Soviet Panamanka Hat History – Red Army, WWII & Afghanistan

Soviet Panamanka Hat in the Red Army, World War II and Afghanistan War (Part 1)

This is the introductory Part 1 of our article about the legendary Soviet panamanka hat and its history from the Red Army to the Afghanistan War.

In this article, we looked at rare archival photographs, early NKVD and Red Army panama hats, and how this summer military headgear was used in different periods of Soviet military history.

In the Part 2, we will make a much more detailed review of Soviet Afghanistan War panamanka hats, different models and variations, original details, markings, differences between years, and many more rare historical photos.

More interesting articles:

Why Mujahideen Feared Soviet GRU Spetsnaz in the Afghan War

Soviet Spetsnaz Uniform in Afghanistan (1979–1989)

What Soviet Soldiers Really Ate in the Afghan War

Soviet Afghanka Uniform. History, Features, and Use in Afghanistan

Funny dog wearing a Soviet military panama hat with red star badge — Funny dog wearing a classic Soviet military panama hat from the USSR Army summer uniform

Today I will tell you about the Soviet military panama hat that was used by soldiers and sergeants of the Armed Forces of the USSR in hot climate regions.

Since the 1980s, this military hat became widely known on the internet as the “Afghanka panama,” but this is not completely correct. After some research into the history of this panama, the following became clear.

Soviet soldiers wore panamanka hats like these

Soviet Panamanka Hat

Classic Soviet military panamanka hat inspired by the summer field hats worn by Red Army and Soviet Army soldiers in hot climate regions.

View Soviet Panamanka Hat

The panama hat was officially adopted by the Red Army in 1938 as part of the military uniform according to Order No. 61 of the USSR People’s Commissariat of Defense dated March 10, 1938.

For soldiers and military units stationed in the Central Asian, North Caucasus, and Transcaucasian military districts, as well as units located in Crimea, a cotton panama hat was introduced as a summer headgear that could be worn together with a steel helmet.

Red Army soldiers with captured Japanese soldiers during a military operation — Red Army soldiers and captured Japanese soldiers during a Soviet military operation. Rare archival USSR military photograph.

The panama was made from lightweight cotton fabric with wide semi-rigid stitched brims measuring 7 cm. The top part of the hat had four panels with twelve ventilation eyelets, three on each panel. A red star with a diameter of 7.5 cm was sewn on the front. The panama also had a red lining and a chin strap made from the same fabric.

For armored vehicle troops, the panama was made in steel-gray color fabric.

However, there is evidence that this panama appeared in NKVD units several years before Order No. 61, around 1935. For example, there is a photograph dated 1936 showing this type of panama hat already in use.

Rare 1936 photograph showing an early Soviet NKVD panama hat and vintage USSR military vehicle — Rare archival photograph dated 1936 showing an early Soviet NKVD panama hat before official Red Army adoption.

So, the first version of this panama hat was the 1935 NKVD model. In official documents, it was called a “subtropical helmet.”

Later, in 1938, a version of the panama for the Red Army appeared. This version differed from the NKVD subtropical helmet only by the position of the ventilation eyelets and by the absence of a rear loop on the back of the panama.

Since then, the panama hat remained part of the military uniform for Red Army and later Soviet Army units operating in hot climate regions, which is confirmed by many historical photographs.

Pre-war Soviet military panama hat with red star badge worn by a Red Army soldier — Pre-war Soviet military panama hat worn by a Red Army soldier before World War II.

Soviet soldier wearing a military panama hat during the Battle of Khalkhin Gol — Soviet military panama hat during the Battle of Khalkhin Gol. Rare pre-war Red Army archival photograph.

Soviet soldiers and pilots wearing military panama hats during the Battle of Khalkhin Gol — Soviet military panama hats during the Battle of Khalkhin Gol. Rare archival pre-war Red Army photograph.

A unique way of wearing the Soviet panama hat in a wartime photograph which, judging by the shoulder boards, was taken after 1943.

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Soviet soldiers wearing a military panama hat and Red Army cap during World War II — A unique style of wearing the Soviet panama hat in a wartime photograph taken after 1943.

Soviet soldiers wearing military panama hats near an armored vehicle during World War II. Rare Red Army archival photograph.

Pre-war Soviet border guard wearing a military panama hat with red star badge — Pre-war Soviet border guard wearing a classic military panama hat with red star badge.

Soviet tank crew wearing military panama hats during the Battle of Khalkhin Gol. Rare pre-war Red Army archival photograph.

Soldiers wore kirza boots like these

Soviet Kirza Boots

Classic Soviet military kirza boots inspired by the simple footwear worn by Red Army soldiers.

View Soviet Kirza Boots

Heroic Soviet BA-10 armored car crew wearing military panama hats during the Battle of Khalkhin Gol — Heroic BA-10 armored car crew during the Battle of Khalkhin Gol, July 1939. Rare Soviet military archival photograph.

The heroic Kochetov’s crew of BA-10 (Kochetov is rear on the right). The 9th motorized armored brigade, July 1939. This crew destroyed several machine guns and antitank rifles, 4 trucks with infantry and two more with ammunition. M. Kochetov died in action 18 July 1939. Posthumously he was awarded with Hero of the Soviet Union rank (ASKM).

Soviet tank crew soldiers wearing military panama hats near a light tank. Rare Red Army archival photograph.

Red Army units in Iran during Operation “Countenance” also wore panama hats.

A Red Army soldier talks with a soldier of the Iranian Army who surrendered his weapons during the Great Patriotic War.

Red Army soldier wearing a Soviet panama hat speaking with Iranian Army soldiers during World War II — Red Army soldier speaking with Iranian Army soldiers who surrendered their weapons during World War II. Rare Soviet archival photograph from Operation Countenance in Iran.

Panama hats were also used during the Great Patriotic War, this is a German photograph showing Soviet prisoners of war wearing panama hats. 1942, Crimean Front.

German photograph of Soviet prisoners of war wearing military panama hats on the Crimean Front in 1942 — German photograph of Soviet prisoners of war wearing military panama hats. 1942, Crimean Front.

Soviet artillery soldiers wearing military panama hats operating an artillery gun — Screenshot from the documentary “From All Guns” showing Soviet artillerymen wearing military panama hats.

Soviet mountain rifleman V.M. Kolomensky. He is armed with a PPSh-41 submachine gun with a box magazine. Main Caucasus Ridge.

Soviet mountain rifleman wearing a military panama hat with a PPSh-41 submachine gun in the Caucasus Mountains — Soviet mountain rifleman V.M. Kolomensky armed with a PPSh-41 submachine gun with a box magazine. Main Caucasus Ridge.

Of course, Soviet panamanka hats were also widely used in Afghanistan, which is exactly why the name “Afghanka panamanka” became popular among collectors and military enthusiasts.

Soviet soldiers wearing panamanka hats during the Soviet-Afghan War — Soviet soldiers wearing classic panamanka hats during the Soviet-Afghan War. Rare Afghanistan War archival photograph.

Young Soviet soldiers wearing classic military panamanka hats and Red Army uniforms — Young Soviet soldiers wearing classic Soviet panamanka hats and Red Army uniforms.

Soviet soldiers in the early Afghanistan War used short combat boots like those shown in the photos above

Soviet WW2 Combat Boots

Classic Soviet short combat boots inspired by the footwear used by Red Army and early Soviet Afghanistan War soldiers.

View Soviet WW2 Combat Boots

This was a short introduction to the history of the famous Soviet panamanka hat used by the Red Army, mountain troops, and soldiers in Afghanistan. In the next part 2, we will make a much bigger and more detailed review with rare archive photos, different panamanka variants, Afghanistan War examples, and collector details. Stay tuned – the full Soviet panamanka story is coming soon.

More interesting articles:

Why Mujahideen Feared Soviet GRU Spetsnaz in the Afghan War

Soviet Spetsnaz Uniform in Afghanistan (1979–1989)

What Soviet Soldiers Really Ate in the Afghan War

Soviet Afghanka Uniform. History, Features, and Use in Afghanistan

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