Hełm wz. 67

The '''Hełm wz. 67''' is a combat helmet used in the Polish People's Army and in the Polish Armed Forces.

History
Working on a new steel helmet to replace the previously used wz. 50, started at the Military Institute of Armament Technology in 1964. The construction team was led by Colonel M. Eng. Romuald Zimny. Hełm wz. 67 was officially adopted on April 21, 1967, and was produced at Huta Silesia until the end of the 1980s.

Shell
The shape of the helmet refers to the pre-war model helmet wz. 31. The shell is pressed from a special steel sheet with a thickness of 1.4 mm. It has a slightly marked peak and a tiny brim. The weight of the helmet is approximately 1.5 kg.

The shells of wz. 67 helmet are made in two sizes:


 * small (adapted to the installation of suspensions in sizes: 54–57 cm)
 * large (adapted to the installation of suspensions in sizes: 58–60 cm)

Liner
In hełm wz. 67 there are three types of internal equipment. The first type is the suspension used in wz. 50 helmets. The second one (the most common) is mounted on a supporting element in the form of a metal ring. A leather belt is attached to it, cut into eight elongated leaves. Each of them was sewn together at the end, creating a tunnel. A shoelace is threaded through the tunnels, thus creating a kind of hat. The suspension is attached to the shell with one screw located at the top of the helmet. This procedure significantly facilitates the replacement of the damaged liner, as well as its quick disassembly, which allows you to wear the helmet directly on the fur hat in winter. The chin strap, made of leather, is attached directly to the shell. It is fastened with a metal buckle.

The third type of internal equipment was introduced in 1977. The new facade consists of a metal frame, a complex system of straps and a leather "hammock". The hammock can be adjusted to suit any head size. The new fit allows the helmet to be held firmly on the back of the head, preventing it from sliding onto the face, for example when crawling. Helmets with such equipment are marked as wz. 67/75.

Painting
Initially, it was planned to paint the helmets with "Salamandra" anti-reflective varnish, similarly to the wz. 31, however, this idea was abandoned. The standard ones were painted with a smooth semi-matt varnish in two colors: green (for land forces) and blue-gray (for air forces, Home Air Defense Forces and Navy). The eagle symbol of the Land Forces or Air Force was painted on the helmets (or applied in the form of decals). An appropriate mark was placed on helmets intended for WSW. Helmets intended for the Milicja Obywatelska had large letters "M" and "O" painted on the front and a large state eagle between them.

Accessories
For camouflaging purposes, helmets wz. 67 and wz. 67/75 are equipped with a masking net and a special face veil. In helmets for land forces, the mesh and veil were khaki, and in blue-gray helmets - in a similar color. In winter, white covers were used. Currently, the camouflage nets have been replaced by camouflage covers in wz. 93 Pantera camo.

Users
Current Former
 * 🇪🇬 Egypt
 * 🇵🇱 Poland: still in limited use as a training helmet.
 * Syria
 * 🇺🇦 Ukraine: donated in 2014-2022.


 * Islamic Republic of Afghanistan


 * Polish People's Republic: the wz. 67 and wz. 67/75 was used as the primary infantry helmet of the Polish People's Army from 1967 until 1989.

Books

 * Kijak, Jacek (1993) Hełmy Wojska Polskiego 1917–1991, Warszawa: Bellona, ISBN 83-11-07997-8.
 * Szarugiewicz, Cezary (2014) Mundur i wyposażenie Żołnierza Polskiego 1943–1945, ISBN 978-83-938-5260-4.