Webbing

 

Now this is a tricky one to write, mainly as each soldier's webbing sets are total customizable. You put the items where you think they would be best suited to you. There is no right way... there are certainly some wrong things to do, but you'll work those out as you go along; just put your entrenching tool in the wrong spot and try and run, the backs of your legs will get a battering - if you don't end up face first in the dirt that is! The only thing that will need to be properly adjusted are the M1936 suspenders, these will look simply ludicrous when not adjusted and worn correctly. We don't expect you to be able to get this right. It took me a few goes to get the just right for me and I've been doing this for years! Plus, its far easier to do it with the buddy-buddy system than trying to do it on your own.

Musette Bag - an item which creeps up from time to time and people will tell you that your 'doing it wrong'. You'll be told to clip it down to the belt, you'll be told to have the straps go under your arms like a backpack, you'll be told to leave it hanging loose because that makes most sense.... sadly, lots of people have been told what is right over the years and based on nothing more than what they 'think', rather than on anything factual. 

The problem that the paratroopers had to overcome was that when you're wearing the T5 parachute, you cannot have the musette bag on your back! However, by not clipping down those other two straps to anything; and only having it clipped to the D rings you can flip it over your head to your front and wear it there until after you jump, land, get rid of your chute. Then you can either flip it over your head and wear it over the parachute tray or discard the T5 parachute rig entirely if you have time and it's safe. Once you flip the Musette Bag over your head, I don't suppose anyone would immediately then fiddle around clipping down those two other straps to make a handy backpack, or clip them to the belt to make them tidy! Of course, some might during a lull, but priorities first! Wear it as you want to wear it, as long as it make sense and you understand why you've chosen the way you're wearing it!

 

You do see items like the Musette Bag that have been personalized, usually with just surname and serial number on the front main flap. I can only assume this was done to make it easier to find your own webbing when rooms/barracks are shared.

The only important thing when it comes to webbing, other than the adjustment of the M1936 suspenders, is to be certain not to wear/carry anything that doesn't make sense. For example, only one piece of entrenching kit (axe, pick mattock, entrenching tool); everything should match the impression and rank you are portraying. 

The M7 Assault Vest was never issued or worn by any of the Airborne units during WW2. This was issued to the seaborne invasion force only. Rangers, 1st Inf Div, 29th Inf Div, etc... It makes no sense to wear one, no matter how good they look and let's not ever get started on the fact that almost all the reproductions are tan and yet almost all of the originals were made in OD#7 (the dark olive green for normal folks)... 

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Gas Mask Bags

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The 101st were issued the M5 assault gas masks. These assault gas masks were carried in a black rubberized M7 Bag that had a strap attached to each corner. The bag was usually carried with one strap around the waist, resting on the thigh, with the opening facing forward. WW2 bags had four chrome snaps; the post-war version had three visible lift the dot snaps.

Two original 101st veterans, Eugene "Gene" Gilbreath told Bert de Jong, when asked what they did with their gas masks, that the rubberized bag fitted nicely in the musette bag and was used as a waterproof liner for keeping personal stuff dry. The mask itself was left with the supply train, or just thrown away…

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Trench Knife

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Another trademark of the paratroopers is the M3 Trench Knife. Although this knife is a general issue item, it is mostly known for being used by the paratroopers. Traditionally the airborne troops strapped the knife in its sheath to their lower leg.

Two types of sheaths were used in WW2, the early leather M6 sheath and the plastic (with a webbing belt loop) M8 sheath. In Normandy the M6 sheath appears prevalent, but if the M6 is either worn out or damaged, the M8 seems to be issued. Occasionally the later M8A1 with its wire hanger is seen in photographs. The tips of the M8 and M8A1 sheaths were reinforced with a metal tip in the post-war period.

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Any kind of strap was used through the belt loop and tied around the calf. This could be a spare boot lace, piece of string or rope, or even a rag. A widely used strap, however, is one of the straps taken from a folding field cot. The earlier field cots were white, and these white straps can be seen in original photos. Tourniquets were used sometimes, but being a medical item, these weren't readily available. The tip of both types of sheaths had a hole through which a leather thong passed and was then tied around the ankle.

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Short 18" straps are often offered on eBay as "paratroop leg" or "general purpose" straps. Obviously these are too short for any general-purpose use. These straps are actually USMC pack straps for securing the tent roll to the marine's field pack. Obviously, none were acquired by any troopers in the ETO.

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Believe it or not, the knife was worn on the belt as well! Shock horror, how dare I make such outlandish claims!

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Parachute First Aid Kit

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Developed first for the Air Corps, the 1st aid kit was a standard issue to the parachute troops before a combat jump. This small waterproof pouch could be tied to equipment with its four fabric tapes. In this pouch there was a standard field dressing, tourniquet, and a morphine syrette along with an instruction sheet.

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This pouch can be seen tied to any equipment (suspenders, belt, shovel, etc.), an arm or leg, and sometimes to the shoulder loops of the M43 jacket. After Normandy, some troopers tied the 1st aid kit to the netting of their helmets (although occasionally, medics from the 326th AB Med Co. did tie them to their helmet netting), and it appears this was not standard practice with the 502nd PIR until the Holland jump and beyond. The 17th Airborne Division was ordered to tie the kit to their helmets for the Varsity Operation so that the British soldiers could easily distinct the American helmets from the German helmets in the early dawn hours of the assault.

Along with the Parachute First Aid Kit, British field dressings were issued and can be seen tied to equipment, uniforms or helmets.

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MEDICS

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Each Parachute Infantry Regiment has a medical unit attached permanently to that regiment. These units provided for medical care at the front line and initial medical care and evacuation. All three battalions had a medical unit that acted as a battalion aid station. Each company had two or three medics from this attached unit who usually became unofficial members of that particular company.

The medics of the regimental attachment were part of that organization and used the same helmet stenciling as the rest of the regiment. In the case of the 502nd this was the heart marking with no corresponding tic.

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The 326th AB Med Co was attached to the 101st Airborne Division. This company was responsible for evacuation of the wounded from the battalion aid stations to divisional collecting stations from which the wounded were transported to field hospitals.

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The 101st Airborne Division, or the 82nd for that matter, did not used red crosses on their helmets! It was the 17th Airborne Division that used three large red crosses in white circles during the Rhine Jump. (Only the 3rd battalion medical attachment, 508th PIR, used two large white circles with red crosses on the sides of their helmets during the Normandy Jump.)

Members of the 326th AB Med Co. used a small white Geneva cross on the sides for helmet marking. Again, no red crosses in white circles!

Initial front-line evacuation was done by litter, from there the versatile jeep took over. The 101st AB used specially converted jeeps for the transportation of the wounded. Since the jeep could be delivered by glider it was part of the operation from the start.

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Airborne medics usually carried only one medical bag with its bottom extended. One litter carrying strap was used to carry the bag slung over the shoulder. The special medical harness, called a yoke, and a second bag were simply not used.

Aid-men of the 101st normally wore two red cross armbands, one around each arm.

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Weapons

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Soldiers carry arms. Riflemen carries rifles.

The standard rifle of the U.S. Army in WW2 is the M1 rifle, also called the Garand after its inventor. U.S. soldiers, however, referred to this rifle as the "M1 rifle". The only external upgrade the rifle got after the war was a replacement for the rear 'lock-bar' sight. The new T-105 rear sight windage knob did not require a separate lock-bar and so solved the problem of the lock bar coming loose. It was otherwise identical. Both the old M1907 leather and the new web M1 slings were still being used at the time of the Holland Jump. Don't put any en-bloc clips on the sling, this was seldom done (a clip packed with dirt isn't much use) and you'll probably gonna lose it anyway.

Remember that the M1 rifle was carried port arms. A lot of re-enactors run around holding their rifles like a modern assault rifle, with the muzzle pointing down. It's not a mine detector!

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