Soviet technology of the second world war. Military equipment of the time of the great Patriotic war Russian equipment of the second world war
The second selection of test drives with Ivan Zinkevich, this time a technique exclusively during the Great Patriotic War (including the IS-3 tank).
Tank Panther Ausf. G / Panzerkampfwagen V Panther
In this issue, Ivan Zenkevich will talk about the famous Panther tank, which is essentially a German revision of the T-34 tank. This instance is the only Panther tank in the world with its own propulsion system.
Armored personnel carrier OT-810
The father of OT-810 was the German Hanomag Sd Kfz 251, after the war, Czechoslovakians created their modernized Sd Kfz 251, which was used until 1995.
Tank Mouse / Panzerkampfwagen VIII "Maus"
This tank is the apotheosis of German tank building. Three engines were the basis of the engine system: one gasoline engine turned the generator, and the generated electricity went to the electric motors that propelled the 188-ton machine.
Mortira Karl Gerat "Adam"
The German military industry produced six such large mortars, weighing 126 tons, 600 mm, at a distance of 7 km. the projectile flies 49 seconds, its weight is 2 tons, and the initial speed of 225 m / s.
Tank T-30
This tank is the progenitor of modern infantry fighting vehicles, MTLB and other light combat vehicles. Initially, this is a modernized T-40 tank deprived of the ability to force rivers and lakes.
Tank T-34
Tank T-34-76 Soviet medium tank, a symbol tank, a tank whose name will live forever on the pages of history books and in the memory of our descendants. The simple and reliable design of this tank has become a model for comparison and imitation. About the unique and heroic fate of the tank (from the video), see the end of the video.
Armored car BA-3
The body of this BA-3 was completely welded, which was an advanced innovation at that time. The combat vehicle was created on the basis of the Soviet truck GAZ-AA; a light tower and a gun from the T-26 tank and a machine gun served as weapons.
SU-100
It was this SU-100 starring in the movie "". SU-100 was developed in response to the emergence of new German heavy tanks "Tiger" and "Panther"
Tank Panzer IV
The German medium tank, which became the most massive tank of Nazi Germany during the Second World War, was mass-produced in several versions from 1937 to 1945. This instance (in the video) Panzer IV managed to fight in the 5th Guards Tank Brigade.
Tank LT vz. 38 / Pz. Kpfw. 38
This tank was developed for the Czechoslovak army in the mid 30s. Many European countries were interested in the tank, but in 1939 Germany monopolized all the interest in its favor. He joined the Wehrmacht under the new name Pz. Kpfw.38 was a good vehicle for supporting infantry and reconnaissance.
TANK KV-2
This tank is an example of the first self-propelled artillery mount with a powerful 152-mm howitzer, it was created to destroy the fortified enemy defense lines and was actively used in the Finnish War of 1939-1940. This instance was assembled on the basis of the IS-2 tank, since the original KV-2 has not been preserved to this day.
Tank T-26
The T-26 is essentially an exact licensed copy of the 6-ton Vickers tank, Soviet designers improved this tank as best they could, but it was already beginning to become obsolete at the beginning of World War II.
Tank T-38
This tank is a retrofit of the earlier T-37 amphibious tank. The T-38 is essentially a steel floating boat, everything is adapted for sailing in it - and a propeller with a rudder and a streamlined hull.
Tank T-60
Small in size, with good armor and a simple gasoline car engine, this tank was designed to support infantry and reconnaissance. At the beginning of the war, it was not difficult to arrange the release of this useful machine needed.
Tank MS 1
Small escort tank, the first serial Soviet tank of its own design, the French FT-17 tank was taken as the basis. In the world there is only one such tank on the go.
A pickup truck based on the Lorry’s base, this car was found at the battlefield in the Vyazemsky Cauldron, it was almost completely destroyed by a shell explosion.
Tank T-70
It was designed in just six months at the Design Bureau of the Gorky Automobile Plant under the leadership of Nikolai Ostrov, it was produced from 1941 to 1943. A good tank to start the war, it was very reliable and heavily armed, much less noisy than diesel tanks, they were often used in reconnaissance.
Tank BT-7
Test drive of the BT-7 high-speed tank at the Stalin Line Museum (Minsk). The car was pulled out of the review from the river, where the crew drove it after the fighting so that the enemy didn’t get it, after decades the tank was raised from the river and brought to working condition.
Katyusha BM-13 (ZIL-157)
Despite the fact that the Katyusha review is not from the time of the war, you will be told many interesting features of this type of jet weapon.
Tank IS-2
The IS-2 heavy breakthrough tank was created as opposed to the German Tigers and Panthers, the IS-2 crews were formed exclusively of officers, and the 122-mm cannon could destroy any enemy tank at a distance of up to 3 kilometers, the armor reached 120 mm.
TANK IS-3
The last tank created during the Great Patriotic War, fully developed in its years, but put into production only in May 1945. For its time, it was an advanced combat vehicle combining powerful armor, reliable chassis and powerful weapons. The most massive and heaviest tank in the Soviet Union.
GAZ AA
This car was produced from 1932 to 1950, the legendary lorry created on the basis of the Ford AA Ford truck. In the Soviet Union, the design of this car was even more simplified and was minimized - if necessary, a lorry could be dismantled a few hours before the screw. With low weight, the lorry had a wonderful cross-country ability and carrying capacity.
ZIS 42
Already the first months of World War II showed that the Red Army is sorely lacking fast and passable artillery tractors, and such a tractor was developed. ZIS 42 was created on the basis of the truck ZIS-5V. Of the more than 6,000 of these unique machines, only one has been restored by enthusiasts.
Willys MB
During the war, more than 50 thousand Jeeps were delivered from the USA from the USSR.
GAZ MM
The modernized "one and a half", instead of two headlights - one, instead of wooden doors, their canvas substitutes, an angular but still elegant design.
GAZ-67
Despite the similarity with the "Willis" this front-line car was completely constructed in the USSR, it was possible to fix it using only 3 wrenches.
ZIS-5
A truck without rear windows, without brake lights, which drives any fuel.
Studebaker "Katyusha" (Studebaker) BM-13M
Studebakers on the front roads proved to be only the best, and rocket launchers began to fire more closely due to the heavier and denser landing of this truck.
M4 Sherman "Sherman"
The workhorse of the Allies, this tank was supplied by Lend-Lease to the USSR from the winter of 1943, it fought on all fronts of World War II - from the Pacific Ocean to Belarus.
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A sharp jump in the development of weapons and military equipment occurred during the Second World War. “The influence of scientific and technological achievements on the nature of this war was enormous and multifaceted. Simply put, until 1918, military operations were conducted in two dimensions (on land and at sea) within the limits of simple visibility by short-range weapons and lethal force. During the war of 1939-1945 gigantic changes took place - the third dimension (air), the ability to “see” the enemy at a distance (radar), the spaces on which the battles were fought, the power of the weapon were added. To this we must add all kinds of countermeasures. The biggest influence on the fighting in the war of 1939-1945. rendered air power. She revolutionized the strategy and tactics of war on land and at sea. "
In fig. 89 are aircraft of the period of the Second World War.
The aviation systems of different countries were armed with air bombs weighing from 1 kg to 9 thousand kg, small-caliber automatic guns (20-47 mm), large-caliber machine guns (11.35-13.2 mm),
rockets.
Fig. 89.
Soviet aircraft: 1 - MiG-3 fighter; 2 - La-5 fighter;
3 - fighter Yak-3; 4 - front diving bomber Pe-2; 5 - front-line bomber Tu-2; 6 - IL-2 attack aircraft; 7 - IL-4 long-range bomber; 8 - long-range bomber Pe-2 (TB-7). Foreign aircraft: 9 - Me-109E fighter (Germany); 10 - diving bomber Ju-87 (Germany); 11 - bomber Ju-88 (Germany); 12 - Spitfire fighter (Great Britain); 13 - Erkobra fighter (USA); 14 - Mosquito bomber (Great Britain); 15 - strategic bomber "Lancaster" (UK); 16 - strategic bomber B-29 (USA).
The most important role in World War II was played by tanks (Fig. 90). Fascist Germany entered World War II, armed with the following tanks: light T-1 and T-II, medium T-Sh and T-IV.
However, already at the beginning of World War II, the Soviet T-34 and KV tanks showed complete superiority over the Nazi tanks. In 1942, the Hitler command modernized medium tanks - a 50-mm gun was installed on the T-Sh instead of the 37 mm, and the T-IV received the 75 mm long-barreled gun instead of the short-barrel, and the thickness of the armor increased. In 1943, heavy tanks — the T-V Panther and the T-VI Tiger — entered the arsenal of the German fascist army. However, these tanks were also inferior to the Soviet T-34 in maneuverability, and the IS-2 in terms of weapon power.
During the Great Patriotic War, the celebrated T-34 was the main Soviet tank. During the war, it was repeatedly modernized - in 1942 the thickness of the armor was increased, the design was simplified, the commander’s turret was introduced, the four-speed gearbox was replaced by a five-speed one, and the capacity of the fuel tanks was increased. In the second half of 1943, the T-34-85 with an 85-mm cannon entered service. In the fall of 1941, the KV-1C tank was launched to replace the KV tank, in which the speed increased from 35 to 42 km / h by reducing the mass due to armor. In the summer of 1943, a more powerful 85 mm cannon was installed on this tank in a cast turret - the new machine was named KV-85. In 1943 a new heavy tank IS-1 was created, armed with an 85 mm cannon. Already in December of this year, a 122-mm cannon was installed on the tank. The new tank, the IS-2 and its further modification, the IS-3, were rightly considered the most powerful tanks of World War II. Light tanks in the USSR, as in other countries, did not receive much development. By September 1941, a light T-60 tank with a 20-mm cannon and reinforced armor was created on the basis of the floating T-40 tank with machine gun weapons. Based on the T-60 tank, at the beginning of 1942 a T-70 tank was developed, armed with a 45 mm cannon. However, in the second half of the war light tanks turned out to be ineffective and from 1943 their production ceased.
Fig. 90.
- 1 - heavy tank KV-2 (USSR); 2 - heavy tank IS-2 (USSR);
- 3 - medium tank T-34 (USSR); 4 - heavy tank T-VI "Tiger" (Germany); 5 - heavy tank T-V "Panther" (Germany);
- 6 - medium tank "Sherman" (USA); 7 - light tank "Locast" (USA);
- 8 - infantry tank (UK).
In the development of tanks of the main warring armies, medium tanks were most widely used. However, since 1943 there has been a tendency to create new types of heavy tanks and increase their output. Medium and heavy tanks of the Second World War were single-tower, with anti-shell armor, armed with 50-122 mm cannons.
At the beginning of the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945. Soviet troops fired the first volley of rocket artillery (Katyusha) combat vehicles (Fig. 91). During the Second World War, German-fascist, English and American armies also used jet weapons. In 1943, the first large-caliber breech-loading 160-mm mortar entered the arsenal of the Soviet troops. Self-propelled artillery mounts (SPGs) were widely used in World War II (Fig. 92): in the Soviet Army with 76, 85, 100, 122 and 152 mm caliber guns; in the fascist German army - 75-150 mm; in the English and American armies - 75-203 mm.
Fig. 91.
Fig. 92.
1 - SU-100 (USSR); 2 - 88-mm anti-tank self-propelled artillery mount Ferdinand (Germany); 3 - the English 76-mm self-propelled artillery installation "Archer"; 4 - American 155-mm self-propelled artillery mount M41.
During the Second World War, small arms (especially machine guns and submachine guns), flamethrowers of various types, incendiary ammunition, cumulative and sub-caliber shells, and explosive weapons were further developed.
During the Second World War, ships of various classes were used in the struggle against sea and ocean theater of operations (Fig. 93). At the same time, aircraft carriers and submarines became the main striking force of the fleet. Submarine defense ships (sloops, corvettes, frigates, etc.) received significant development. Many landing ships (ships) were built. During the war years, a large number of destroyers were built, but only in some cases they carried out torpedo attacks, and were mainly used for anti-aircraft defense and air defense. The main types of naval weapons were various artillery systems, advanced torpedoes, mines and depth charges. Of great importance for increasing the combat effectiveness of ships was the widespread use of radar and sonar equipment.
Fig. 93.
- 1 - the cruiser "Kirov" (USSR); 2 - battleship (Great Britain);
- 3 battleship "Bismarck" (Germany); 4 - battleship "Yamato" (Japan); 5 - liner "Wilhelm Gustlof" (Germany), torpedoed by the Soviet submarine S-13 under the command of A.I. Marinesco 6 - Queen Mary liner (Great Britain);
- 7 - submarine type "Щ" (USSR); 8 - American ships.
In 1944, the Nazi army used the V-1 guided missile planes and the V-2 ballistic missiles.
- B.L. Montgomery. A brief history of military battles. - M .: Tsentrpoligraf, 2004 .-- S. 446.
Each of the warring parties has invested staggering amounts of money for the design and construction of powerful weapons, and we will try to consider some of the most influential. To date, they are not considered the best or most destructive, but the military equipment listed below has, to one degree or another, influenced the course of World War II.
LCVP is a variation of the US Navy landing craft. Intended for transportation and landing of personnel on an unequipped coast occupied by the enemy.
The LCVP, or Higgins boat, named after its creator, Andrew Higgins, who designed the boat to operate in shallow water and marshy areas, was heavily used by the US Navy during naval landing operations during World War II. Over the 15 years of production, 22,492 boats of this type were built.
The LCVP landing craft was built from pressed plywood and structurally resembled a small river barge with a crew of 4 people. At the same time, the boat could carry a full infantry platoon of 36 troops. At full load, the Higgins boat could reach speeds of up to 9 knots (17 km / h).
Katyusha (BM-13)
Katyusha is the unofficial name for the barrelless field rocket artillery systems widely used by the Armed Forces of the USSR during the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945. Originally called Katyusha - BM-13, and later began to be called BM-8, BM-31, and others. BM-13 - the famous and most massive Soviet combat vehicle (BM) of this class.
Avro lancaster
Avro Lancaster - a British heavy bomber used during the Second World War, and was in service with the Royal Air Force. “Lancaster” is considered the most productive night bomber of the Second World War and the most famous. He made more than 156 thousand sorties and dropped more than 600,000 tons of bombs.
The first combat flight took place in March 1942. During the war, more than 7,000 Lancasteres were produced, but almost half were destroyed by the enemy. Currently (2014), only two vehicles that are capable of flying have survived.
U-boat (submarine)
U-boat - a generalized abbreviation of German submarines, which were in service with the German naval forces.
Germany, not having a sufficiently strong fleet capable of resisting allied forces at sea, primarily hoped for its submarines, the main purpose of which was the destruction of merchant convoys transporting goods from Canada, the British Empire and the United States to the Soviet Union and allied countries in the Mediterranean. German submarines proved incredibly effective. Winston Churchill would later say that the only thing frightening him during World War II was an underwater threat.
Studies have shown that the allies spent $ 26.4 billion on fighting German submarines. Unlike the allied countries, Germany spent $ 2.86 billion on its U-boats. From a purely economic point of view, the campaign is seen as a German success, making German submarines one of the most influential weapons of war.
hawker Hurricane
Hawker Hurricane is a British WWII single-seat fighter designed and manufactured by Hawker Aircraft Ltd. In total, more than 14,500 such aircraft were built. Hawker Hurricane had various modifications and could be used as a fighter-bomber, interceptor and attack aircraft.
M4 "Sherman" - an American medium tank of the Second World War. In the period from 1942 to 1945, 49,234 tanks were produced, it is considered the third most massive tank in the world after the T-34 and T-54. During World War II, a large number of various modifications were built on the basis of the M4 Sherman tank (one of which the Sherman-Crab is the strangest tank), self-propelled artillery mounts (SPGs) and engineering equipment. Used by the American army, and also in large quantities supplied to the allied forces (mainly in the UK and the USSR).
The 88 mm FlaK 18/36/37/41 is also known as the Eight-Eight, a German anti-aircraft, anti-tank artillery gun that was widely used by German forces during World War II. A gun designed to destroy both aviation and tanks was also often used as artillery. In the period from 1939 to 1945, a total of 17 125 such guns were built.
North American P-51 Mustang
The third place in the list of the most influential military equipment of the Second World War is occupied by the R-51 Mustang, an American single-seat long-range fighter developed in the early 1940s. It is considered the best US Air Force fighter during World War II. It was used mainly as a reconnaissance aircraft and to escort bombers during raids on German territory.
Aircraft carriers
Aircraft carriers are a type of warship whose main strike force is carrier-based aviation. In World War II, Japanese and American aircraft carriers already represented a leading role in the Pacific battles. For example, the famous attack on Pearl Harbor was carried out with the help of diving bombers stationed on six Japanese aircraft carriers.
The T-34 is a Soviet medium tank that was mass-produced from 1940 until the first half of 1944. It was the main tank of the Workers 'and Peasants' Red Army (RKKA), until the T-34–85 modification, which is in service with some countries today, replaced it. The legendary T-34 is the most massive medium tank and is recognized by many military experts and experts as the best tank produced during the Second World War. It is also considered one of the most famous characters of the above mentioned war.
At the exhibition of weapons, military equipment and fortifications of the Central Museum of the Great Patriotic War, a fairly complete collection of Soviet armored vehicles of the war period, English and American armored vehicles supplied to the Soviet Union in 1941-1945 under Lend-Lease, as well as armored vehicles of our main opponents in years of war - Germany and Japan.
During the Second World War, the armored forces, as shown by the experience of their combat use, played a decisive role in battles, performing a wide range of tasks in all types of combat both independently and together with other types of troops. They grew both quantitatively and qualitatively, rightfully becoming the main striking force of the armies of various states. During the six years of World War II, about 350,000 armored combat vehicles took part in battles on both sides: tanks, self-propelled artillery mounts (ACS), armored vehicles (BA) and armored personnel carriers (BTRs).
Soviet military thought in the prewar years assigned tanks an important role. They were supposed to be used in all types of military operations. As part of the rifle formations, they were intended to break through the tactical defense zone as a means of direct infantry support (NPP), operating in close cooperation with other combat arms. Most of the tanks were armed with tank and mechanized formations, which had the task of developing success in the operational depths after breaking through the defense.
During the first five-year periods in the Soviet Union, the necessary production base was created for the mass production of tanks. Already in 1931, the factories gave the Red Army 740 vehicles. For comparison: in 1930 the troops received a total of 170 tanks, and in 1932 - 3,121 vehicles, including 1,032 T-26 light tanks, 396 BT-2 light high-speed tanks and 1,693 T-27 tankettes. No other country built such a number of tanks at that time. And this pace was practically maintained until the start of World War II.
In 1931 - 1941, 42 samples of various types of tanks were created in the USSR, of which 20 samples were adopted and put into serial production: T-27 wedges; light tanks for infantry tracking T-26; light wheeled tracked high-speed tanks of mechanized joints BT-5 / BT-7; light reconnaissance amphibious tanks T-37 / T-38 / T-40; medium tanks of direct support for the T-28 infantry; heavy tanks of additional qualitative reinforcement during the breakthrough of the fortified T-35 bands. Then in the Soviet Union attempts were made to create self-propelled artillery mounts. However, it was not possible to fully develop and launch serial production of self-propelled guns.
All in all, over the past ten years, 29,262 tanks of all types were manufactured in the Soviet Union. In the 1930s, when developing light tanks in our country, preference was given to wheeled and tracked vehicles, which then formed the basis of the tank fleet of the Red Army.
The fighting during the Spanish Civil War of 1936-1939 showed that tanks with bulletproof armor were already outdated. Soviet tank crews and technical specialists who visited Spain came to the conclusion that it was necessary to bring the thickness of the frontal armor of the hull and turret to 60 mm. Then the tank will not be afraid of anti-tank guns, which began to be equipped with ground forces in various countries. For such a relatively heavy machine, tests showed that a purely caterpillar mover was optimal. This conclusion of Soviet designers formed the basis for the creation of the new T-34 medium tank, which rightfully won the glory of the best tank in the world during World War II.
At the turn of the 1930s - 1940s, domestic tank builders developed a clear idea of \u200b\u200bthe prospects for the development of armored vehicles. In the Soviet Union, various measures were taken to strengthen the Armed Forces. As a result, the Red Army received new medium (T-34) and heavy (KV-1 and KV-2) tanks, which had ballistic armor, powerful weapons, and high mobility. In terms of combat qualities, they exceeded foreign models and fully met modern requirements.
The development of tanks, engines, weapons in the USSR was carried out by design teams led by N.N. Kozyreva (T-27), N.N. Barykova (T-26 and T-28), A.O. Firsova (BT), N.A. Astrova (T-37), O.M. Ivanova (T-35), M.I. Koshkina and A.A. Morozova (T-34), J.Ya. Kotina (KV and IS-2), M.F. Balzhi (IS-3), I.Ya. Trashutina and K. Chelpan (V-2 diesel engine), V.G. Grabina (tank guns, V.A. Degtyareva (tank machine guns), E.I. Maron and V.A. Agntsev (tank sights).
By 1941, serial production of tanks was organized in the USSR that met all the requirements of that time. By the beginning of World War II, and then during the war, tanks produced about two dozen factories in the country: the Leningrad Kirov Plant, the Moscow Plant named after S. Ordzhonikidze, Kharkov Locomotive Plant, Stalingrad Tractor Plant, Gorky Plant "Red Sormovo", Chelyabinsk Kirov Plant ("Tankograd"), Ural Tank Plant in Nizhny Tagil, etc.
Mass deliveries of armored vehicles allowed us to begin in the mid-1930s to organize mechanized corps in the Red Army, which was 5-6 years ahead of the appearance of such formations in the armed forces of Germany and other countries. Already in 1934, a new type of troops was created in the Red Army - armored troops (from December 1942 - armored and mechanized troops), which to this day are the main striking force of the Ground Forces. Then the 5th, 7th, 11th and 57th special mechanized corps were deployed, converted in August 1938 into tank corps. However, armored forces were in the process of reorganization. In 1939, these formations were disbanded due to an incorrect assessment of the combat experience of using tanks in Spain. In May 1940, the Red Army’s armored forces consisted of: one T-35 tank brigade; three brigades T-28; 16 tank brigades of BT; 22 tank brigades T-26; three armored brigades; two separate tank regiments; one training tank regiment and one training battalion of armored units. Their total number was 111,228 people. Ground forces also included six motorized divisions. Each of them had one tank regiment. In total, the motorized division had 258 light tanks in the state.
The study of the combat experience of using armored and mechanized troops during the outbreak of World War II allowed Soviet military specialists to develop a scientifically based theory of the combat use of tank and mechanized formations and units, both in combined arms combat and in independent operations. This theory was further developed during the Great Patriotic War.
The fighting that waged near the river. Khalkhin-Gol units and formations of the Red Army have clearly demonstrated that much can be achieved by the active use of mobile tank formations. Powerful tank formations were widely used by Germany during the first period of World War II. All this proved that it was urgent to return to the creation of large armored formations. Therefore, in 1940, the Red Army began the restoration of 9 mechanized corps, 18 tank and 8 mechanized divisions, and in February - March 1941, the formation of another 21 mechanized corps began. To fully equip the new mechanized corps, 16,600 tanks of only new types were required, and in total about 32,000 tanks.
June 13, 1941 Deputy Chief of the General Staff, Lieutenant General N.F. Vatutin in his "Certificate on the Deployment of the USSR Armed Forces in the event of a war in the West" noted: "There are 303 divisions in total in the USSR: infantry divisions - 198, tank divisions - 61, motorized divisions - 31 ..." Thus, instead of 42 former tank divisions brigades and six motorized divisions in the Red Army a week before the start of the war, there were 92nd tank and motorized divisions. However, as a result of such a rapid reorganization of the troops, less than half of the formed corps received the necessary weapons and military equipment. In the tank units there was an acute shortage of tank commanders and technical specialists, since the commanders who came from rifle and cavalry formations had no practical experience in the combat use of tank troops and the operation of armored vehicles.
On June 1, 1941, the tank fleet of the Soviet ground forces totaled 23,106 tanks, including 18,690 combat-ready ones. In the five western border districts — Leningrad, Baltic Special, Western Special, Kiev Special and Odessa — as of June 22, 1941, there were 12,989 tanks, of which 10,746 were combat ready and 2243 requiring repair. Of the total number of vehicles, about 87% were light tanks T-26 and BT. Relatively new models there were light T-40s with machine-gun weapons, medium T-34s (1105 units), heavy KV-1s and KV-2s (549 units).
In the battles of the first period of World War II with the strike groups of the Wehrmacht, parts of the Red Army lost a large amount of their military equipment. Only in 1941, during the Baltic defensive operation (June 22 - July 9), 2523 tanks were lost; in Belorusskaya (June 22 - July 9) - 4799 cars; in Western Ukraine (June 22 - July 6) - 4381 tanks. Replenishment of losses became one of the main tasks of the Soviet tank builders.
During the war, the relative number of light tanks in the army was continuously declining, although in 1941-1942 their production increased quantitatively. This was explained by the need to supply troops with as many military vehicles as possible in a short time, and it was relatively simple to set up production of light tanks.
At the same time, they were modernized, and first of all, reinforced armor.
In the fall of 1941, the T-60 light tank was created, and in 1942, the T-70. Their introduction into serial production was facilitated by the low cost of production, due to the use of automotive units, as well as the simplicity of design. But the war showed that light tanks are not effective enough on the battlefield due to weak weapons and armor. Therefore, from the end of 1942, their release declined markedly, and was stopped in the late autumn of 1943.
The vacant production facilities were used to produce light self-propelled guns SU-76, created on the basis of the T-70. From the first days, T-34 medium tanks took part in hostilities. They had undoubted superiority over German Pz tanks. Kfw. III and Pz. Kfw. IV. German specialists had to urgently engage in the modernization of their machines.
In the spring of 1942, the Pz tank appeared on the Eastern Front. Kfw. IV modifications F2 with a new 75 mm gun and enhanced armor. In a duel, he won against the T-34, but inferior to him in maneuverability and maneuverability. In response, Soviet designers strengthened the gun at the T-34 and the thickness of the frontal armor of the tower. By the summer of 1943, the Germans equipped the tank units with new tanks and self-propelled artillery (Pz. Kff. V Panther; Pz. Kff.VI Tiger; self-propelled guns Ferdinand and others) with more powerful armor protection, fire of 75 - And 88-mm long-barreled guns hit our armored vehicles from a distance of 1000 meters or more.
The new Soviet T-34-85 and IS-2 tanks, armed with 85-mm and 122-mm guns (respectively), by the beginning of 1944 were able to restore the advantage of Soviet armored vehicles in armor protection and firepower. All this taken together allowed the Soviet Union to gain an unconditional advantage over Germany, both in the quality of armored vehicles and in the number of samples produced.
In addition, starting in 1943, the Red Army began to receive a large number of self-propelled artillery mounts. The need for them was revealed in the first months of the fighting, and already in the summer of 1941 at the Moscow Automobile Plant named after I.V. Stalin in a hurry on the semi-armored artillery tractors T-20 "Komsomolets" mounted a 57-mm anti-tank gun ZIS-2 model 1941. These self-propelled guns received the designation ZIS-30.
October 23, 1942 GKO decided to begin work on the creation of self-propelled guns of two types: light - for direct fire support of infantry and medium armored as a medium tank T-34 - to support and escort tanks in battle. Tank builders for light self-propelled guns equipped with a 76 mm ZIS-3 gun used the base of the T-70 tank. This machine was well-developed and relatively easy to manufacture. It was also taken into account that the supply of light tanks to the front was gradually reduced. Then came: the medium self-propelled gun SU-122 - a 122 mm howitzer based on the T-34 tank and the heavy SU-152 - a 152-mm howitzer gun based on the KV-1C tank. In 1943, the High Command decided to transfer self-propelled artillery from the GAU to the Commander of the armored and mechanized forces. This contributed to a sharp increase in the quality of self-propelled guns and the growth of their production. In the same year, 1943, the formation of self-propelled artillery regiments for tank, mechanized and cavalry corps began. On the offensive, light self-propelled guns accompanied infantry, medium and heavy self-propelled guns fought against tanks, assault guns, enemy anti-tank artillery, and destroyed defensive structures.
The role of self-propelled guns increased in the face of widespread use by the enemy of the Panther and Tiger tanks. To combat them, Soviet troops received the SU-85 and SU-100 vehicles.
The 100-mm gun mounted on the SU-100 self-propelled guns exceeded the 88-mm guns of German tanks and self-propelled guns in the power of armor-piercing and high-explosive fragmentation shells, not inferior to them in rate of fire. During the war, self-propelled artillery installations proved to be a highly effective formidable weapon and, at the suggestion of the tankers, the designers developed self-propelled guns based on the IS-2 heavy tanks, and the ammunition of the ISU-122 and ISU-152 heavy self-propelled guns received armor-piercing shells allowing, at the final stage of the war , hit almost all types of German tanks and self-propelled guns. Light self-propelled guns were developed in KB under the guidance of S.A. Ginzburg (SU-76); L.L. Terentyev and M.N. Shchukin (SU-76 M); medium - in KB under the direction of N.V. Kurina, L.I. Gorlitsky, A.N. Balashova, V.N. Sidorenko (SU-122, SU-85, SU-100); heavy - in the design bureau under the leadership of J.Ya. Kotina, S.N. Makhonina, L.S. Troyanova, S.P. Gurenko, F.F. Petrova (SU-152, ISU-152, ISU-122).
In January 1943, the formation of tank armies of uniform composition began in the Red Army - the 1st and 2nd tank armies appeared, and by the summer of that year there were already five tank armies in the Red Army, which consisted of two tank and one mechanized corps. Now the armored and mechanized troops included: tank armies, tank and mechanized corps, tank and mechanized brigades and regiments.
Soviet armored vehicles during the war were not inferior to the Wehrmacht, and often surpassed it both qualitatively and quantitatively. Already in 1942, 24 504 tanks and self-propelled guns were manufactured in the USSR, i.e. four times more than the German industry produced the same year (5953 tanks and self-propelled guns). Given the failures of the first period of the war, this was a real feat of the Soviet tank builders.
Colonel General of the Engineering and Technical Services J.Ya. Kotin noted that an invaluable feature of the Soviet school of tank building played a huge role in this - the maximum possible simplicity of design, the desire for complexity only if it is impossible to achieve the same effect by simple means.
The number of Soviet tanks participating in operations was constantly growing: in the Moscow battle (1941 - 1942) 780 tanks took part, in the Battle of Stalingrad (1942 - 1943) - 979, in the Belarusian strategic offensive operation (1944) - 5200, in the Berlin operation (1945) - 6,250 tanks and self-propelled guns. According to the chief of the General Staff of the Red Army, Army General A.I. Antonova, “... the second half of the war was marked by the predominance of our tanks and self-propelled artillery on the battlefields. This allowed us to carry out operational maneuvers of enormous scope, to encircle large enemy groups, and to pursue him until complete destruction. ”
In total, in 1941-1945, the Soviet tank industry gave the front 103,170 tanks and self-propelled guns (the latter - 22,500, of which medium - more than 2,000, and heavy - more than 4,200), of which 18.8% were light tanks. medium - 70.4% (T-34 with a 76-mm gun 36 331, and with a 85-mm gun - 17 898 more tanks) and heavy - 10.8%.
During the fighting, about 430,000 combat vehicles were returned to service after repair in the field or factory conditions, that is, each tank manufactured by the industry was repaired and restored on average more than four times.
Along with the mass production of armored vehicles during the Great Patriotic War, the Red Army received tanks and self-propelled guns coming from the UK, Canada and the United States via Lend-Lease. The transportation of armored vehicles was carried out mainly along three routes: the north via the Atlantic and the Barents Sea, the south through the Indian Ocean, the Persian Gulf and Iran, and the east through the Pacific Ocean. The first tank transport arrived in the USSR from Great Britain in September 1941. And by the beginning of 1942, the Red Army received 750 British and 180 American tanks. Many of them were used in the battle of Moscow in the winter of 1941 - 1942. In total, the years of World War II for the Soviet Union, according to Western sources, 3805 tanks were shipped to the UK, including 2394 Valentine, 1084 Matilda, 301 Churchill, 20 Tetrarch, 6 Cromwell. To these should be added 25 Valentine’s bridge tanks. Canada provided the USSR with 1388 Valentine tanks. In the USA, 7172 tanks were loaded onto ships under Lend-Lease, including 1676 light MZA1, 7 light M5 and M24, 1386 medium MZAZ, 4102 medium M4A2, one M26, as well as 707 anti-tank self-propelled guns (mainly M10 and M18), 1100 anti-aircraft self-propelled guns (M15, M16 and M 17), and 6666 armored personnel carriers. However, not all of these machines took part in the hostilities. So, under the attacks of the German fleet and aviation, together with vessels of Arctic convoys, 860 American and 615 English tanks were sent to the seabed. With a fairly high degree of certainty, we can say that 18 566 units of armored vehicles were delivered to the USSR during the four years of the war, of which 10 395 tanks, 6242 armored personnel carriers, 1802 self-propelled guns and 127 armored personnel carriers, which were used in units, formations and training units of the Red Army.
Soviet tankers during the Great Patriotic War showed examples of the effective use of armored weapons, although the enemy was strong and had very powerful military equipment. The homeland appreciated the feat of the Soviet tankers: in their ranks - 1,150 Heroes of the Soviet Union (including 16 - twice Heroes), and more than 250,000 - were awarded orders and medals. On July 1, 1946, by decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, a professional holiday "Tanker Day" was established to commemorate the great merits of armored and mechanized forces in defeating the enemy during the Great Patriotic War, as well as for the merits of tank builders in equipping the country's Armed Forces with armored vehicles. It is deeply symbolic that the legendary T-34 tank was often installed on the pedestals of monuments in honor of the liberation of Soviet cities from Nazi captivity, and many of the Soviet tanks of that time took their place of honor in many domestic museums.
In its modern form, the armored forces represent the main striking force of the Ground Forces, being a powerful means of armed struggle designed to solve the most important tasks in various types of military operations. The importance of tank troops as one of the main branches of the Ground Forces will continue in the foreseeable future. At the same time, the tank will retain the role of the leading universal combat weapon of the Ground Forces. In the postwar years, the armored forces received numerous modern models of tanks, self-propelled artillery, armored personnel carriers, infantry fighting vehicles and airborne fighting vehicles, which embodied the latest achievements of Russian science and technology.
The German army, our main adversary during the Great Patriotic War, had very powerful armored forces (panzerwaffe). The Versailles Peace Treaty of 1919 prohibited Germany from having tank troops and producing armored vehicles. However, in violation of its conditions, in the late 1920s, the Germans began secretly conducting work in the field of tank building, and with the advent of Hitler in January 1933, all restrictions of the Treaty of Versailles were discarded, and in Germany the creation of a mass army began. A special place in it was intended for tanks.
The initiator of the construction of armored forces and theorist of their use in the war was General G. Guderian. According to his views, tanks should have been used massively as part of large mechanized shock formations in cooperation with other branches of the armed forces, primarily aviation. Having broken through the enemy’s defenses, and, without waiting for the infantry, the tanks should go into the operational space, destroy the rear, disrupting communications and paralyzing the work of enemy headquarters. He listed the advantages of tanks in the following order: mobility, weapons, armor and communications.
During the Second World War, the German Panzerwaffe became the basis of the “Blitzkrieg”, making up the main striking force of the Third Reich Ground Forces. The Wehrmacht refused to divide the tanks for their intended purpose - into infantry and cruising. Tanks, reduced to large formations, had to perform, if necessary, any functions: both infantry escort tanks and success development tanks. Although the complete rejection of relatively small tank units intended for close interaction with infantry formations and units also cannot be considered successful. In the Wehrmacht, they moved (similarly to the Red Army) to the division of tanks into light, medium and heavy. But if in the USSR such a criterion was only the mass of the tank, then in Germany tanks for a long time were divided into classes, both in mass and in armament. For example, the original tank Pz. Kfw. IV was considered as a heavy combat vehicle, proceeding from its armament - a 75 mm gun - and was considered as such until the summer of 1943.
All tanks that came into service with the Wehrmacht received the letter abbreviation Pz. Kfw. (short for Panzergampfwagen - armored fighting vehicle) and serial number. Modifications are indicated by the letters of the Latin alphabet and the abbreviation Ausf. - (abbr. Аusfuhrung - model, option). Commander tanks were designated Pz.Bf.Wg. (Panzerbefehlswagen). Simultaneously with this type of designation, an end-to-end system was used for all Wehrmacht vehicles. According to the end-to-end system, most of the Wehrmacht's armored vehicles (with some exceptions) received the designation Sd. Kfz. (abbr. Sonderkraftfahrzeug - special purpose vehicle) and serial number.
Self-propelled artillery installations, regarded as a means of reinforcing infantry and tanks on the battlefield, were designated differently, since the Wehrmacht and SS troops had a large number of their classes and types. Assault guns had their own designation system, their own self-propelled howitzers, ZSU and anti-tank mounts. At the same time, as a rule, information on the tank chassis on the basis of which it was created was also included in the official designation of almost any self-propelled guns. Like tanks, most self-propelled artillery systems also had end-to-end indexes with serial numbers in the Sd system. Kfz. The classification of Wehrmacht’s self-propelled artillery systems differed in several main classes: assault guns (Sturmgeschutz; StuG); assault howitzers (Sturmhaubitze; StuH); self-propelled carriages and chassis (Selbstfahrlafetten; Sf.); assault infantry guns (Sturminfanteriengeschutz; StuIG); assault tanks (Sturmpanzer; StuPz.); tank destroyers / self-propelled anti-tank guns (Panzerjager, Pz.Jg; Jagdpanzer Jgd.Pz); howitzer self-propelled guns (Panzerhaubitze; Pz.H); self-propelled anti-aircraft mounts (Flakpanzer, Fl.Pz). The disorder with the classification and designations was aggravated by the fact that machines of one of the types, after modernization and making changes to their design, acquired completely different properties, the so-called 75 mm StuG assault gun. III, which, after installing a 75-mm long-barreled gun in it, actually turned into a tank destroyer, but continued to be listed as an assault gun. Marder self-propelled anti-tank installations also underwent changes in designation, instead of the original “Pak Slf” (self-propelled anti-tank gun) they became known as the “Ranzerjager” (tank destroyer).
The first production German tank was the lightweight Pz. Kfw. I, who entered the army in 1934. The following year, the second light tank Pz appeared. Kfw. II. These vehicles were tested in combat conditions during the Spanish Civil War of 1936-1939.
The creation of medium tanks in Germany was delayed due to unsteady tactical and technical requirements for them, although some companies back in 1934 began to develop a prototype with a 75 mm gun. Guderian considered it necessary to have two types of medium tanks: the main (Pz. Kfw. III) with a 37 mm cannon and the support tank with a 75 mm short-barreled gun (Pz. Kff. IV). Production of tanks Pz. Kfw. III and Pz. Kfw. IV began in only 1938.
After the capture of the Czech Republic, in March 1939, the Wehrmacht received more than 400 modern Czech tanks LT-35 (Рz. Крfw. 35 (t)). In addition, the German tank forces were significantly strengthened by the LT-38 tanks (Pz.Kff. 38 (t)), which were produced in occupied Moravia, but already on German orders, which had higher combat characteristics than the Pz tanks. Kfw. I and Pz. Kfw. II.
On September 1, 1939, the Wehrmacht tank fleet in combat, training units and bases totaled 3,195 vehicles. There were about 2800 of them in the army.
The losses of the Germans in armored vehicles during the Polish campaign were small (198 destroyed and 361 damaged) and were quickly made up for by industry. Following the results of the September (1939) battles, Guderian demanded to strengthen the armor and firepower of the tanks and increase the production of Pz. Kfw. W and Pz. Kfw. IV. By the start of the campaign in France (May 10, 1940), 5 German tank corps had 2580 tanks. The British and French tanks outnumbered the enemy’s armor and weapons, but the German tank forces had better training and combat experience, as well as better command. They were used on a massive scale, while the Allies fought tank battles in small groups, sometimes without close interaction either between themselves or with the infantry. The victory went to the German shock groups.
To attack the Soviet Union, the German command consisting of 17 tank divisions concentrated 3,582 tanks and self-propelled guns. These included 1,698 light tanks: 180 Pz. Kfw. I; 746 Pz. Kfw. II; 149 Pz. 35 (t); 623 Pz. 38 (t) and 1404 medium tanks: 965 Pz. Kfw. III; 439 Pz. Kfw. IV, as well as 250 assault guns. The troops numbered another 230 commander tanks that did not have cannon weapons. The fighting on the Soviet-German front revealed a number of technical shortcomings of German tanks. Their cross and mobility on the ground turned out to be low. In terms of armament and armor, they were significantly inferior to the Soviet T-34 and KV. Wehrmacht command, it became clear that the troops needed more powerful machines. While the development of new medium and heavy tanks was underway, the re-equipment of Pz began. Kfw. IV (a long-barreled 75-mm gun was installed with a simultaneous increase in its armor). This temporarily equated it with Soviet tanks for armament and armor. But according to other data, the T-34 retained its superiority.
Even in the midst of World War II, the Germans did not immediately begin to force the release of military equipment, but only when the specter of defeat loomed before them. At the same time, during the hostilities, the material part of the German tank troops continuously improved qualitatively and grew quantitatively. Since 1943, on the battlefields, the Germans began to massively use the medium tank Pz. Kfw. V "Panther" and heavy Pz. Kfw. VI "Tiger". The weapons were better worked out in these new Wehrmacht tanks, and to their disadvantage was, first of all, a large mass. Thick armor did not save the Wehrmacht vehicles from shells of Soviet guns mounted on the T-34-85 and IS-2 tanks and the SU-100 and ISU-122 self-propelled guns. To gain superiority over the Soviet tank IS-2, in 1944 a new heavy tank Pz.Kff was created. VI In The Royal Tiger. It was the heaviest production tank of World War II. During the war, German industry began to produce more and more self-propelled artillery mounts for various purposes. As the Wehrmacht moved to defensive operations, the proportion of self-propelled artillery grew in comparison with tanks. In 1943, the release of self-propelled guns exceeded the production of tanks, and in the last months of the war tripled it. At various times, from 65 to 80% of the Wehrmacht armored vehicles were on the Soviet-German front.
Whereas German armored vehicles created between 1934 and 1940 were mainly distinguished by high reliability, simplicity and ease of maintenance and operation, ease of control, then the equipment created during the war could no longer boast of such indicators. Haste and haste in the development and launch of the tanks Pz.Крfw.V "Panther", Рz.Крfw.VI Аusf.Е "Tiger" and Рz.Крfw.VI Аusf. The (Royal Tiger) adversely affected their reliability and performance, especially the Panther and Royal Tiger tanks. In addition, the Wehrmacht used trophy armored vehicles, but in a rather limited amount. Trophy tanks, as a rule, were outdated and did not represent much value for the front (except for the Czechoslovak model LT-38). The Wehrmacht used them in secondary theaters of war, for the occupying forces and the fight against partisans, as well as for training tankmen.
Trophy equipment was also used for conversion to artillery self-propelled guns, armored personnel carriers for the delivery of ammunition, etc. All the factories of the European states occupied by the Germans worked on the German Wehrmacht. Two large Czech factories “Skoda” (Pilsen) and SKD (Prague), renamed VMM, produced tanks and self-propelled guns based on them until the end of the war. In total, Czech plants produced more than 6,000 tanks and self-propelled guns. French tank factories were mainly used to remake captured French tanks, to repair them or to manufacture some spare parts for them, but not a single new tank or self-propelled gun was assembled there. In Austria, which was attached to the Third Reich during the Anschluss of 1938, during the Second World War the Niebelungwerke tank assembly plant (Steyr-Daimler-Puch) in St. Valentine was established. Its products were included in the total production of factories in Germany. After the surrender of Italy in 1943, its territory was partially occupied by German troops. Some tank-building plants in northern Italy, for example, Fiat-Ansaldo (Turin), continued to produce tanks and self-propelled guns for German formations operating in Italy. In 1943 - 1945 they produced more than 400 cars. In total, from September 1939 to March 1945, German industry manufactured about 46,000 tanks and self-propelled guns, with the latter accounting for more than 22,100 units. In addition to these vehicles, tracked, wheeled and semi-tracked armored personnel carriers, armored vehicles, and transporter tractors were also produced in Germany during World War II.
The first British Mk V tanks arrived in Japan in 1918, and in 1921 the Mk A tanks and the French Renault 17 FT. In 1925, two tank companies were formed from these vehicles. The Japanese started their own tank building only in 1927, when several prototypes of multi-turret tanks weighing about 20 tons were created. In the same years, the British Vickers-6-ton tanks and the Carden-Lloyd tankette MKVI, the French Renault NC1 tanks (the latter were in service under the designation Otsu until 1940) were purchased. On their basis, Japanese firms began developing tankettes and light tanks.
In 1931-1936, the medium tank type 89 was manufactured in small batches. This designation of military equipment was adopted by the armed forces on the basis of the Japanese chronology, according to which the Japanese year 2589 corresponded to the 1929 Gregorian calendar. In 1933, the leadership of Japan and the military command decided to mechanize the Japanese army and issued relevant orders to industry. First, Japanese designers preferred wedges. The first of these was Type 92 (1932), then the ultra-small Type 94 (1934) and the small Type 97 Te-ke tank (1937) followed. In total, more than 1000 tankettes were built before 1937. However, the further production of this class of vehicles, due to their low combat qualities, ceased, although it was in Japan that the design of the wedge heels reached its greatest development.
The Japanese tank industry since the mid-1930s has completely switched to the development of light and medium vehicles. In 1935, the most massive light tank, Ha-ha, was created, and in 1937, the medium Chi-ha. The latter, until the end of World War II, was the main example of Japanese armored forces. In 1937, the rate of production of tanks increased in connection with supplies to the Kwantung Army in Manchuria. At the same time, modernization of the Ha-ha and Chi-ha machines was carried out. In the mid-1930s, the command of the Japanese army first showed interest in the production of amphibious tanks, which were necessary for the implementation of amphibious operations in a future war. At this time, samples of amphibious tanks were being developed.
Japanese tank building in the 1920s and 1930s is characterized by a thorough study of foreign experience; passion for wedges; focusing efforts on the creation of light and medium tanks for arming the Kwantung army in China, and also, starting in 1933, using diesel engines in tanks. Japanese tanks were tested by battle during the fighting in the 1930s - early 1940s in the Far East against Chinese and Mongolian troops, as well as units of the Red Army. The experience gained in the combat use of tanks made Japanese designers, first of all, look for ways to increase their firepower and strengthen armor protection. In total, in 1931-1939, Japanese industry produced 2020 tanks. 16 samples were developed, including 7 serial ones.
With the outbreak of war in Europe, tank production in Japan was gaining momentum: 1,023 vehicles were manufactured in 1940 and 1,024 in 1941. In view of the island situation of the country, the Japanese military leadership did not seek to build up its tank and troops. In a manual on the preparation of troops, published in 1935, it was noted: “The main purpose of tanks is combat in close cooperation with infantry.” From a tactical point of view, tanks were considered only as a means of supporting infantry and were reduced to small units. Their main tasks were: combating firing points and field artillery and making infantry passages in barriers. Tanks could be sent to “near raids” beyond the front line of the enemy’s defense to a depth of no more than 600 m. At the same time, breaking their defense system, they had to return to their infantry and support its attack. The most maneuverable type of hostilities was the “deep raids” along with cavalry, motorized infantry in vehicles, sappers and field artillery. In defense, tanks were used to conduct frequent counterattacks (mainly at night) or to fire from an ambush. Fighting enemy tanks was allowed only when absolutely necessary. In November 1941, according to the operational rate plan, the main forces of the fleet and aviation were involved in the capture of the Philippine Islands, Malaya, Burma and other territories, and 11 infantry divisions and only 9 tank regiments stood out from the ground forces.
By December 1941, the tank fleet of the Japanese army consisted of about 2,000 vehicles: mostly light tanks, “Ha-go” and tankettes, medium-sized “Chi-ha” tanks, were several hundred. Since 1940, the modernization of the main tanks "Ha-go" and "Chi-ha" was carried out. As a result, during the war years, a light tank “Ke-nu” and an average “Chi-heh” were built in significant quantities. In 1942, the designers created the Ka-mi amphibious tank, which experts consider to be the best example in the history of Japanese tank building. But its release was extremely limited. In the same year, a limited number of self-propelled artillery installations went into the Japanese army to fight the Allied tanks and support their troops.
Japanese tanks had weak weapons and armor, satisfactory mobility, and were also not reliable enough and did not have good surveillance and communications equipment. These weapons in terms of armament, protection and other characteristics lagged behind the models of other warring countries. Therefore, by the end of the war, Japanese instructions already considered tanks as one of the most effective anti-tank weapons and often tanks in the defense were buried in the ground. The main feature of Japanese tank construction was the widespread use of diesel engines. During the war, Japanese tank building experienced a constant shortage of raw materials (steel) and skilled labor. The maximum level of tank production in Japan reached in 1942 and then began to fall. In total, Japanese industry produced 2377 tanks and 147 self-propelled guns in 1942-1945.
The Central Museum of the Great Patriotic War is persistently working to identify and collect material evidence of a heroic and tragic past. With each subsequent year after the war, it is becoming increasingly difficult to complete the collection of new models of armored vehicles. Currently, the museum has tanks and other armored objects of domestic production of the pre-war, military and post-war periods of production. This makes it possible to uncover the main stages of the domestic tank building industry, to show the hard work in incredibly difficult conditions for workers, engineers, designers, technologists, production organizers, all home front workers in achieving Victory.
The collection of armored vehicles of the USSR, Great Britain, USA, Germany and Japan was created by the museum staff since 1990. Great assistance was provided by the Main Armored Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, the leadership of the Border Troops of the FSB of Russia, military-patriotic public associations, search groups, and veteran organizations of tankers. The museum recreates the missing samples of armored vehicles by building their models from the surviving fragments found by search associations. In this way, the model of the KV-1 heavy tank and the models of Japanese tanks were recreated. A number of exhibits were restored by specialists of the 38th Research and Testing Institute of Armored Equipment of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation before being placed at an arms exhibition.
Modern warfare will be a war of motors. Motors on the ground, motors in the air, motors on and under water. In these conditions, the one who has more engines and a larger power reserve will win
Joseph Stalin
At a meeting of the Main Military Council, January 13, 1941
During the years of the prewar five-year plans, Soviet designers created new models of small arms, artillery, mortars and aircraft. More and more advanced destroyers, cruisers, patrol ships came into service, and special attention was paid to the development of the submarine fleet.
As a result, before the start of the Great Patriotic War, the USSR had a fairly modern weapon system and military equipment, and even surpassed German weapons analogues in some tactical and technical characteristics. Therefore, the main reasons for the defeats of the Soviet troops in the initial period of the war cannot be attributed to miscalculations in the technical equipment of the troops.
TANKS
As of June 22, 1941, the Red Army had 25,621 tanks.
The most popular were the light T-26s, which numbered almost 10 thousand vehicles, and representatives of the BT family — there were about 7.5 thousand. A significant proportion were tankettes and small amphibious tanks — a total of almost 6 thousand were in service with the Soviet troops. modifications T-27, T-37, T-38 and T-40.
The most modern at that time KV and T-34 tanks, there were about 1.85 thousand units.
Tanks KV-1
KV-1 heavy tank
KV-1 entered service in 1939, was mass-produced from March 1940 to August 1942. The mass of the tank was up to 47.5 tons, which made it much heavier than the existing German tanks. He was armed with a 76 mm gun.
Some experts consider the KV-1 to be a milestone for the world tank building machine, which had a significant impact on the development of heavy tanks in other countries.
The Soviet tank had the so-called classic layout - the division of the armored hull from the bow to the stern in series into the control compartment, combat and engine-transmission units. He also received an independent torsion bar suspension, anti-ballistic circular protection, a diesel engine and one relatively powerful gun. Previously, these elements were found on other tanks separately, but in the KV-1 they were first brought together.
The first combat use of the KV-1 relates to the Soviet-Finnish war: a prototype tank was deployed on December 17, 1939 when breaking the Mannerheim line.
In 1940-1942, 2769 tanks were produced. Until 1943, when the German "Tiger" appeared, KV was the most powerful tank of the war. At the beginning of World War II, he received the nickname "ghost" from the Germans. The standard shells of the 37 mm Wehrmacht anti-tank gun did not penetrate its armor.
Tank T-34
Medium Tank T-34
In May 1938, the Red Army Aviation Armored Directorate proposed to plant No. 183 (now the V. A. Malyshev Kharkov Transport Engineering Plant) to create a new tracked tank. Under the leadership of Mikhail Koshkin, the A-32 model was created. The work went in parallel with the creation of the BT-20 - an improved modification of the BT-7 tank that was already mass-produced.
The prototypes A-32 and BT-20 were ready in May 1939, following the results of their tests in December 1939, the A-32 received a new name - T-34 - and was accepted for service with the condition to finalize the tank: bring the main reservation to 45 millimeters, improve visibility, install a 76 mm cannon and additional machine guns.
In total, 1066 T-34s were manufactured by the beginning of World War II. After June 22, 1941, this type of production was launched at the Krasnoye Sormovo plant in Gorky (now Nizhny Novgorod), the Chelyabinsk Tractor Plant, Uralmash in Sverdlovsk (now Yekaterinburg), plant No. 174 in Omsk and Uralvagonzavod (Nizhny Tagil )
In 1944, serial production of the T-34-85 modification began with a new turret reinforced with armor and an 85 mm gun. Also, the tank is well established due to the simplicity of production and maintenance.
In total, more than 84 thousand T-34 tanks were manufactured. This model participated not only in the Great Patriotic War, it visited many armed conflicts in Europe, Asia and Africa in the 1950-1980s. The last documented case of the combat use of the T-34 in Europe was their use during the war in Yugoslavia.
By the beginning of World War II, Soviet aviation was armed with many types of combat aircraft. In the 1940s and the first half of 1941, nearly 2.8 thousand modern vehicles entered the troops: the Yak-1, MiG-3, LaGG-3, Pe-2, and Il-2.
There were also fighters I-15 bis, I-16 and I-153, bombers TB-3, DB-3, SB (ANT-40), multi-purpose R-5 and U-2 (Po-2).
The new aircraft of the Air Force of the Red Army in terms of combat capabilities were not inferior to the Luftwaffe, in a number of indicators even surpassed them.
Attack aircraft IL-2
Attack aircraft IL-2
The armored attack aircraft Il-2 is the most massive combat aircraft in. In total, more than 36 thousand cars were produced. He was called the "flying tank", the leadership of the Wehrmacht - "black death" and "iron Gustav." German pilots nicknamed the IL-2 "concrete plane" for its high combat survivability.
The first combat units that were armed with these machines were created before the war itself. Attack units were successfully used against motorized and armored enemy units. At the beginning of the war, the Il-2 was practically the only aircraft that, in the conditions of superiority of German aviation, fought the enemy in the air. He played a large role in deterring the enemy in 1941.
During the war years, several modifications of the aircraft were created. IL-2 and its further development - the IL-10 attack aircraft - were actively used in all major battles of the Great Patriotic War and in the Soviet-Japanese War.
The maximum horizontal speed of the aircraft at the ground was 388 km / h, and at an altitude of 2000 m - 407 km / h. The rise time to a height of 1000 m is 2.4 minutes, and the turn time at this height is 48-49 seconds. At the same time, in one combat turn, the attack aircraft gained a height of 400 meters.
MiG-3 fighter
MiG-3 night fighter
The design team, led by A.I. Mikoyan and M.I. Gurevich, in 1939 worked intensively on a fighter to conduct combat at high altitudes. In the spring of 1940, a prototype was built, which received the MiG-1 brand (Mikoyan and Gurevich, the first). Subsequently, its modernized version was named MiG-3.
Despite the significant take-off weight (3350 kg), the speed of the serial MiG-3 at the ground exceeded 500 km / h, and at an altitude of 7 thousand meters reached 640 km / h. It was the highest speed at that time obtained on serial aircraft. Due to the high ceiling and high speed at an altitude of over 5 thousand meters, the MiG-3 was effectively used as a reconnaissance aircraft, as well as an air defense fighter. However, poor horizontal maneuverability and relatively weak weapons did not allow him to become a full-fledged front-line fighter.
According to the estimates of the famous ace Alexander Pokryshkin, yielding horizontally, the MiG-3 significantly surpassed the German Me109 in a vertical maneuver, which could serve as the key to victory in a clash with fascist fighters. However, only pilots of the extra class could successfully pilot the MiG-3 on vertical turns and at extreme overloads.
FLEET
By the beginning of World War II, the Soviet fleet had a total of 3 battleships and 7 cruisers, 54 leaders and a destroyer, 212 submarines, 287 torpedo boats and many other ships.
The pre-war shipbuilding program provided for the creation of a "large fleet", the basis of which would be large surface ships - battleships and cruisers. In accordance with it, in the years 1939-1940 battleships of the Soviet Union type and the heavy cruisers Kronstadt and Sevastopol were laid, the unfinished cruiser Petropavlovsk was acquired in Germany, but plans for a radical renewal of the fleet were not destined to materialize.
In the prewar years, Soviet sailors received new light cruisers of the Kirov type, leaders of the destroyers of projects 1 and 38, destroyers of project 7 and other ships. The construction of submarines and torpedo boats was booming.
Many ships were completed during the war, some of them never took part in the battles. These include, for example, the project 68 cruiser Chapaev and the destroyers of project 30 Ognevaya.
The main types of surface ships of the pre-war period:
light cruisers of the Kirov type,
leaders of the types "Leningrad" and "Minsk",
destroyers of the "Angry" and "Clever" type,
minesweepers,
torpedo boats "G-5",
sea \u200b\u200bhunters "MO-4".
The main types of submarines of the pre-war period:
small submarines of type "M" ("Baby"),
medium submarines of types "Щ" ("Pike") and "С" ("Medium"),
underwater mine barriers of type "L" ("Leninets"),
large submarines of types "K" ("Cruising") and "D" ("Decembrist").
Cruisers of the Kirov type
Cruisers of the Kirov type
Light cruisers of the Kirov type became the first Soviet surface ships of this class, not counting the three Svetlana cruisers laid down under Nicholas II. Project 26, on which the Kirov was built, was finally approved in the fall of 1934 and developed the ideas of the Italian light cruisers of the Kondotieri family.
The first pair of cruisers, “Kirov” and “Voroshilov”, was laid in 1935. They went into operation in 1938 and 1940. The second pair, “Maxim Gorky” and “Molotov”, was already being built according to the amended project and replenished the composition of the Soviet fleet in 1940-1941. Two more cruisers were laid in the Far East, before the end of World War II only one of them, the Kalinin, was put into operation. Far Eastern cruisers also differed from their predecessors.
The total displacement of the Kirov-class cruisers ranged from about 9450-9550 tons for the first pair to almost 10 000 tons for the last. These ships could reach speeds of 35 knots or more. Their main armament was nine 180-mm B-1-P guns located in three-gun towers. On the first four cruisers, anti-aircraft weapons were represented by six B-34 mounts of 100 mm caliber, 45 mm 21-K and 12.7 mm machine guns. In addition, the Kirovs carried torpedoes, mines and depth charges, seaplanes.
“Kirov” and “Maxim Gorky” spent almost the entire war supporting the defenders of Leningrad with gunfire. Voroshilov and Molotov, built in Nikolaev, participated in fleet operations in the Black Sea. All of them survived the Great Patriotic War - they were destined for a long service. The last composition of the fleet in 1974 left the Kirov.
Submarine Pike
Submarines of the "Pike" type
"Pike" became the most massive Soviet submarines of World War II, not counting the "Baby".
The construction of the first series of four submarines began in the Baltic in 1930, and the Pike were commissioned in 1933-1934.
These were middle-class submarines, the underwater displacement of which was about 700 tons, and the armament consisted of six torpedo tubes of a caliber of 533 mm and a 45-mm 21-K gun.
The project was successful, and by the beginning of World War II, more than 70 Pike were in service (86 submarines were built in six series).
Submarines of the type "Щ" were actively used at all naval theaters of war. Of the 44 fought "Pike" 31 were killed. The enemy lost almost 30 ships from their actions.
Despite a number of shortcomings, “Pikes” were distinguished by comparative cheapness, maneuverability and survivability. From series to series - a total of six series of these submarines were created - they improved their seaworthiness and other parameters. In 1940, two U-type submarines were the first in the Soviet fleet to receive equipment that allowed torpedo firing without air leakage (which often unmasked the attacking submarine).
Although only two Pikes of the latest X-bis series were commissioned after the war, these submarines remained in the fleet for a long time and were decommissioned in the late 1950s.
ARTILLERY
According to Soviet data, on the eve of World War II, the army had almost 67.5 thousand guns and mortars.
It is believed that the Soviet field artillery even surpassed the German in combat qualities. However, it was poorly provided with mechanized traction: agricultural tractors were used as tractors, up to half of the guns were transported with the help of horses.
The army was armed with many types of artillery guns and mortars. Anti-aircraft artillery was represented by guns of calibers of 25, 37, 76 and 85 millimeters; howitzer - modifications of the caliber 122, 152, 203 and 305 millimeters. The main anti-tank gun was the 45-millimetric model of 1937, the regimental - 76-millimeter model of 1927, and the divisional - 76-millimeter model of 1939.
Anti-tank gun fires at the enemy in battles for Vitebsk
45 mm 1937 anti-tank gun
This weapon became one of the most famous representatives of the Soviet artillery of the Great Patriotic War. It was developed under the leadership of Mikhail Loginov on the basis of a 45 mm cannon of 1932.
The main combat qualities of the 45-graph paper included maneuverability, rate of fire (15 rounds per minute) and armor penetration.
By the beginning of the war, the army had more than 16.6 thousand guns of the 1937 model. In total, over 37.3 thousand of these guns were produced, and the production was curtailed only by 1944, despite the availability of more modern ZiS-2 models and a similar caliber M-42.
Volley "Katyusha"
Katyusha rocket artillery fighting vehicle
The day before the start of World War II, the BM-13 rocket artillery combat vehicle, which later became known as Katyusha, was adopted by the Red Army. She became one of the world's first multiple launch rocket systems.
The first combat use took place on July 14, 1941 near the railway station of the city of Orsha (Belarus). The battery under the command of Captain Ivan Flerov in volley fire destroyed a cluster of German military equipment at the Orsha railway junction.
Due to its high efficiency and ease of production, by the autumn of 1941 the city of BM-13 was widely used at the front, having a significant impact on the course of hostilities.
The system allowed the launch of a full charge (16 missiles) in 7-10 seconds. There were also modifications with an increased number of guides and other versions of missiles.
During the war, about 4 thousand BM-13s were lost. In total, about 7 thousand installations of this type were manufactured, and the Katyushas were discontinued only after the war - in October 1946.
WEAPON
Despite the widespread introduction of tanks and aircraft, increased artillery, infantry weapons remained the most massive. According to some estimates, while in World War I small arms losses did not exceed 30% of the total, in World War II they grew to 30-50%.
Before World War II, the entry into the army of rifles, carbines and machine guns grew, but the Red Army was significantly inferior to the Wehrmacht in terms of saturation with automatic weapons, such as submachine guns.
Snipers Rosa Shanina, Alexandra Ekimova and Lidia Vdovina (from left to right). 3rd Belorussian Front
Mosin rifle
Adopted in 1891, the Mosin rifle with a caliber of 7.62 mm remained the main weapon of the infantryman of the Red Army. In total, about 37 million such rifles were produced.
Modifications of the sample 1891/1930 had to take the battle in the most difficult months of the beginning of World War II. Due to its cheapness and reliability, the weapon passed its young self-loading rivals.
The last version of the "three-ruler" was a carbine of the 1944 model, characterized by the presence of a fixed needle bayonet. The rifle became even shorter, the technology was simplified, and the maneuverability of the battle increased - a shorter carbine makes it easier to engage in close combat in thickets, trenches, fortifications.
In addition, it was Mosin’s design that formed the basis of the sniper rifle, which was adopted in 1931 and became the first Soviet rifle, specially created for the "mark of shooting and destruction, first of all, of the enemy command personnel."
Soviet and American soldiers. Meeting on the Elbe, 1945
PPSh
The Shpagin submachine gun of a caliber of 7.62 mm was adopted for service in 1941.
This legendary weapon has become part of the image of a victorious soldier - it can be seen in the most famous monuments. PPSh-41 was fond of fighters, having received from them the affectionate and respectful nickname "dad." He shot in almost any weather conditions and at the same time was relatively cheap.
By the end of the war, PPSh were armed with about 55% of the soldiers. In total, about 6 million units were produced.
