Month´s ago I catched a, (seldom-seen !), machete of the Wehrmacht-Luftwaffe at a flea-market.

Such machetes were originally manufactured for use in various south-american countrie´s.

As WWII began, this contract´s became obsolete.

Later in war the Luftwaffe bought on-hand inventories of this machete, purchased on the civilian-market, to issue long-range bomber-crews and long-range reconnaissance aircraft-crew´s for theirs on-board rescue-equipment.

There´re two pattern machetes.
“Erstes Modell”, (without sawback), and “Zweites Modell”, (with sawback).

You can find this machetes with crossguard and pommel-plate made of brass, or, made of iron.

The Wehrmacht-Luftwaffe never ordered this pattern-machetes officialy under observance of any construction-guideline´s, (”RLM-Lastenheft” and, thus, no acceptance by the “Bauaufsicht Luftwaffe”), and this is the reason-why, there weren´t Luftwaffe acceptance-stamps marked on any parts of this pattern machete.

It might be possible, that in WWII lots of this WL-machetes put together with parts, taken of available stocks.
Also WWII-made scabbards were manufactured of stiched-together blue card-board, (carton) !

The original metal-scabbard of my machete is unfortunately missing but I´m very glad, that I was so lucky to get one of this rare machetes !

Dimensions:

overall lenght: apx. 40,5 cm
blade-lenght: apx. 28,5 cm

Rgds.,

R.