The Century-Long Evolution of the U.S. Army Helmet

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Although soldiers have been wearing head protection since at least the 26th century BCE, the modern military helmet is a fully 20th century invention.

And it’s been a rapid evolution. Growing from its WWI origins, the standard issue Army helmet has transformed from a simple ‘tin hat’ into an impenetrable shell that can shrug off high-velocity bullets. What was once a simple piece of steel is now fabricated from space-age composites that can stop a AK47 round dead in its tracks.

Now, more than a century after the first U.S. Army helmet was introduced, the Army’s Program Executive Office for Soldier Protection and Individual Equipment is reimagining the helmet into a piece of gear more fitting today’s battlefield.

An interesting question that, I think, will have two very distinct camps of supporters and not a lot of middle ground: does a survivalist need a military-style helmet?

We’ve seen the ‘high speed, low drag operators’ running around in their bump helmets. These helmets are more for protecting your noggin from banging against doorways, window frames, the inside of an MRAP, etc, etc, rather than offering ballistic protection. In fact, as I read it, skateboard helmets were sometimes pressed into duty before the military was fully on board with the bump helmet.

But we’re not talking about that. We’re talking about the modern(ish) PASGT that we see frequently at gun shows and the like. Does a survivalist need one of those? Or is wearing one just a form of LARPing?

Well, to be fair, they’re a great place to mount your flip-down night vision. But, how many of us can afford to have a sweet set of NODs? So if you don’thave a need for a helmet-mounted piece of gear, do you need a helmet?

I think that in most crises your probably going to need a protective helmet to spare you the head injuries from debris, tree limbs, falling glass, etc, etc, more than you will need the ballistic protection from incoming rifle fire. (And I’d put the need for protection from shell fragments at near-zero.)

On the other hand, some folks figure that if youre going to be wearing body armour why wouldn’t you extend that level of protection to your brainpan? If you’re doing the Roof Korean thing, don’t you want as much protection as possible? Good argument there.

I’ll admit that, tucked away in the bunker, there’s a PASGT sitting there that I picked up years ago. I know it fits, but other than that I have never worn it. But, for some reason, I like knowing I have it. If I had to run out the door to stem the horde of zombies would I grab it? I’m really not sure. But I like having that option.

What about you? Does a helmet have a place in your preps? Military helmet or construction/debris helmet?

34 thoughts on “The Century-Long Evolution of the U.S. Army Helmet”

  1. For me, yes. I started with the bump helmet for running a PVS14. About 3 years ago I decided if I was going to carry/wear a bulky helmet, it may as well offer some real protection. There are enough firsthand accounts of these saving dudes from serious injury or death, that justify it for me. You definitely need to get used to the weight through training. Running, walking, shooting with a couple pounds on your noggin for just a couple hours will really make your neck sore the first time or 2 you use it.

    • Nailed it. It’s only useful if you know how and can physically use it. In a defensive situation, helmets all day, on recon, maybe given loss of sense and weight. My personal opinion is the pasgt offers more coverage and I’d rather use small form ear pieces inside for comms and external listening than those big peltors that leave a lot of area exposed to shrapnel or small arms. Helmet tech hasn’t moved too far in the last 20 years, except maybe being a little lighter but not for the cost increase.

  2. To be honest any piece of equipment the military uses should be in the peppers equipment allotments. Of course cost is a concern. With the number of companies making body armour, NVGs, and good coms units it make sense. Especially when you see what we are up against.
    It’s all about survivability. Living to fight anther day.
    Some of the Brit body armour includes a for lack of a better word a crotch cup to protect the family jewels. Supposed to work against bullets and IEDs. It is interesting to see how warfare has progressed from the armoured knight to the modern body armour of today. Some of the European stuff I’ve seen have a piece that covers the upper arms, shoulders and the back of the neck. Others have a set that reminds me of the safety short pants that loggers and wood cutters use. Made from Kevlar.
    The biggest concern is weight, mobility and the ability to safely prevent wounds.
    But for every battle implement meant to save a soldiers life. There is another scientist/ engineer working to defeat the other guys equipment.

    • The US offers body armor that includes all those pieces. Commanders at one point would be in trouble (in Iraq) if their soldiers were wounded and they were not wearing available armor.

      At some point you can overdo it to the point that your mobility is so impaired you are at risk: Temperature control also becomes an issue.

      But your basic uniform, 40 lbs of body armor, a weapon and basic loadout of ammo, and then your normal equipment can quickly result in loads of 100lbs or more

      https://www.cnas.org/publications/reports/the-soldiers-heavy-load-1

    • Absolutely use the Oregon Aero Inserts! For about 6 Years in Commercial Helicopter Operations, I used their Inserts in my Gentex Aircrew Lid- as the mechanic, I didn’t Fly every Day, but just as often used it for Intercom with a long Cable when doing Ground-Run Maintenance. Payoff came when I fell off a Ladder and landed on my Back on Pavement. Seemed to have hit Head-First, never Blacked Out, got a Broken Shoulder/Upper Arm, and the Gentex Lid was Cracked four ways from the Impact Point.

  4. Clint Smith says that 90% of the fatalities in Viet Nam were from head wounds.

    I would think that better safe than sorry would be the way to go.

    I like your philosophy Commander, so it is not the first or even the 40th thing I would buy. I would try to get enough food and water to get thru a 90 day crisis first. After 90 days, either .gov will be there, or it is over. So for me, being able to keep my family going for 90 days is priority number 1.

    Then I like your advise for realistic SHTF situations, so get out of debt, put some money aside, be able to handle a bad economic situation, they are much more likely than a complete end of world.

    Once you can weather a temporary emergency or a financial emergency, then I would go for full combat gear, but since a complete societal collapse is probably not the most likely problem you will face, I would try to plan for what is most likely first, and then work my way down to least likely. Putting back food and paying off debt is not sexy or fun, but you preach the truth, it is more likely to save your ass in any given year than having a .50 cal.

    • Quite a few of the rest were from going traps like punji pits and other medevil designs. They also did well with the hand grenades. One thing about people like the Vietnamese and the Muslims they learn damn fast. And they should never be discounted. They are master’s at identifying weak points. The American Indians were good at that as well.

      • I think if the Indians were good at identifying weak points, the Dutch would have been slaughtered at Manhattan Island en masse, and the continent would have gone unsettled for another century.

    • “After 90 days, either .gov will be there”At a press conference on August 12th, 1986, US President Ronald Reagan said, “The nine most terrifying words in the English language are ‘I’m from the government and I’m here to help.’”

    • The leading cause of combat death in Vietnam was exsanguination (bleeding out) in isolated extremity hemorrhage. This caused 7.9% of combat deaths.

      And it lead to the development of a useful tourniquet (the VN issued canvas strap really didn’t work well), and various iterations of hemostatic dressings.

      In the recent EternalWar ™ the leading cause of COMBAT death was from IEDs, leading to traumatic amputation and exsanguination: Good tourniquets and hemostatic dressings still work.

  5. WROL situation and it might make you stand out like a sore thumb when being “gray” might be a better option, Regardless, only have so much cash to spend and that is NOT one of my high priority items.

  6. There are at least two theories about how to avoid aggressors in a post-SHTF environment.

    One scenario requires an individual to assume the Gray Man persona–drab, nondescript clothing, while residing in a low profile home. “Nothing to see here, folks. Nothing to see here.”

    The other scenario requires an individual to assume a hard target appearance, as in “Don’t mess with me,” or “Peace through strength.”

    Ask yourself this: Four “wolves” drive down a country road after SHTF and pass a home with three children playing in the yard, a woman wearing a sun dress working in the garden, and a guy in a wife-beater T-shirt, cut-offs, sandals, while carrying a pump shotgun cocked on his hip.

    Five hundred yards further down the road, the wolves pass a home with sandbags in place, three kids playing in the yard, a woman wearing multi-cam BDUs with a semi-auto pistol on her hip working in the garden, and a guy walking around the yard, decked out in a ballistic helmet, “full-battle rattle,” and an AR-15.

    Add more of each type of person described to each setting if desired. Be fair. Add no other facts or assumptions to support your opinion.

    Which home would the wolves be likely to strike that night?

    Throughout nature, and across all species, predators attack the weak, the old, and the young first. Being the tenth to be attacked is far better than being the first. Time may well be on your side.

  7. Yes.
    PASGT, MICH, and cut-down.
    And the NODS and thermal to go with it.

    The question comes down to “Do you like your head?”
    One stray 9mm in your head can ruin your whole day.

  8. I’ve never tried wearing a military helmet before but construction hard hats have made both good and bad points. Noisy when they collide with hard objects – I remember climbing through a roof hatch and making a lot of noise hitting the hatch edge climbing up. That could draw unneeded attention for sneaking up and around Bad Guys. OTOH, that noise was a result to protecting your head from colliding with an object that could hurt you.

    I guess I need to think more about them but I don’t wear any hats outdoors as a rule, unless it is raining.

  9. I find it interesting that special ops, who are exempt from regular military requirements for body armor, often still use a helmet.

    I think it is a really good idea to have one on hand and a better idea to be used to it. As mentioned above, head injuries are common since that’s where your eyes are and in a fight it’s often the only part of you not under cover.
    Also, when times get tough medical care will be scarce and labor will be hard; you won’t be able to take time off for w head injury or afford to be disabled from one.

    I have a pasgt and I also have several Eastern European metal helmets, real not repros, that I can give to others – it won’t stop direct hits but richochets and bumps are another matter.
    As far as explosives and shrapnel, that depends on where you are – for example, I’m in mining country; I know multiple people who have blasting licenses and approved storage nearby. Other areas are likely different.

  10. Absolutely a must have…
    Also, upgrade it with helmet pads and strap set…makes a huge difference.
    US ARMY ISSUE – PADS SET (7 PADS) was available on the zon, but can still
    be found elsewhere.

  11. Having ridden motorcycles for the 50 years or so, a rather large collection of protective gear has wound up in the bunker room. Helmet tech has evolved with blue tooth and other geegaws that may or may not be useful when the SHTF. Watching racers hit the deck at 150+ mph and get up like nothing happened is a testament to how good the gear is.

    The gloves, chest and leg protectors, jackets, pants, boots, etc. are all designed to take a heck of an impact and keep body parts intact. Nothing is 100% though and not sure how comfortable it would be to wear the gear 24/7 but definitely would come in handy if it was about to go down.

    Another way to view the helmet issue is if one needs to put one on, they probably should have left the area a while ago.

    • In current times, yes – same as with a rifle, if you need it, you shouldn’t be there.
      But when things fall apart, you may have no choice, or have reasons you (or your family) needs to be there…

  12. When I was in the reserves, I had to sign out all of my field gear on Friday night including the pack, sleeping bag, e-tool, field jacket and helmet (plus a crap-ton more). When returning on Sunday, I’d have to clean it all and wait in line for hours to have it inspected in order to turn it back in. If they found a speck of dirt I’d have to clean it again and then get back on the end of the line. Why I was the only one to buy all of that gear at cash sales when on my two weeks active duty (brand new at government prices), I’ll never know. After that I’d throw all of my gear into my car and go home. I didn’t have to wait any more and was home 3-5 hours earlier. Nobody ever drank from my canteen, wore my field jacket or slept in my sleeping bag but me.

    I still have it all including the helmet. It’s mine and I’m keeping it. If I ever need it again, so be it.

    • I did the same – and I was in the Army and Air Guard. I even had my own personal M17 mask and carrier.

      Because when I needed to show up with it, I knew exactly what was in it, where it was, and what condition it was in.

      There was a hell of deal when the military switched over to BDU’s and discontinued the pickle-suit fatigues: ALL sorts of stuff was on sale (and also orderable) at Clothing Sales…. I got about a dozen sets of Jungle Fatigues ($1 each), jungle boots, mountaineering boots, the M-1956 cold weather stuff, I even got some MP stuff because it was so cheap – a riot baton, black patent garrison belt and the mag and dressing pouches, etc.

      I even got a Crossman BB pistol to sub in for my issue sidearm, when I didn’t need a sidearm: Why should I take a weapon out of the armory, then be responsible for cleaning it when I didn’t use it?

  13. The problems in America today can be traced to an ill conceived and I’ll advised immigration plan by the American Indians. That what you mean. Remember a learning curve takes time. Ask George Custer or an officer named Fetterman about that.

  14. Along with the helmet, protective eyewear (i.e. ballistic eyewear) is also crucial. There will be a lot of debris thrown up, and walking in darkness will likely be a few surprises which could not be seen. Military goggles as a minimum is cheap insurance.

    If you cannot see – you cannot fight.

  15. I actually have three w/ the riot face shields. And three gas masks as well w/ extra cannister filters. I only have ‘flectarn’ flak vest’s for body amour because I am poor. And I don’t plan to stick much more than my head up out of my underground bunkers of which I have three, only one has NBC filtered protection…and I hope I never need them. but I feel very comfortable having all this and the years and years’ worth of chow!.

  16. “Neither eyes nor brains grow back.”

    Tough guys will be the ones walking on wooden peglegs with an eye patch after it’s all over.
    Not-so-tough guys will be dead right there when they’re blinded, and shot while laying on the ground unconscious.

    Some mistakes in life you don’t get to make twice.

  17. I’m in the good to have camp but it’s low on the list. They aren’t cheap, especially fully kitted out you are looking at several thousand. NODs are more important IMHO and from just a prepper perspective one should have plenty of long term food and spare $$ before getting those. I just have a bump helmet right now for my (single) PVS-14, in my AO I haven’t seen a military helmet at a gun show since I was a kid and the local National Guard was handing out old M1 helmets (not sure what ever happened to the several I had).

  18. Doc, your comments about TA-50 in the Army Reserve really brought back memories. I wasn’t the only officer in my unit who just bought the gear, set it all up to fit me, then just kept it at home, ready. It was probably some old first sergeant or sergeant major who offered that tip when I was 2nd lieutenant. Those experienced NCOs were extremely helpful if you had sense enough to shut up and learn from them. 🙂

  19. Yes on real helmets but I also have hard hats for gray man purposes,at the road block you are the contractor everyone is waiting on to do whatever is appropriate and even if they try to check the chances of them finding whoever is in charge in very low. Get used to wearing it,your neck muscles need to get accustomed and shooting with one is more difficult.

    • Good strategy. I have found that if one is wearing a hard hat and reflective vest the LEO’s and local fire departments just assume you are supposed to be in the area and rarely, if ever, question your presence.

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