Finnish

Finnish disarm a floating enemy sea mine from a small wooden rowboat in the Gulf of Finland, near Haapasaari, 1944.
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Did not know of this plane so went for a closer look.
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"The Fiat G.50 Freccia ("Arrow") was a World War II Italian fighter aircraft. First flown in February 1937, the G.50 was Italy’s first
single-seat, all-metal monoplane with an enclosed cockpit and retractable Undercarriage to go into production. In early 1938,
the Freccias served in the Regia Aeronautica (the Italian Air Force), and with its expeditionary arm, the Aviazione Legionaria, in
Spain, where they proved to be fast and, as with most Italian designs, very maneuverable. However, it had inadequate weaponry
(two Breda-SAFAT 12.7-mm machine guns).[4] The Fiat G.50 was also used in small numbers by the Croatian Air Force and 35 were
flown to Finland, where they served with distinction.". - Fandom.com
 
I was surprised to see this.
I have a picture on the previous page here that show the Finn’s with skeletons on their helmets.
I thought it was unique to thosefew soldiers.

Curious, I did some looking up.
I found this site which discusses it in depth.

I’ll just put a few paragraphs from the site here.

“The members of Kev Os. 4 enthusiastically adopted the nickname, with many painting a skull and bones on their helmet fronts to further terrify their enemies.”

“Of Skulls & Bones
Almost anytime the Winter War is written about or discussed online, more often than not a photo will appear featuring a Finnish soldier wearing a helmet with a skeleton rendered on the front. It would be easy to believe that all Finnish solders wore such a helmet. In truth, the practice was limited almost exclusively to one particular unit. That unit was Kevyt Osasto 4, or in English, Light detachment 4.”

“Kevyt Osasto 4
Prior to the Winter War, Second Squadron was commanded by Rittmeister Alfons Sundblad. As the Winter War commenced, Sundblad was reassigned to command of Kevyt Osasto 4. It would appear that Sundblad really enjoyed the traditions of his former mounted unit and presented himself as the dashing dragoon officer with all the trappings. In photos from the era, he is usually seen vested in jodhpurs, leather riding boots and a riding crop in his hands. It should come as no surprise that Sundblad would bring some of the traditions he enjoyed from his former unit with him to Kevyt Osasto 4.

Sundblad was not the only officer in Kevyt Osasto 4 to have a connection to a mounted unit. Captain Randall Nybom a company commander, had likewise served as a pre-war cavalry officer. The two men collaborated in creating an unofficial insignia for their new unit, which they borrowed from Kuolemaneskadroona. It was, of course, the skull and bones. Kevyt Osasto 4 was more than just a regular infantry unit. The men would be highly trained to serve as a mobile unit. which meant they were intended to move rapidly to wherever there were emergencies at the front. The skull and bones would have symbolized the deadly tasks the men would be taking on.

Sundblad and Nybom likewise tagged their unit with the nick name: Kuolemankomppania, or the Death Company. It would appear the men embraced the skull as a proper symbol of their unit.

On the helmet too?
At this point, the men of Kevyt Osasto 4 deciding to camouflage their helmets with the unique skeleton pattern camouflage is lost to history.”"

For more in depth details and some great pics see the site:


Original German M16 helmet sporting one of the many versions of skeletons used by Kevyt Osasto 4. The helmet can be seen today in Finland’s Mikkeli Infantry museum.

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