German Forces

Taking 5

fbbrummbar

A break in the action is a good time to light up a smoke! Waffen SS soldiers taking cover during a break. The soldier smoking a cigarette has mounted his Seitengewehr 98 (bayonet) on his rifle, a rather unusual practice. He is sitting on a box with what appears to be Cyrillic markings. The soldier on his left (NCO?) has a MP38 or MP40 in his lap, and sports a captured haversack, filled to the brim, on his right hip. Behind his right side magazine pouch for the MP he appears to have tucked away 3-4 Stielhandgranate 24. And yet another one is visible in his boot. Behind his back is a spare barrel carrier and several more Stielhandgranate 24 stacked against a "fence". It is unclear who left them there, but it might be a Schütze that is out reconnoitering. The face of the other waiting NCO all to the left in the picture, and the general composition suggests that this picture is real, and taken during a short break during an advance. taken from fb/Bergflak