Soft Headwear

Pilotka

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The Pilotka was the standard headwear for all branches of the Red Army. There were many variations designed for officers and specialist branches but i will only talk about the standard Lower-rank pilotkas. the majority of wartime manufactured ones were made of Double Twill fabric same to the harovari trousers. They are seen worn throughout the entire war.

Post-war design was similar if not the same to wartime ones. Double-Twill fabric, post-war made, can be found for normally around $30. You can get them from Cyrill Mekhanitchev or Red Guard Militaria, both on facebook.

Budenovka

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The Budenovka saw little service in the GPW as they were proved to be useless against the cold during the Winter War with Finland. There are only few images that show them being worn in 1941 onwards. They are better for portraying pre-war red army soldiers. They can be obtained from red_army_suvenir (instagram, he makes ALL 10ish variants of Budenovkas), Red Guard Militaria (facebook) or Soldatskaya Lavka (VK).

Field Caps

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Field caps came in various colours just like pilotkas to signify the wearer’s branch of service, but the standard infantry officer had either the Infantry-branch coloured cap of the M1941 subdued field cap which had better camouflage abilities. They were worn by officers and also Sergeants who have served 5 years or more. They can be obtained from Schusters.ru or Soldatskaya Lavka (VK).

Ushanka

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The Ushanka was the standard winter headwear of the Red Army, worn throughout the war. It was practical and could be worn in 3 ways; ear flaps up, ear flaps tied behind the neck or around the chin. For enlisted men, they were made of synthetic ‘fish fur’. They are often worn underneath helmets that had the liner when in combat. Most re-enactment groups don’t mind people using Bulgarian post-war ushankas as they are similar pattern to RKKA ones and are cheap, but to improve the authenticity of an impression, i would suggest getting reproductions from Cyrill Mekhanitchev or Schusters.ru .

Balaklava

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The balaclava provided warmth for the soldier in winter months, and provided covering to the face which the ushanka could not. It was only issued to the coldest regions of fighting, and proved to be life-saving. they could also be worn beneath a helmet hassle-free unlike the Ushanka. Post-war balakalavas (same pattern as wartime) can be bought from Denis Kuparinnen (facebook), and reproductions from art_znata (instagram).

Knit Hat

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The knit hat was not a wide-spread headwear for the RKKA and only few photos prove such item existed. An estimated assumption suggests that they were only worn near Leningrad. reproductions are made by art_znata (instagram).