A Parachutists Leg Bag

I have a hard-on!!! ;-)

Is this in YOUR collection?

This is a WARTIME Leg Bag (container). The rope and carabiner are wrong but even a modern rope (NSN label and rubber bands removed) would look right. At the harness end of the rope would have been a sprung tube with a web sleeve. These were known to break in the air (read "Arnhem Spearhead" by James Sims)...

The actor, (Lt) Richard Todd (7 PARA), jumped in on D-Day with *two* of these, apparently.

I've recently picked up 2x successors to this piece of kit: one 1954 standard container, the other a 1956 special container for the Vickers HMG or radio kit, I reckon (I'll add pics soon). I jumped with the CSPEP, the successor to those. I had it EASY, by comparison!

The first thing to hit me with the 50s containers were the leg strap which was released by a pin on a cord - before the container was released. (The same ason the Leg Bag) A nightmare if it stuck! Landing with the container could easily result in serious injury such as broken legs, pelvis or even spine.

Your dad's right, the Leg Bag would have been fiddly and dangerous to use, by modern standards. And on top of that, he'd have jumped with a rifle valise (unless he had a Sten SMG) which would attach to a leg and neck by those quick release pins... :-o

No mate I dont own this bit of kit. When my dad told me about it I was intrigued so got hold of this picture. Thanks for the info.

CORRECTION:
I *THINK* the rope is wrong. Early 1950s to this day, all suspension ropes have a loop spliced at the end.

It's just occurred to me that the rope might have been *TIED* to the spring tube contraption.