Vintage Flying Helmets
Aviation, Military & Historical Items for Discerning Collectors
Flying Helmets and Headgear
(click on pictures to enlarge)
RAF 1930 Pattern Flying helmet dated 1935/36.
Excellent example of the 1930 Pattern Helmet which was the true predecessor of the Type B. Beautiful leather with a very clean chamois lining and built-in chin strap. Small printed label inside is difficult to read but says "Size 3" and dated 1936. Both od the attached "Mickey Mouse" ears are Air Ministry marked and dated 1935. bakelite telephone holders are fitted for intstalling receivers or Gosports. A scarce helmet which remained in service throughout WWII.
$550 / £425 / €510
RAAF Type B helmet, large size dated 1943.
Excellent, unissued example of the Australian made Type B helmet. Kangaroo leather exterior and chamois interior is in excellent condition throughout. Zips in good working order and ear-cups padded with NOS sponge pads. Quite difficult to find in the larger sizes and this one is marked 7-1/8 on its 1943 dated label. Lovely helmet.
$300 / £235 / €275
RAF Type D flying helmet, second pattern, internally wired with correct cord/loom and Type 16 telephone receivers.
Very good, clean example of the later war RAF Type D flying helmet issued from December 1944 for desert and tropical wear ("East of Malta" per AMOs). Complete with its correct internal wiring and Type 16 receivers. Helmet is marked as a size 2 (medium) and fits a standard display head comfortably. Shows only light use, no wear or damage. Nice AID stamp and what looks like initials written inside. Good rubber ear cups and elastic in the chin strap. A textbook example.
$495 / £380 / €455
US Navy carrier flight deck crew helmet in bright green cotton.
Bright green cotton helmet, with a long buckled chin strap, as worn by US Navy aircraft carrier deck crews. These were produced in different bright colours, with each colour denoting crew duty (engineer, armourer, airframe tech, fire/rescue etc). They were alos worn by pilots, especially carrier born fighter pilots, who had them modified by adding earcups and receivers. Snaps fitted to rear, probably for attaching a wiring loom/headset. Nice USN ink stamp on chin strap, excellent condition.
$75 / £60 / €70
AAF Type A-9 flying/training helmet with Gosport receivers, size XL.
Nice Type A-9 flying/training helmet, which superseded the A-8. It features hooks for the A-9 and A-10 oxygen mask, and a fleece covered chin strap which integrate better with the mask. Dark green unlined cotton, with off-white powder puff pads and the more scarce bright red plastic Gosport receivers. Size Extra-Large and in excellent condition, with one very small factory repair above the right ear.
$125 / £95 / €112
AAF Type B-5 flying/training helmet with Gosport receivers, size XL.
B-5 flying/training helmet fitted with blackened copper Gosport receivers. Shearling fleece has a dark brown polyacrylate finish and medium leather reinforced seams. Fleece is in excellent condition and helmet shows only light wear. Fitted with a fleece lined chin cup and red velvet powder puff earpads, with no provision for oxygen mask fittings. Helmet shows light use but no wear or damage.
$225 / £170 / €200
AAF Type B-6 flying/training helmet with Gosport receivers.
Excellent WWII AAF B-6 flying/training helmet. Constructed from shearling fleece with reinforced leather seams and painted with a waterproof polyacrylate coating, it is fitted with blackened white metal Gosport receivers and has orange velvet powder puff ear pads. It is fitted with hooks for the A-9 and A-10 oxygen masks and has a fleece covered chin strap. Marked as a size M, it fits a display head comfortably. Shows very little wear and no damage.
$195 / £150 / €180
Extremely rare Mk I HSAT Paratrooper helmet as worn on D-Day by glider pilots as well as paratroopers...
Properly known as "Helmet, Steel, Airborne Troops" (HSAT) it was also worn by RAF and Army glider pilots. Introduced in 1942 it was worn in Crete, on D-Day, Market Garden (A Bridge too Far) and throughout the war. Now extremely difficult to find - this near perfect, unused example is dated 1943 and well-marked to BMB (Briggs Motor Bodies). Size 6-5/8 and displays very well. Early horsehair padding sealed with a hard black coating and a heavy, blackened leather chin strap. Amazing condition. Looks superb as is or with a net and scrim, or with Mk VII or Mk VIII goggles for a glider pilot display. This pattern remained the standard until the leather strapping was replaced with a simplified webbing chin strap in 1944. Retains almost all its original sand-textured painted finish. An absolute beauty, all original and in fantastic condition.
$2,995 / £2,250 / €2,680
RAF Mk IA jet helmet "bone dome" ID'd and with 33 squadron decal.
Customized Mk IA jet pilot's crash helmet or "bone dome" as they are called in RAF parlance. 1971 dated helmet named to Oram of 33 squadron, stationed at RAF Odiham. 33 squadron has an illustrious history as a fighter squadron, and in 1971 it became the first RAF unit equipped with the Puma helicopter. Overall good condition with some natural service wear. The green paint has some slight scuffs and chips and the edge rubber has a couple of worn areas at the front edges. Good visor and mechanism, good chin strap and reflective tape on back/top is still intact. Clean lining. A solid helmet with a great decal on the left side depicting the Hart's head emblem of 33 squadron. Not common to find good attributed or decorated RAF helmets and this example displays well.
$250 / £190 / €225
AAF AN-H-15 summer flying helmet, unissued condition.
Lovely, unissued example of the AAF AN-H-15 summer flying helmet introduced in 1944 for use in hot climates. Clean inside and out, never had receivers installed but rubber holders are pliable with no edge cracks or damage, Size medium but actually quite a generous size. This is the early version with 3 snaps/press stud fasteners on each side for attaching an oxygen mask. This one would be very difficult to upgrade.
$95 / £75 / €90
1930s Air Associates commercial flying helmet with Gosport tubes.
Commercial flying helmet by the well known Air Associates brand, mid-1930s. Very similar to the type issued to US Navy aircrews; excellent quality leather with a chamois lining and fitted with blackened copper Gosport receivers for training and internal communication. Shows honest use but no damage or undue wear. Lovely helmet.
$150 / £120 / €140
AAF Type A-9 flying helmet with snaps fitted for A-14 oxygen mask.
Excellent example of the early wartime A-9 flight helmet, as issued without ear cups but fitted with snap/stud fasteners for the A-14 mask (2 each side positioned correctly for the strap attachment). In all other respects, the helmet appears to be in unissued and certainly unworn condition. GReen cotton with lambswool fleece pads inside and fleec wrapped leather chin strap. Size medium with a good label inside.
$70 / £55 / €65
Original and extremely rare USAF K-1 Pressure helmet.
One of the rarest and most sought after items of flying headgear dating from the Cold War and used in aircraft such as the U-2. Pressure helmets were produced in extremely small quantities, at great expense, and were custom fitted to the individual. This example has been customized either during or after its USAF life by painting it red and adding a clenched first/thumbs up emblem and several MLB baseball team logos. Helmet shell and inner helmet are 100% original and in very good condition. the thin rubber facial seal is perfect. Chamois pads are all in great, clean condition, though the sponge padding is a little stiff in a few places. The helmets are incredibly difficult to find and the faceplates almost impossible (most were destroyed to prevent accidental suffocation). A replica faceplate is included which is quite convincing from a distance but strictly non-functional. I wonder if this was used as a film prop? Who knows? It would not be difficult to remove the red paint and restore this helmet to USAF display standard - or leave as is for a one-of-a-kind piece. Interior label is dated February 1955. A classic piece of USAF history and the first I have ever been able to offer.
$2,650 / £2,125 / €2,475
US Army and AAF Mask, Field, Chamois dated 1943.
Issued for cold weather conditions as protection against frostbite, these masks were also issued to aircrew exposed to extreme cold at altitude, after it was discovered that frostbite was responsible for more injuries then enemy action. It could be worn under a flying helmet and oxygen mask without any problems. This is an unissued example (eye holes never cut out) and retains its original QM label, which is very unusual. Appears to have got wet in storage but no damage or ill effects. Elastic strap still stretches like new. Haven't seen on for years and never with the label.
$120 / £95 / €112
US Army knitted balaclava style head and face protector.
US Army knitted balaclava style hood issued to all branches of the Army including AAF air and ground crews servng in colder climates. Heavy, ribbed knit pattern in OD wool with facial opening that could be pulled under the chin to accommodate an oxygen mask. Nice 1941 dated printed QM label indicating manufacture by Lion Knitting Mills. Very good condition with no damage.
$85 / £70 / €80
US navy NAF1092 flying helmet, ID'd. Large size and great condition.
Lovely example of the standard issue US Navy and US Marine Corps intermediate flying helmet form the late 1930s until about 1943-44. Goatskin leather with chamois lining and chamois lined chin cup. Manufactured by Slote and Klein to Naval Aircraft factory contact specs. Helmet has a name and serial number to the inside of the brow/peak of J.T. Pope and CF1. Size 7-1/4 with an unusual early sewn chin cup. No earcups for receivers ever sewn on, but it is stamped in the back "USN". Not an uncommon helmet, but ID'd examples are always nice.
$120 / £95 / €112
Scully "Air Mail" luxury privately purchased commercial flying helmet, 1930s.
One of, if not the, most luxurious privately purchased flying helmets of the interwar era, c1930. The beautiful Scully "Air Mail" helmet by Scully Bros. of Los Angeles was made from the softest glove leather and lined with butter soft suede. The helmet has elasticated gussets on each side for a snug fit, sturdy copper Gosport pipes and receivers, a rolled leather edge for comfort. Slightly dark staining on one side (looks like it might have been lying in oil at some time) but this looks worse in the pictures than real life and does not affect the feel or quality of the leather – there is no residual oiliness. Great label and large size. Lovely helmet.
$165 / £138 / €155
WWII Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm aircraft carrier deck handler's helmet.
A very scarce accessory - cotton helmet as worn by Royal Navy deck crews while manhandling aircraft on the flight decks of aircraft carriers during WWII. Each colour denoted a specific role or duty and I believe royal blue indicated starboard general duties. Simple unlined cotton helmet with a chin strap and buckle (essential for it not to be blown off in the high winds and propwash). Size 2 (Large) in unissued condition. See last photos for wartime colour photos of helmets being worn on cover and editorial in Illustrated News dated 1943. Note: this helmet is not the same as the US Navy issue deck helmets which were often modified into flying helmets by USN pilots. Very scarce item and the last one of a small batch I obtained a while back.
$75 / £65 / €75
Scarce early RAF Type F flying helmet.
The Type F flying helmet was first developed and tested in 1950 as a successor to the ubiquitous Type C, because a new helmet was needed that would A) house new telephone receivers with larger noise attenuating pads and B) fit underneath a crash helmet (or "bone dome") when needed. The Type C remained in service for many years. The Type F, finally introduced into RAF service in 1954, was in service for less than a year, quickly superseded by the Type G which, though similar, featured additional mask fittings for the new P/Q series and a more comfortable, integral nape strap. Made from the same blue-grey Airtex fabric as the Type G, the two are often confused. This example has seen better days but still displays quite well. Rust stained on one side with a small tear (about 3/4" long) in left crown area, and one or two pinhead sized holes in the Airtex, it has a couple of the snap fasteners pulled through, although these are still present and could be repaired easily. It includes the hard-to-find large leather/rubber ear pads in good condition and, rather than a label as was sewn to later production helmets, it is ink stamped with sizing information (size 2, medium). Lacks chin strap in photos but I have now installed the correct chin strap. A very scarce helmet that is still quite reasonable for display and priced accordingly.
$50 / £47 / €52