A Fallschirmjäger on Crete near Chania. Note that he has his steel helmet slung  over his shoulder and is wearing the cloth helmet cover on his head, to try to beat the Cretan heat. 


The rest of the warrior

Falschirmjäger went heavily-loaded into battle. This trooper fixed the ammo pouches for his MP40 to his lower legs. Most troops dropped into Crete unarmed, except for a pistol, but a few decided to drop with weapons in hand. This was common for those who had MP40s. There is a film where a trooper landed with his MG34 in hand, with ammunition box! He dropped his load just before landing, as to lighten himself, and allow for proper roll on impact. 

Dressed for the battle

Original caption: “The air operation ‘Hermes’ has begun. German paratroops board a Junkers Ju52 at the airport of southern Greece in order to be transported to Crete. Embarking, the static line was held in the teeth as to keep it from being a nuisance. This kept the hands free to haul the trooper and all the bulky equipment onto the plane. 