Glider Regiment.
Nice video. Was always wondering, just been to lazy to look into it
Love it Division Band markings at 5:23 I was in Division Band for the 25th and 1st Cav.
Outstanding information.
Long history with the markings as to units assigned.
2l502 D Co. vet here. Strike...
Good vid very informative
Glad you liked it
An interesting thing to note is that the 502nd did not wear a tic mark designation on their helmets on DDay. The way they distinguished battalions was by a white cloth worn on different areas of the body.
Excellent! Top marks. Consider submitting this for an Emmy. Just slow down the VO a tiny bit.
This was incredibly educational. Thank you!
I was with 377 FA before they deactivated around 2013, I believe 2-377FA is active out of AK
I've yet to narrate my own videos, so I suspect that they will definitely be filled with all types of errors. So, I'm not saying this with malice or bully intent, but hoping that you can use it as a way to feel better about your commentary. You have a nice timbre to your voice, that is until you try to be heard. Believe you me, you are heard and the high tones are not needed even once. Well, not that I can see anyway. Your drop off at the end of each phrase was such a nice relief from listening, I wish it was all in the same tone. Just a suggestion. You're doing better than most, keep going!
Fantastic presentation.
Thank you. Educativo.
At One minute and 29 seconds 1:29, the soldier holding the helmet with the Club/ clover leaf, is Ed Pieczatowski of the 367th glider infantry, after the war he started a business (Brookpark Plating) in Cleveland Ohio, at 12208 Sprecher ave., it is gone now, I knew Him growing up, he had 2 bullets go thru his helmet, one after D-day, and one during the Battle of the Bulge, he was a really good guy, he passed away in 1987 , he was born in 1912,
any chance of making a video on the helmet markings on of the 82nd airborne
great video!!!
do you know how these were applied, were they sprayed on ,were they a decal or hand painted?
if there anything like this for the Canadian military please do a video! no idea how i found this channel but hello from London Ontario Canada!
Cool info. My son was in 2-506 Charlie Co, 101st. Currahee, deployed to FOB Kushmond in Afghanastan. Now he serves with a mechanized infantry unit of the National Guard.
Well done! Thanks!
3:42 I checked the helmet markings in Band of Brother and they got it right!
The 101st continued to use these markings in Vietnam. However the battalions were differentiated by the color of the symbol. Red was for the 1st Battalion, White was for the 2nd Battalion and Black for the 3rd Battalion.(3/506th 'Nomads'). The 3rd/187th's symbol was a Blue Japanese arch from its service in the 11th Airborne Division in Japan. The support elements also had symbols which weren't put on helmets, just vehicles and aircraft (where appropriate).
Rakkasans ⛩️
I was in 2/501st in Vietnam, from 1968-69. I was wounded the day before "Hamburger Hill" kicked off.
Hey thanks for the vid, great workout👍🇺🇸
Thanks you for remembering the 326 AB Engineers. More often than not they are ignored and forgotten. My father was part C co. of the 326 and fought with the 501 and 506 at drop zone D. You will no mention of them in most accounts.
What good is wearing olive drab for camouflage if you are going to put a big white target on your helmet?
Great job!
Thank you...
My older brother was in 2nd battalion 502 infatry regiment Bravo company of the 101st airborne division out of Fort Campbell, they wore black hearts on their helmets
I think you missed the markings shown on the rear of the helmets in band of brothers wasn’t the horizontal bar to show NCO and vertical bar to Show CO?
*i was 2nd plt "Black Sheep", C co "Hard Core Charlie" 3rd bn "Battle Force'/327th inf (aaslt) fron November 1984 to January 1986 as "Elite Eagle"* - 1:53 am Pacific Standard Time on Sunday, 24 January 2021
Great vid thanks! Was wondering where you got that map to show the accuracy of the drops at the end?
There are original drop pattern maps floating around the internet: amcmuseum.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/101st-airborne-division-drop-pattern-operation-neptune-map.jpg
@@BattleOrder Appreciate it mate!
Hey! Great video! I was wondering, you mentioned a lot of the paratroopers where scattered while jumping. How did they maintain unit cohesion? Did they just fight with the men around them till they joined their own unit?
That is basically it. It was a lot of individual initiative and small unit actions, often attacking objectives with forces much smaller than initially planned or attacking targets of opportunity
In some ways all the misdrops worked in the 101st’s favor, as the Germans were confused and couldn’t figure out how the airborne units were configured. They never knew what size unit they were fighting against.
@@mj101inf9 That sounds like a major pain in the ass. Enemy paratrooper scattered everywhere, waiting for a perfect opportunity to strike. You have no idea where they are, how many, or what their overall objectives are. What do you even do about that, how could one counter this?
General McAuliffe helmet during Bastogne was a big circle with a line coming out the top at 12 o'clock :)
Because he was DIVARTY CDR and acting CG. The circle is a cannonball.
These markings go back at least as far as the Civil War. The Union Army used them to denote different corps. They didn’t wear helmets of course, but they were sewn onto caps.
Battle of San Jacinto Houston's Tejanos wore playing cards in the hat bands to differentiate them from Santa Ana's troops.
Exactly what I was thinking, the video gives the impression that it was a new thing, while in fact the Army had been putting playing card suites on head-gear for 80 years before D-day.
The 501st... :-) Great video.
Excellent vid!
I like the Medal of Honor them music in the background.
Great video. Lots of good indfo
Hi! I have a question: How many battalions did the 501st PIR have during WW2 and which of those fought in the Battle Of The Bulge? 😄
Yep tick marks made it happen. In the 1990’s we used chem lights swing around on a string. 82nd Airborne also used face paint camo markings that are classified…
The musical instrument "lyre" is pronounced to rhyme with "liar".
@crash burn right?
I'd rather say that the ticks system for the parachute infantry of the 101st was applied after Normandy. On D-Day Five-o-Deuce didn't use any battalion information on their helmet markings, it could only be recognized by size and design of hearts, which was different for different battalions (but there were antoher methods, for example white cloth on the arm for 2nd battalion). 501st and 506th used mostly dots, not dashes in Normandy. It is true that incorrect application of 1st & 3rd of 506th was corrected after Normandy, but the problem was also solved temporarily before the D-Day, by adding a dot in front and in the rear of the 3rd battalion's helmets. We can also see that some of the units didn't applied the markings on their helmets for this operation. Symbols' system was working correct rather for Transfigure/Market-Garden than Overlord. It is worth to notice, that 101st was not the only airborne unit using helmet markings, and was not even the first. Markings was used earlier in Italy, 504th started to apply it during Volturno Valley battle (it was not common), and 509th had their own system, based upon colour of the gingerbread man on their helmets, used in Italy and France. 551st commonly used a palm marking. In 82nd markings was rather uncommon, but we can see some examples from Normandy and later operations.
I was in the 506th and had no idea where our spade came from ... thank you for this 🙏
The Americans learned quickly to disguise any visible markings especially senior rank. The film The Longest Day has Henry Fonda as a general on Omaha beach with the three stars on his helmet which wouldn’t have happened.