Armoured Vehicle Communications headsets

[Gordon Craig]

I am going to list the headgear, that I am aware of, which you may find pictured in Bundewehr period pictures of armoured vehicle.
1-I will start with a piece of headgear that is good both for protection and communications while riding in an armoured vehicle. It is often referred to as a "Sprechhaub". It is made of leather and has three large protective bumpers on top of the device. On the sides of each bumper are holes for ventilation. In some helmets the holes are round and on others they are rectangular in shape. To allow for air flow, there are removable net devices in the helmet interior so that the head does not sit against the helmet leather. The helmet is adjustable at the back and at the front on each side. The rear adjusting strap can come with snap fasteners, or velcro, on a leather strap. The front straps are only found with pressure type closures. The two ear piece receivers are held in the helmet with small spring loaded pins. The pins are short and the ear piece come loose easily. The left ear piece is equipped with a Press-to-talk (PTT) three position leaver type switch and the microphone. In the centre position the switch is in receive mode only. In the BV (Bediengerät Verstärker) position (to the rear of the head) the wearer is connected to the vehicles intercom system. When pushed to the BV position the lever remains there until it is moved to another position. When the leaver is operated towards the front of the head to the "FUNK" position the wearer is in broadcast (talk) mode over the net the radio is connected to. When released from the "FUNK" position the leaver returns to the centre position (receive only). The cord from the headgear has a large metal clip to attach to the tunic so that the cord will not pull on the head gear. It has a large rectangular connector in the centre of the cord plus a round connector at the extreme end for connection to the radio. The helmet comes with a complete cord in a khaki coloured nylon bag closed with a zipper.

The first pictures show the helmet with the rectangular air holes. The switch is shown in the centre position. Note the small strap at the front of the helmet for adjusting the fit.

[Gordon Craig]

These two pictures show the two different types of adjusting straps at the back of the helmet.

[Gordon Craig]

The helmet with the round ventilation holes -the switch is in the BV position. Note the foam cover on the microphone. This cover is missing on the other helmet. The second foto shows the metal spring clip for attaching the wire to the tunic and the large central connector in the cord. I beleive this connector is there so that the connector the fits onto the radio can be changed quickly should it become damaged.

[Gordon Craig]

A picture of the adjustable chin strap (cord with a sliding plastic piece) and a quick release clip on the wearers right side. The second picture shows the net liner for the inside of the helmet. It attaches with small snaps and pieces of velcro.

[Gordon Craig]

The storage bag for the Sprechhaub and the Sprechhaub in wear as shown in Kunstwadl's book.

[Gordon Craig]

2-A headset that is very similar to the one worn in the "Sprechhaub" but is designed to fit over a beret or a field cap. It is the model H267/SEM. The ear pieces are joined together via a spring band with a padded cover. Instead of having a PTT in the left ear piece there is a separate PTT in a box worn on the chest. The PTT in the box functions in the same manner as the one in the previously discussed ear piece. The microphones are of the ‘"larnyx" type and are worn around the neck.

[Gordon Craig]

A picture from Afghanistan showing both of these headsets in wear. The sprechhaub in the first vehicle and the H267/SEM in the second vehicle. The second foto is a closer view of the H267/SEM headset in wear over the beret.

[Gordon Craig]

3-A combination set of receivers and microphone that are designed to attach to the standard G-Helm. The receivers clamp onto the sides of the helmet. The microphone boom extends from the right receiver. The wire for connecting the headset to the vehicle radio also comes from the right receiver. This wire is attached to the rear of the helmet with a large metal spring. The wire terminates in a chest switch with the same functions as the Sprechhaub receiver switch. Centre is receive only, BV for intercom and "FUNK" for radio net communications. All of these headsets should work with the SEM 52 radio.
These pictures are from the auction of the helmet on ebay.de that I was successful in winning. This helmet has an interesting history that will be the subject of a separate thread.