20th Century WWII SOE Jumpsuit Helmets

[Mr.Jerry]

A friend of mine picked this one and we are trying to get a positive ID on it.  Britsh? Para?

Thanks!

Jerry

[numbersix]

It appears to be the jump helmet that goes with the SOE jumpsuit, also known as the Striptease Suit. The cloth helmets are very hard to find, I believe.

[Tonomachi]

Wow a very rare WW2 secret agent type para helmet as most were buried in the field they jumped into which was behind enemy lines.  Below are photos I kept of another one for you to compare them with and they seem to match.

 

 

[Tonomachi]

For future reference this WW2 British SOE striptease agent jump suit helmet has been reproduced.  Due to the rarity of this helmet that will probably fetch into the four digits I had a feeling someone in the UK had probably reproduced it.  Below are photos of the reproduction that I found on the Internet where it is believed was made from original camouflage material from a WW2 British Parachute Regiment sleeping bag that was carefully taken apart and utilized.  Writing in the name ALEX was a nice touch.  You have to ask yourself why would someone write their name on a piece of clothing that was supposed to be sterile in the event they were captured after jumping behind enemy lines.  I once spoke with a US bomber pilot who flew these missions behind enemy lines to drop agents for the SOE and OSS.  He told me that he never saw the agents nor how many there were as they boarded in secrecy and would jump once they were over a specific area.  The pilots never knew exactly when the agent(s) jumped in the event they got shot down they couldn't reveal anything to their interrogators as they knew nothing.  The one that started this thread appears to be an original.

 

 

[numbersix]

The SOE camouflage is different from the Denison and Paratrooper sleeping bag camouflage. The SOE camouflage is handpainted in a blotchy pattern whereas the denison and sleeping bag camo is brushstroke pattern. I don't think the repos have the goggles attached either; the goggles on the SOE jump helmet are stitched on to the helmet at the back.