Kolpak-20 helmet

The Kolpak-20 was designed and produced specifically in order to fill in the gaps of Russian military stockpile shortages in the wake of the Russo-Ukrainian war (2022–present). The helmet has openly been described as a "half measure" and "substitute" for better ballistic helmets.^[3][2]

The Kolpak-20 was mostly issued to troops mobilized in the 2022 Russian mobilization, and has been seen in use by Russian forces in nearly every major Russo-Ukrainian battle since its introduction.

The Kolpak-20 is composed of a SSh-40 steel outer shell and a polyethylene inner shell. On the outer shell, there are four rivets which are used to hold the shells and the helmet's suspension together.^[3] The helmet's suspension consists of 5 pads, a neck nape pad, and a plastic quick release chinstrap. The Kolpak-20's design does not allow the user to wear hearing protection, communication devices, or use night vision goggles.

The choice of using leftover WW2-era SSh-40 shells drew criticism from both Ukrainian news as well as Russian soldiers who were issued the Kolpak-20^[4][5]. Mounting pressure eventually forced Russian state media to have to address concerns surrounding the Kolpak-20's ballistic capabilities.^[6]

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  Mobilized Russian troops wearing the Kolpak-20. October 1, 2022
• 
  Sergey Shoigu inspecting mobilized troops wearing the Kolpak-20. October 1, 2022

• SSh-39 and SSh-40