Original German WWII Aluminum Fitted Luftwaffe Officer Sword by Rare Maker F. & A. Helbig with Scabbard Original Items

Original Items: Only One Available. This is an excellent condition example of a German WWII Luftwaffe Officer’s Sword, made by the rare and desirable maker F. & A. Helbig, Messerfabrik (knife factory). It features great aluminum fittings and a lovely nickel plated steel blade. This is mid-war produced example, as early war examples were silver-frosted nickel alloy. As the war continued they moved to the “air-age” aluminum material, which was felt to be more appropriate.

The 28 1/2″ blade is fully nickel plated, and looks incredible, with a near mirror finish, with just a few areas of runner wear and scuffing. There are no major chips or nicks in the edge on the blade, with just a few tiny dents. The blade was never sharpened, correct for a dress sword. Truly an very nice example of WWII production blade from a rare maker.

The reverse ricasso of this great sword is maker marked with a lightly etched oval trademark logo reading:

F. & A. HELBIG
* Gaesler *
STEINBACH (Kr. M.)

F. & A. Helbig, Messerfabrik in Steinbach Kreis Meiningen, was organized by Frieda & Alfred Helbig, succeeding F. & W. Helbig shortly after 1928. They prospered manufacturing daggers during the Third Reich era. They made daggers for the DLV, and made some crackle-finished Aluminum NSFK Glider Pilot’s Knives. They also made many swords and daggers for the Luftwaffe, They used several trademark logos, and the lightly etched version without borders was the one usually seen on the Luftwaffe Swords. For more information please see GERMAN KNIFE AND SWORD MAKERS by J. Anthony Carter.

There is also a Weimar eagle over 5 inspection stamp above the maker mark, a common Luftwaffe inspection mark, who continued to use the Weimar style eagle throughout the war. The leather blade buffer at the top of the cross guard is fully present, and in very good condition.

The fittings of this sword are bright aluminum, and show only light wear and some minor scratching, probably from storage. It does not look to have seen any major use during service. The pommel still has good crisp edges and the oak leaves on the sides are in excellent condition. The “broken sun cross” swass on the pommel and cross guard also retain virtually all of their original gold highlighting, and look fantastic. The cross guard arms are the downward sloping type being in three tiers and carved with lines to simulate feathering. These quillon arms still have good, crisp edges, with just a bit of wear. The hilt and associated fittings are tight to the blade, with no wobbling.

The grip is a fine blue Moroccan leather covered carved wood base. This leather is in excellent condition throughout and still has its original graining in the surfaces, with some areas of very light wear. The grip is wrapped with double strands of aluminum bullion covered twisted wire, which is in excellent condition.

The leather-covered non-magnetic metal scabbard of this example is straight throughout, with no dents or bends that we can see. The leather covering is excellent, with just a few scrapes through the leather. The scabbard is equipped with upper and lower matching bright aluminum mounts. These mounts are in fine condition and are retained by headless, flush mount screws which are all in place. The original matching leather crescent hanger is also in place with no signs of rot, just a bit of finish wear. This crescent hanger is equipped with a closed matching aluminum box clip.

An excellent Luftwaffe Officer’s sword by a desirable maker, that has passed the test of time with flying colors. Ready to display!

Specifications:

Blade Length: 28 1/2″
Blade Style: Double Edge w/ Partial Fuller
Overall length: 35 1/2“
Crossguard: 5 1/4″
Scabbard length: 30”