Attention KM Uniform Experts!

[Remy Spezzano]

Hoping some of the more experienced Kriegsmarine uniform collectors can help me determine whether or not the insignia being worn by this NCO is KM issue.

There is a possibility that this soldier belongs to a KM Infantry unit which was
sent into combat in the wooded area of Oosterbeek, Holland during the fighting of Sept. 1944.

I have deliberately lightened the photo so you can see the breast eagle on his
tunic and also the BeVo style eagle on his M43 cap. I'm so used to looking at regular
Heer or (Army) issue insignia made with the light colored field grey thread. And the KM used a yellowish golden colored thread.

Can any of you tell for certain that the breast eagle and the M43 cap insignia is
in fact KM issue? Also his collar tabs are not typical Army issue. Would the KM have used collar tabs like this shown in the photo for infantry or coastal Artillery units?

Interested to hear what the experts have to say.
Thanks.

[pionier]

To me this looks like a Heer soldier, not KM. Insignia are Heer and tunic too. On the second pic you can clearly see the folded lower pocket.

I also would like to know other opinions...

[DonC]

It also looks to me like he is wearing breeches. I suspect he is from one of the Heer units that fought during Market-Garden.

Don

[Doug Nash]

KM Uniforms

He's also wearing riding boots & spurs - usually worn by artillerymen assigned to horse-drawn batteries. He's also wearing the KVKII ribbon and what looks like a WSIO ribbon as well - not too many KM guys got that award. The fact that they have dark-green back collar tabs on M40/41 model tunics is no discrepancy - I've seen many photos of Heer soldiers who had the same mix of pre-war/early war insignia worn affixed to mid/late war uniforms. My guess is that this is an artillery liaison or forward observer team (the NCO on the left has what looks like an artillery or mortar plotting board) that could possibly be in support of a KM unit. Normally, the Schiffstamm-Abteilungen did not have their own artillery, since they were replacement/depot units. So when these units were activated to support the response to the Market-Garden operation, they had to get their artillery support from somewhere - there were a number of Heer artillery & training installations, depots and schools in Holland, so it's possible that they would get a tasking to send liaison and forward observer teams out to support any KM unit fighting in an infantry role. Thoughts, anyone????

[Remy Spezzano]

Can someone from this forum post a color photo of a field gray KM M-43 so we can make a comparison?

[rbno]

CA shoulder straps should be pointed. These are rounded like Heer.

CA collar tabs have a white center stripe and 2 golden yellow stripes. This one appears to be all one color, like the Heer wartime universal tabs.

The signals blitz in the background is a Heer pattern vertical oval with a lightng bolt blitz as opposed to the KM round with an "N" shaped blitz.

I see nothing that can be attributed to KM.

[Tony T-S]

The shoulder boards also jumped out at me too.

[Dimitri D]

I agree, nothing to do with land based kriegsmarine soldiers.