Air defense in the years of WWII. Air defense during the Great Patriotic War. Donbass air defense brigade area

Air defense is a special set of measures that are aimed at repelling any air threat. As a rule, this is an air attack of the enemy. The air defense system of Russia is divided into the following types:

• Military air defense. This is a special type of NE of Russia. The air defense forces of the ground forces of the Russian Federation are the most numerous type of air defense of Russia;
• Object air defense, which since 1998 became part of the Russian Air Force, and from 2009-2010 are aerospace defense brigades;
• Shipboard air defense system or air defense of the navy. Air defense missiles, which are equipped with naval air defense systems (for example, the Storm air defense system), can not only protect ships from enemy air attacks, but also destroy surface ships.

Air Defense Day was introduced in the USSR on February 20, 1975, as a special holiday for the military, who were involved in the country's air defense. Then the air defense day was celebrated on April 11th. Since 1980, air defense day in the USSR began to be celebrated every second Sunday of April.

In 2006, by a special Decree of the President of the Russian Federation of May 31, the air defense day was officially declared a memorable day. The holiday is also celebrated every second Sunday of April.

The history of the appearance of air defense forces in Russia

The need for the appearance of anti-aircraft artillery was recognized at the end of the 19th century. In 1891, the first firing at air targets took place, in which balloons and balloons were used. The artillery showed that it could quite successfully cope with motionless air targets, although firing at moving targets was unsuccessful.

In 1908-1909, experimental shooting at moving targets took place, as a result of which it was decided that for a successful fight against aviation, it was necessary to create a special gun designed to shoot at moving air targets.

In 1914, the Putilov factory manufactured four 76 mm guns, which were intended to deal with enemy aircraft. These guns moved on special trucks. Despite this, before the outbreak of World War I, Russia was completely unprepared for combat with an air enemy. Already in the fall of 1914, the command had to urgently form special artillery units, the main task of which was the fight against enemy aircraft.

In the USSR, the first air defense units, consisting of searchlight companies and machine-gun mounts, took part for the first time in a military parade on May 1, 1929. By the parade of 1930, the air defense forces were replenished with anti-aircraft artillery, which was moving in cars:

• 76 mm anti-aircraft guns;
• Machine gun installations;
• Floodlight installations;
• Sound-absorbing installations.

Air Defense Forces during World War II

The Second World War demonstrated how important aviation is. The ability to deliver rapid air strikes has become one of the keys to the success of military operations. The state of the USSR air defense before the start of the Second World War was far from perfect and completely unsuitable for repulsing the mass raids of German aviation. Although before the start of the Second World War, the Soviet command devoted a lot of time and money to the development of air defense systems, these troops were completely unprepared to repel modern German aircraft.

The entire first half of the Second World War is characterized by huge losses of Soviet troops precisely because of enemy air raids. The ground forces of the USSR did not at all have the necessary air defense system. The defense of the corps from air attacks was carried out by the standard number of air defense systems, which at 1 km of the front were represented by the following weapons:

• 2 anti-aircraft guns;
• 1 heavy machine gun;
• 3 anti-aircraft quad mounts.

In addition to the fact that these guns were clearly not enough, there was a huge need for fighter aircraft at the front. The air surveillance, warning and communication system was in its infancy, and could not cope with the tasks assigned to them. For a long time, the troops did not even have their own funds of this type. In order to carry out these functions, it was planned to strengthen the army with VNOS radio turns. These companies did not correspond at all to the technical development of German aviation, since they could detect enemy aircraft only visually. Such detection was possible only at a distance of 10-12 km, and modern German aircraft covered this distance in 1-2 minutes.

The domestic theory of the development of air defense forces before the start of the Second World War did not place any serious emphasis on the development of this group of forces. Based on the dogmas of this theory, the air defense forces, no matter how strongly developed they are, are not able to provide full protection of the front from enemy air raids. In any case, small enemy groups will still be able to fly and destroy the target. That is why the command of the USSR did not pay serious attention to the air defense forces, and the construction of air defense was based on the fact that the air defense systems distract the enemy, making it possible for aviation to engage in battle.

In any case, the USSR fighter aircraft in the early years of the war was not able to give any serious rebuff to enemy aircraft, which is why German pilots in those years arranged a real entertaining “hunt” for ground targets.

Realizing their mistakes, the Soviet command concentrated its efforts on developing air defense systems, placing special emphasis on improving fighter aircraft and anti-aircraft artillery.

The development of air defense after the Second World War

In 1946, a new era began in the development of air defense forces - they created a new department whose task was to test anti-aircraft missiles. During the 1947-1950s, this department, which was located at the Kapustin Yar training ground, tested German anti-aircraft missiles while supervising the development of Soviet-made anti-aircraft missiles. Until 1957, this committee was engaged in testing domestic anti-aircraft missiles.

In 1951, anti-aircraft missile tests became so large-scale that it was necessary to create a special testing ground for anti-aircraft missile tests. This landfill was formed on June 6, 1951. As personnel, missile testers from all over the country were sent to this training ground.

The first launch of a guided anti-aircraft missile took place at this training ground in 1951. In 1955, the first in the USSR S-25 "Golden Eagle" anti-aircraft missile system was adopted by the Air Defense Forces, which remained in service until the 90s.

In the period from 1957 to 1961, a new S-75 mobile anti-aircraft missile system was developed and adopted. This air defense system for 30 years remained the main weapon of the Soviet air defense forces. In the future, the S-75 air defense system received many modifications and was supplied as military assistance to friendly countries. It was the S-75 anti-aircraft missile system that shot down the U-2 American aircraft in 1960 near Sverdlovsk. During the Vietnam War, the S-75 air defense system, which was supplied as military aid to Vietnam, shot down many American aircraft. According to the most rough estimates, this air defense system destroyed more than 1,300 units of American aircraft of various systems.

In 1961, the new S-125 short-range anti-aircraft missile system was adopted. This air defense system has proved to be so effective that it is still in service with Russian air defense systems. During the Arab-Israeli wars, the S-125 complex was able to destroy several dozen supersonic aircraft belonging to the United States and Israel.

The Great Patriotic War showed that it is the air defense systems that have great prospects. The development of anti-aircraft defense of the second half of the 20th century was carried out in the right direction, which was repeatedly proved in the course of numerous Arab-Israeli conflicts. The tactics of using air defense weapons were now based on completely different principles. New air defense systems had the following characteristics:

• Mobility of anti-aircraft missile systems;
• The suddenness of their use, for which they were carefully masked;
• General survivability and maintainability of air defense systems.

To date, the following systems and systems are the basis of the air defense assets of the Ground Forces of the Russian Federation:

• S-300V. This system is able to effectively protect troops not only from enemy aircraft, but also from ballistic missiles. This system could fire two types of missiles, one of which was a ground-to-ground class;
• "Buk-M1." This complex was developed in the 90s, and was adopted in 1998;
• Tor-M1. This system is able to independently control the designated airspace;
• OCA-AKM. This air defense system is very mobile;
• "Tunguska-M1", which was adopted in 2003.

All these systems are the development of famous Russian designers and not only incorporate all the best qualities of their predecessors, but are also equipped with modern electronics. These complexes effectively protect troops from all types of air attacks, thereby providing reliable cover for the army.

At various military exhibitions, domestic anti-aircraft missile systems not only are not inferior to foreign counterparts, but also surpass them in a number of parameters, ranging from range to power.

The main prospects for the modern development of the Air Defense Forces

The main areas in which the development of modern air defense forces is directed are:

• Change and reorganization of all structures, one way or another connected with air defense. The main objective of the reorganization is the maximum use of all resources and combat power of missile weapons, which is now being put into service. Another task of paramount importance is to establish maximum interaction between the air defense forces and other groups of the army of the Russian Federation;
• The development of new generation armaments and military equipment that will be able to fight not only with existing air attack weapons, but also with the latest developments in the field of hypersonic technologies;
• Change and improvement of the training system. Particular attention should be paid to changing the training program, because it has not changed for many years, although new air defense systems have long been adopted.

The priority continues to be the planned development of the latest air defense models, the modernization of older models and the complete replacement of obsolete air defense systems. In general, the modern air defense system is developing in accordance with the words of the famous Marshal Zhukov, who said that only a powerful military air defense system is able to repel sudden attacks by the enemy, thereby enabling the Armed Forces to engage in full-scale combat.

Modern air defense systems and air defense systems in the Russian air defense forces

One of the main air defense systems, which are in service with the air defense forces, is the S-300V system. This system is capable of hitting air targets at a distance of up to 100 km. Since 2014, S-300V air defense systems began to be gradually replaced by a new system, which was called S-300V4. The new system is improved in all respects, it is an improved modification of the S-300V, differing from it in an increased radius of action, a more reliable design, which is distinguished by improved protection from radio interference. The new system is able to more effectively deal with all types of air targets that appear within its radius of action.

The next most popular complex is the Buk air defense system. Since 2008, a modification of the complex, called the Buk-M2, has been put into service with the air defense forces. This SAM can simultaneously hit up to 24 targets, and the range of targets can reach 200 km. Since 2016, the Buk-M3 complex was adopted, which is a model made on the basis of the Buk-M2 and has been seriously modified.

Another popular air defense system is the “TOP” complex. In 2011, a new modification of the air defense system, called the “TOR-M2U”, began to enter service. This modification has the following differences from the base model:

• She can conduct reconnaissance on the move;
• Shell 4 air targets at once, thereby ensuring an all-round defeat.

The latest modification is called "Tor-2." Unlike previous models of the TOR family, this modification has a 2-fold increased ammunition and is capable of firing on the move, ensuring complete security of troops on the march.

In addition, Russian anti-aircraft defense systems also have portable anti-aircraft missile systems. The simplicity of training and use of this type of weapon makes it a serious problem for enemy air forces. In 2014, new Verba MANPADS began to enter the air defense units of the Ground Forces. Their use is justified when it is necessary to act in conditions of powerful optical interference, which impede the operation of powerful automatic air defense systems.

Currently, the share of modern air defense systems in the air defense forces is about 40 percent. The latest Russian air defense systems have no analogues in the world, and are able to provide complete protection against sudden air attacks.

History of Russian Air Defense ( Air defense) originates from the winter of 1914, when during World War I For the first time in the Russian Empire, cannons and light machine guns were used to shell Austrian and German airplanes. In November 1914, the headquarters of the 6th Army developed a special document called “ Aeronautical instruction in the area of \u200b\u200bthe 6th army“. Army commander signed a secret order number 90who approved the instruction and determined the terms of its implementation - December 8, 1914. This day is considered to be Happy birthday air defense system of Russia.

Then it included specially formed artillery units adapted for firing at air targets. The air cover was carried out by specially trained crews of the Gatchina aviation school. By the same order, Major General BURMAN G.V., chief, was appointed the head of the air defense of Petrograd and Tsarskoye Selo, the first commander of air defense School of Electrical Engineering.

The foundations laid down during the creation of air defense in the tsarist army continued to improve and develop and improve after the Great October Socialist Revolution. In May 1918, the Office of the Head of Air Defense of the city of MOSCOW was created, subordinate to which were 25 aircraft and 8 artillery batteries. 4 months before the start of the war, in February 1941, General Staff of the Red Army  led by General of the Army Zhukov G.K. officially secured the separation of anti-aircraft air defense systems in the country's air defense and means of military air defense. This was the first attempt to move from an object to a territorial construction of the USSR air defense.

As of June 22, 1941, the country's air defense forces included 13 air defense zones, 3 corps, 2 brigades, and 39 air defense brigade regions. The number of personnel of the air defense forces amounted to 182 thousand people. To cover important economic and administrative centers of the country, 40 fighter aviation regiments were assigned, numbering 1,500 combat aircraft and 1,206 crews.

CAPITAL FIRE SHIELD

The initial period of World War II revealed serious shortcomings in command and control of troops, their training and equipment. Showing massive heroism air defense warriors  in the most difficult conditions of the initial stage of the war, 2,500 German aircraft were shot down.

Warriors also made their worthy contribution to the victory Moscow District Air Defense. They destroyed 7313 fascist aircraft, of which 4168 were shot down by fighter aircraft and 3145 by anti-aircraft artillery.

During the battle of Moscow, the warriors of the air defense units of MOSCOW, including 54, 55, 59 anti-aircraft artillery divisions of the air defense and 25 fighter-aviation regiment, showed high training iap), which were located on the territory of the Leninsky district of the Moscow region. Previously, this area was under the responsibility of the 1st Air Defense Corps of the 1st Army of the Air Defense Forces of the OH, then the 5th Air Defense Brigade. Since December 1, this is the area of \u200b\u200bresponsibility of the 5th Air Defense Division. Finally, the veterans waited for justice and reason to prevail among the current military leaders and our true army structure was restored. The commander Moscow Air Defense Zone  was appointed

Not a single capital of Europe had such a powerful air defense as the capital of the USSR - the city of MOSCOW.

One of the bright pages in the defensive battles on the approaches to Moscow was entered by the soldiers of the 1st Air Defense Corps, 193 and 329 anti-aircraft artillery regiments, which took part in repelling the first fascist air raid on Moscow. The first raids involved about 200 - 250 aircraft. Only a few were able to break through to the capital.

In reflection of the first raid took part natives of the village. Petrovsky GOLOVIN V.S., der. Zhukovo - BOBYREV V.P., pos. state farm to them. Lenin - PALITSKY M.A.

On the territory of the Leninsky district in the territory of the current Gorkinsky and Molokovsky settlements was located 1203 Zenap  to protect Moscow from the south and southeast. In October, a regiment of night bombers consisting of 57 aircraft was stationed in the villages of Vlasyevo and Pykhchino. In May 1942, the headquarters was located in the Molokov school 1203 Zenap, which provided the air defense of Moscow in the western direction of the Vidnoe-Pugovichino-Domodedovo line. This is reminiscent of the plaque on the former building of the Molokov School.

The personnel of the Moscow air defense showed vivid examples of courage and heroism in the performance of their military duty to their homeland. The pilot made a night ram 28 iap(Vnukovo) lieutenant YEREMEEV V.P., awarded the title HERO (posthumously) for his feat.

For courage and heroism during the defense of Moscow, 6 units became guards, 11 were awarded orders of the USSR. More than 25 thousand soldiers, sergeants, and generals were awarded government orders and medals, 32 - awarded the title HERO OF THE SOVIET UNION, 7 soldiers are forever enlisted in the lists of military units.

In memory of the heroic deeds of warriors Air defense  On May 7, on the eve of the 65th anniversary of the Great Victory, a military-historical monument was created in the city of Vidnoe and an anti-aircraft gun was installed.

Valery Yakovlevich Golyas, from the materials of the forum of the Moscow Air Defense District, especially for site

In a modern war, the leadership of the Red Army was concerned about the creation of modern air defense systems.
The royal legacy in the form of: 76-mm Lender anti-aircraft guns, a few 40-mm Vickers machine guns and semi-artillery mounts of the Maxim machine gun did not meet modern requirements.

The first Soviet anti-aircraft mount was designed by M.N. Kondakov under the machine gun system Maxim arr. 1910. It was made in the form of a tripod and connected to a machine gun with a swivel. With its simplicity and reliability, installation arr. 1928 provided circular firing and large elevation angles.

An annular sight was adopted for it, intended for firing at planes moving at speeds up to 320 km / h at a range of up to 1,500 m. Later, with an increase in flight speed, the sight was repeatedly upgraded.

In 1930, a twin anti-aircraft mount was designed at the Design Bureau of the Tula Arms Plant, which turned out to be much more massive. The ability to fire from each machine gun separately was saved, which reduced the consumption of cartridges during sighting.

It also entered service, although for a number of reasons it was not widespread.

In connection with the need to equip the air defense forces with more powerful installations capable of providing massive fire, the famous gunsmith N.F. Tokarev created a quad anti-aircraft gun mount Maxim arr. 1931

She had a high rate of fire, good maneuverability, constant combat readiness. Aerial targets were fired from it using the same sights as in single and twin installations.

Due to the presence of a liquid cooling system and a large capacity of tapes, it was for its time an effective means of dealing with low-flying aircraft. Possesses high combat rate of fire and density of fire.

The good combat effectiveness of the installation, first used in the battle on Hassan, was noted by foreign military observers present in the Japanese army.

The quad installation of the Tokarev system was the first integrated anti-aircraft installation adopted by the army.
During World War II, a quad anti-aircraft mount was successfully used to cover troops, important military installations and cities, and was repeatedly used with great effectiveness to combat enemy manpower.

After adopting the ShKAS aviation rapid-fire machine gun, in 1936. serial production of the twin anti-aircraft guns began. However, ShKAS did not take root on the ground. For this machine gun, special release cartridges were required, the use of conventional infantry ammunition led to a large number of delays in shooting. The machine gun turned out to be little adapted for service on the ground: it is complex in design and sensitive to pollution.

Most of the existing anti-aircraft installations with ShKAS machine guns were used for air defense of airfields, where they had air conditioning ammunition and qualified service.

In the initial period of the war, in order to strengthen air defense and compensate for the losses suffered, it was decided to use the available machine guns PV-1, DA and DA-2.

At the same time, it was decided to follow the path of maximum simplification, without a significant reduction in combat effectiveness.

Based on PV-1, N.F. Tokarev in August 1941 a built-up ZPU was created. In 1941-42 626 such installations were manufactured.

A significant part of them was used in the defense of Stalingrad.

Twin and single aircraft machine guns DA design V.A. Degtyareva mounted on a simple swivel.

Often this happened in military workshops, in the field. Despite the relatively low rate of fire and a disk magazine with a capacity of only 63 rounds, these installations played a role in the initial period of the war.

During the war, due to the increased survivability of aircraft, the importance of rifle caliber installations in the fight against enemy aircraft falls noticeably, and they are inferior to the large-caliber machine gun DShK, although they continue to play a role.

February 26, 1939 by the decree of the Defense Committee, a 12.7-mm gun was adopted. machine gun DShK (Degtyareva-Shpagina large-caliber) on the universal machine Kolesnikov. For firing at air targets, the machine gun was equipped with special anti-aircraft sights. The first machine guns entered the army in 1940. But by the beginning of the war, there were still very few of them in the troops.

DShK became a powerful means of combating enemy aircraft, possessing high armor penetration, it significantly exceeded the 7.62 mm caliber zpu. in range and altitude of effective fire. Due to the positive qualities of DShK machine guns, their number in the army was constantly growing.

During the war, the twin and built DShK installations were designed and manufactured.

In addition to domestic machine guns for anti-aircraft fire, the following Lend-Lease delivered: 7.62 mm Browning M1919A4 and large-caliber 12.7 mm were used. Browning M2, as well as captured MG-34 and MG-42.

Powerful quad 12.7 mm was especially appreciated in the troops. US-made M17 mounts mounted on the chassis of the M3 half-track armored personnel carrier.

These self-propelled guns proved to be a very effective means of protecting tank units and formations on the march from air attack.
In addition, the M17 was successfully used about the time of fighting in the cities, conducting dense fire on the upper floors of buildings.

The pre-war industry of the USSR was not able to fully equip the troops with the necessary anti-aircraft weapons, the air defense of the USSR on 06/22/1941 was equipped with anti-aircraft machine-gun mounts only 61%.

No less difficult was the situation with heavy machine guns. January 1, 1942. in the army there were only 720 of them. However, with the transition to military rails, industry in an ever increasing volume of troops is saturated with weapons.

Six months later, the army already -1947 pcs. DShK, and by January 1, 1944 - 8442 pcs. Over two years, the number increased by almost 12 times.

The importance of machine-gun fire in the military air defense and air defense of the country remained throughout the war. Of the 3837 enemy aircraft shot down by the troops of the fronts from June 22, 1941 to June 22, 1942, 295 accounted for anti-aircraft machine-gun mounts, 268 - for gun-machine-gun fire of troops. Since June 1942, the DShK company, which had 8 machine guns, was part of the army of the anti-aircraft artillery regiment, and since February 1943, 16 machine guns.

Formed since November 1942, anti-aircraft artillery divisions (zenad) of the RVGK had one of the same company in each regiment of small-caliber anti-aircraft artillery. A sharp increase in the number of heavy machine guns in the troops in 1943-1944 is quite characteristic. Only in preparation for the Battle of Kursk, 520 12.7 mm machine guns were sent to the fronts. True, from the spring of 1943 the number of anti-aircraft missile systems in the zenad decreased from 80 to 52, while the number of guns increased from 48 to 64, and according to the updated state in the spring of 1944, the zenad had 88 anti-aircraft guns and 48 machine guns. But at the same time, by order of the People's Commissar of Defense of March 31, 1943, from April 5, an anti-aircraft artillery regiment was introduced into the state of tank and mechanized corps (16 37 mm anti-aircraft guns and 16 large-caliber machine guns, the same regiment was also introduced into the cavalry corps), the staff of tank, mechanized and motorized brigades is an anti-aircraft machine-gun company with 9 heavy machine guns. At the beginning of 1944, anti-aircraft machine-gun companies of 18 infantry fighting regiments were introduced into the state of some rifle divisions.

DShK machine guns were usually used platooned. So, the anti-aircraft machine-gun company of a division usually covered with four platoons (12 machine guns) the artillery firing area, and with two platoons (6 machine guns) the division command post.

Anti-aircraft machine guns were also introduced into the composition of medium-caliber anti-aircraft batteries to cover them from enemy attacks from low altitudes. Machine gunners often successfully interacted with air defense fighters - cutting off enemy fighters with fire, they provided their pilots with avoiding pursuit. Anti-aircraft machine guns were usually located no further than 300-500 m from the front edge of the defense. They covered advanced units, command posts, front-line railways and highways.

Very difficult at the beginning of the war was the situation with anti-aircraft artillery.

As of June 22, 1941, there were:
-1370 pcs. 37 mm. automatic anti-aircraft guns arr. 1939 (61-K)
-805 pcs. 76 mm. 1900 field guns on anti-aircraft mounts of the Ivanov system
-539 pcs. 76 mm. anti-aircraft guns arr. 1914/15, the Lender system
-19 pcs. 76 mm. anti-aircraft guns arr. 1915/28 g.
-3821 pcs. 76 mm. anti-aircraft guns arr. 1931 (3-K)
-750 pcs. 76 mm. anti-aircraft guns arr. 1938
-2630 pcs. 85 mm. arr. 1939 (52-K)

A significant part of them were hopelessly outdated systems, with weak ballistics, which did not have Anti-aircraft Fire Control Devices (POISO).

Let us dwell on guns that had real combat value.

37 mm. automatic anti-aircraft gun arr. 1939 was the only small-caliber machine gun adopted in service before the war, it was created on the basis of the Swedish 40-mm gun Bofors.

The 37-mm automatic anti-aircraft gun of the 1939 model is a single-barreled small-caliber automatic anti-aircraft gun on a four-gun carriage with an inseparable four-wheeled drive.

Automation of the gun is based on the use of recoil force according to the scheme with a short rollback of the barrel. All actions necessary for firing a shot (opening the shutter after the shot with extracting the cartridge case, cocking the striker, feeding cartridges into the chamber, closing the shutter and releasing the striker) are performed automatically. Manually aiming, guiding the guns and feeding clips with cartridges to the store.

According to the guidance of the gun service, its main objective was the fight against air targets at ranges up to 4 km and at altitudes up to 3 km. If necessary, the gun can be successfully used for firing at ground targets, including armored vehicles

During the battles of 1941, anti-aircraft guns suffered significant losses - until September 1, 1941, 841 guns were lost, and in total in 1941 - 1204 guns. Huge losses were hardly made up for by production - as of January 1, 1942, there were about 1,600 37 mm anti-aircraft guns. As of January 1, 1945, there were about 19,800 guns. However, this number includes 40 mm. Bofors guns supplied by Lend-Lease.

61-K during the Great Patriotic War were the main means of air defense of the Soviet troops in the frontline.

Shortly before the war, a 25-mm automatic anti-aircraft gun of the 1940 model (72-K) was created, borrowing a number of design solutions from the 37-mm. 61-K. But by the beginning of hostilities, she did not get into the troops.

72-K anti-aircraft guns were intended for air defense of the level of a rifle regiment and in the Red Army occupied an intermediate position between large-caliber anti-aircraft machine guns DShK and more powerful 37-mm anti-aircraft guns 61-K. However, the use of charge loading for a small-caliber anti-aircraft machine greatly reduced the practical rate of fire.

Due to difficulties in mastering their serial production, a significant number of 25-mm anti-aircraft guns appeared in the Red Army only in the second half of the war. 72-K anti-aircraft guns and 94-KM twin systems based on them were successfully used against low-flying and diving targets. By the number of issued copies, they greatly conceded 37 mm. automatic machines.

The most numerous at the time the war began, 76 mm. anti-aircraft gun arr. 1931 (3-K) was created on the basis of the German 7.5 cm anti-aircraft 7.5 cm Flak L / 59 Rheinmetall company in the framework of military cooperation with Germany. Original samples made in Germany in February-April 1932 were tested at the Anti-aircraft Landfill. In the same year, the gun was adopted under the name "76-mm anti-aircraft gun mod. 1931. "

For her, a new shell was developed, with a bottle-shaped cartridge case, which was used only in anti-aircraft guns.

76 mm anti-aircraft gun arr. 1931 is a semi-automatic cannon, since the opening of the shutter, extraction of spent cartridges and closing the shutter during firing are automatic, and the delivery of cartridges into the chamber and the shot are done manually. The presence of semi-automatic mechanisms provides a high combat rate of fire of the gun - up to 20 rounds per minute. The lifting mechanism allows you to fire in the range of angles of vertical guidance from -3 ° to + 82 °. In the horizontal plane, shooting can be conducted in any direction.

Gun arr. 1931 was a very modern weapon with good ballistic characteristics. Its carriage with four hinged beds provided circular firing, and with a projectile weight of 6.5 kg, the vertical firing range was 9 km. A significant drawback of the gun was that its transfer from a traveling position to a combat one took a relatively long time (more than 5 minutes) and was a rather time-consuming operation.

Several dozen guns were installed on the YAG-10 trucks. Self-propelled guns received an index of 29K.

In the back of a YAG-10 truck with a reinforced bottom, the swinging part of the 76.2-mm anti-aircraft gun arr. 1931 (3K) on a standard stand. To increase the stability of the platform during firing, the gun mount was lowered relative to the platform by 85 mm. The car was supplemented by four folding "paws" - emphasis "jack type". The body was supplemented by protective armor shields, which in a combat position reclined horizontally, increasing the gun service area. In the front part of the cabin there are two charging boxes with ammunition (2x24 rounds). On the hinged sides were places for four numbers calculation "on the go."

Based on the 3-K gun, a 76-mm anti-aircraft gun of the 1938 model was developed. The same gun was installed on a new four-wheeled cart. Which significantly reduced deployment time and increased the speed of transportation of the system. In the same year, a synchronous servo drive of the academician M. P. Kostenko system was developed.

However, the increase in the speeds and the “ceiling” of aircraft, the increase in their survivability required an increase in the reach of anti-aircraft guns in height and an increase in projectile power.

Engineered in Germany 76 mm. anti-aircraft gun had an increased margin of safety. Calculations showed that it is possible to increase the caliber of the gun to 85 mm.

The main advantage of the 85-mm anti-aircraft gun over its predecessor - the 76-mm anti-aircraft gun of the 1938 model - is in the increased projectile power, which created a larger volume of damage in the target area.

Due to the extremely tight deadlines allocated for the development of the new system, the leading designer G.D. Dorokhin decided to lay an 85 mm barrel on the platform of the 76 mm anti-aircraft gun mod. 1938, using the shutter and semi-automatic of this gun.

To reduce recoil, a muzzle brake was installed. After finishing tests, the anti-aircraft gun was launched into mass production on a simplified carriage (with a four-wheeled cart) of a 76.2-mm anti-aircraft gun mod. 1938

Thus, at a minimal cost and in a short time, a qualitatively new anti-aircraft gun was created.

In order to increase the accuracy of firing at air targets, the batteries of 85-mm anti-aircraft guns were equipped with POISO-3 artillery anti-aircraft fire control devices, which made it possible to solve the problem of meeting and to develop coordinates of the anticipated target point within a range of 700-12000 m, in height up to 9600 m at the size of the base is up to 2000 m. The PUAZO-3 used electric synchronous transmission of the generated data to the guns, which ensured high rates of firing and its accuracy, as well as the possibility of firing at maneuvering targets.

85 mm. 52-K anti-aircraft gun became the most advanced Soviet medium-caliber anti-aircraft gun during the war. In 1943 in order to increase the service and operational characteristics and reduce the cost of production, it was modernized.

Very often, Soviet medium-caliber anti-aircraft guns were used for firing at ground targets, especially in anti-tank defense. Anti-aircraft guns sometimes became the only barrier in the way of German tanks.

Air defense systems played a very important role in the Great Patriotic War. According to official figures, during the war 21,645 aircraft were shot down by ground-based air defense forces of the ground forces, including 7647 anti-aircraft guns and more than 4,047 aircraft, anti-aircraft guns - 14,657 aircraft, anti-aircraft machine guns - 2,401 aircraft, and machine-gun fire - 540 aircraft

But one cannot fail to note a number of misses in creating air defense systems.
In addition to the obviously unsatisfactory quantitative saturation of troops with anti-aircraft weapons, there were serious shortcomings in the design and creation of new models.

In 1930, the USSR and the German company Rheinmetall, represented by the front-mounted BYUTAST LLC, entered into a contract for the supply of a number of models of artillery weapons, including automatic anti-aircraft guns. According to the terms of the contract, Rheinmetall in the USSR delivered two samples of a 20-mm automatic anti-aircraft gun and full design documentation for this gun. It was adopted in the Soviet Union into service under the official name "20-mm automatic anti-aircraft and anti-tank gun mod. 1930 ". However, in the USSR, for operational reasons, they could not be brought to an acceptable level of reliability. In Germany, this machine, designated 2 cm Flugabwehrkanone 30, was put into service and was widely used until the very end of the war.

At the end of 1937 at the factory to them. Kalinina was made the first prototype of a 45-mm automatic anti-aircraft gun, which received the factory index ZIK-45, later changed to 49-K. After improvements, it successfully passed the test, but the military leadership short-sightedly considered that it was 45 mm. the projectile has excess power, and the designers were asked to develop a similar 37 mm. anti-aircraft gun.
Structurally, the 49-K and 61-K almost did not differ, had a close cost (60 thousand rubles against 55 thousand rubles), but the reach and destructive effect of 45-mm shells was significantly higher.

Instead of not too successful 25 mm. a 72-K submachine gun that had manual charge loading, which limited the rate of fire, for the needs of air defense regimental units, a 23-mm Volkova-Yartseva (VYA) design air gun with ribbon power and high rate of fire would be more suitable. During the war, VY were installed on the IL-2 attack aircraft, where they proved themselves to be excellent. Only in, to equip torpedo boats, a certain number of twin 23 mm was used. anti-aircraft machine guns.
Only in the aftermath of the war, the ZU-23 and ZSU Shilka paired anti-aircraft guns were created under the cartridge of the VY gun.

The opportunity to create a high-performance anti-aircraft gun under 14.5 mm during the war was also missed. cartridge PTR. This was done only after the end of hostilities in the heavy machine gun Vladimirov (CPV), which is still in service.

The implementation of all these missed opportunities would significantly increase the potential of the air forces of the Red Army and accelerate the victory.

According to the materials:
Shirokorad A. B. Encyclopedia of Russian artillery.
Ivanov A.A. Artillery of the USSR in World War II.
http://www.soslugivci-odnopolhane.ru/orugie/5-orugie/94-zenitki.html
http://www.tehnikapobedy.ru/76mm38hist.htm
http://alexandrkandry.narod.ru/html/weapon/sovet/artelery/z/72k.html

From the first days of World War II, our ground forces felt the power of the attacks of German tanks and aircraft. Immediately manifested the inadequacy of VET and air defense in parts of the Red Army. The main burden of the fight against the air enemy fell on the military air defense, which consisted of army air defense regiments (three four-gun batteries of 37 mm guns and two companies of anti-aircraft guns DShK) and separate anti-aircraft artillery divisions (twelve 37 mm guns) of infantry divisions, it should be noted that before 1944 lack of staff in units was a constant norm. By the beginning of the battle in the Kursk state, our tank corps, out of air defense, had only one anti-aircraft artillery regiment (16 DShKs and 16 37mm guns) to cover 180-200 tanks, and brigades of 9-12 DShKs for 53-65 combat cars. The brigade was supposed to have a company of 9-12 large-caliber anti-aircraft machine guns DShK or quad "Maxim", mounted on trucks. In practice, often the brigade did not have anti-aircraft machine guns at all or there was a large shortage of them. So, - on June 28, 1943, in the 180th filter there were no anti-aircraft weapons at all, and the 192nd filter had 3 anti-aircraft guns. http://militera.lib.ru/h/zamulin_vn/02.html

But if we had anti-tank weapons that were quite suitable in terms of efficiency and mastery of the production structure and the main issue was the resumption of their release (mistakenly terminated before the war) in sufficient quantities, then the air defense of the troops was in a more distressed state. Small-caliber automatic anti-aircraft guns capable of effectively fighting a low-altitude air opponent was clearly not enough. There were two reasons - the 37-mm gun 61-K mod. 1939 too late adopted, and the 25-mm automatic anti-aircraft gun arr. 1940 appeared even later and until 1943 the release of these guns was extremely small. The second reason was that anti-aircraft guns were the most advanced and complex type of artillery, which made it difficult to master in production.

The situation was aggravated by the problem of mass evacuation of industry, which led to the disruption of supplier relations, the cessation of certain industries for a certain period, and, in general, the slow increase in output at new locations of enterprises. Soviet anti-aircraft guns were quite modern and in some ways inferior to the German or British guns, their main drawback was the lack of mastery in production and the small number of troops.

The shortage of all air defense means in the troops was very, very large.

The most likely means of dealing with assault aircraft and diving bombers in the frontline zone were anti-aircraft machine guns. At this stage, the designer could only design and manufacture anti-aircraft installations on the basis of small arms. Moreover, the production of machine guns was in a slightly better position than the manufacturers of artillery systems. However, it should be noted that the presence and release of the ZPU at the beginning of the war were clearly not sufficient. The lack of installations in parts of the air defense alone was estimated at about 3,000 units.

In principle, only two machine guns — the Maxim and the DShK — were suitable for military air defense purposes. Aviation ShVAK and ShKAS and later UBS were used only in "artisanal" execution.

For the "maxim" already existed anti-aircraft machine gun mounts (ZPU), created in versions - single, twin and quad mount. The latter - a sample of 1931 - had a sufficient fire density in the range of up to 500 m. But the power of the rifle cartridge when acting on modern air targets was clearly. insufficient Already in the middle of the war it became clear that the increase in speed, as well as the increase in the security and survivability of aviation, did not allow the ZPU, created on the basis of Maxim machine guns of a rifle caliber, to effectively deal with enemy combat aircraft. Nevertheless, despite the fact that since February 1943, the 7.62-mm quadruple anti-aircraft defense units of Tokarev’s design were removed as obsolete from the anti-aircraft regiments of the air defense divisions of the RGK, the installations were fought in the army until the end of the war. The installation weighed about half a ton and to increase mobility, they were mounted on trucks. Self-propelled gun mounts with DShK were also used - mainly GAZ-AA or ZiS trucks mounted in the back of the DShK anti-aircraft machine.

But even in this form, they were suitable only for air defense of nearby rear stationary objects - airfields, headquarters, transport hubs and storage facilities. In the advanced combat formations of the troops, due to the limited patency of the base chassis and the absolute insecurity of the calculations, it was impossible to use ZPU

The natural solution was to place the DShK on a protected self-propelled base of a light tank. At the same time, the possibility of creating multi-barrel installations was facilitated and the problems of increasing the ammunition load were simplified. To implement the project in the second half of 1942, the plants developed and manufactured three models of self-propelled guns based on light tanks that were in production. Their tender proposals were presented - plant N 37 NKTP - in two versions - on the basis of the T-60 and T-70 chassis and GAZ - on the basis of the T-70M. Http://armor.kiev.ua/Tanks/WWII/T90/t90 .php Upon completion of the tests, the “anti-aircraft” light tanks on the T-60 and T-70 chassis remained as experienced as the multi-barrel systems (the 12.7-mm anti-aircraft installations built were found to be of limited use - Moscow air defense). The failures of the built installations were primarily associated with the power system, which did not allow changing the supply direction (left-right).

The created models of mobile anti-aircraft installations were not accepted for service and did not go into mass production. The only ZSU that were in service with the Red Army were the American quadruple 12.7 mm M2NV Browning units of the M-17 type, created on the basis of the M3 semi-tracked armored personnel carriers. The M2NV Browning heavy machine guns were also used in tank and mechanized units of the Red Army, they were mainly supplied as the armament of American tanks and armored personnel carriers. The characteristics of the weapons were close to the DShK, with the exception of a more powerful shot of the Soviet machine gun.

The serial coaxial machine gun ZSU M13 (1942) carried the Maxson turret on the chassis of the M3 half-tracked armored personnel carrier. At the same time, the installation of the M45 “Maxson” turret with four machine guns and an electric power drive on the chassis of the semi-tracked armored personnel carriers was carried out. These ZSU were designated M16 and M17 (a total of 1273 pieces were delivered to the Red Army). A quad-mount 12.7mm Browning with mechanized aiming at the target provided a very high density and accuracy of fire. The accuracy of firing of anti-aircraft machine-gun installations to a very large extent depends on the properties of the platform on which they are installed; from sighting devices and devices for firing; as well as the working conditions of the calculation, its training; from goal parameters and some other factors.
The highest practical rate of fire in anti-aircraft machine-gun mounts is provided by tape power, which makes it possible to conduct continuous accompanying fire for 15 to 20 seconds. Such a duration of firing approximately corresponds to the longest time of a flying aircraft in the area of \u200b\u200bthe actual fire of the installation. bratishka.ru/archiv/2007/11/2007_11_8.php

The M45 “Maxson” mechanized installation in the firing position (with the gunner) weighed about 960 kg, provided circular firing, with good accuracy in the range of up to 1000 m and elevation angles of up to +90 degrees, declination - up to -10 degrees, stepless guidance with speeds up to 60 degrees / s in both planes. It consisted of a fixed base and a rotary turret rotating on ball bearings and a gasoline-electric power drive. Sight - collimator Mk-IX with illuminated reticle.

BTR M3 armed with a 12.7mm M2NV machine gun “Browning, with good mobility and reliability, was in service with intelligence and staff units. ZSU based on the BTR M3, also involved mainly for the defense of military air defense facilities - headquarters, bridges, transport hubs, etc. Accompanied by supply columns or direct air defense troops, such ZSU involved occasionally. Nevertheless, the loss of vehicles in the Red Army decreased from 14.1% in 1942 to 3.9% in 1945, of the total number of vehicles received by the troops. Despite the shortage and problems with equipping with modern equipment, anti-aircraft artillery of the fronts and the divisions of the RVGK attached to them made a significant contribution to the overall victory in the Great Patriotic War. During the war, 21645 aircraft were shot down by ground means of military air defense, of which: for medium caliber - 4047 aircraft; For small caliber - 14657 aircraft; anti-aircraft machine guns - 2401 aircraft; 540 aircraft with machine-gun fire, accounting for 33% of the total number of Luftwaffe aircraft.

During the war years, heavy military trials fell to the lot of local air defense. She stood them with honor. Logistics workers, soldiers and commanders of the MPVO did everything possible to minimize losses among the population, material damage during the bombing, and quickly eliminate their consequences. The weighty contribution of the local air defense warriors to the victory over the enemy.

It is estimated that during the war Hitler's aircraft carried out more than 30 thousand group and single raids on cities and rear targets. At the same time, about 600 thousand high-explosive and almost 1 million incendiary bombs were dropped. A number of large cities underwent intensive shelling. However, the MPVO warriors managed to minimize the damaging effects of enemy bombs and shells. MPVO formations helped 185 thousand citizens in the lesions. More than 100 thousand were extinguished by one “lighter”, more than 90 thousand fires and sunburns were eliminated, 32 thousand serious accidents at the national economy were prevented.

Moscow survived 141 air raids. The Nazis dropped more than 100,000 incendiary and 1,600 high-explosive bombs, but the enemy did not succeed in breaking the clear working rhythm of the city for a single day, and losses from raids were minimized. During the war in Leningrad, 652 air alarms were sounded. They lasted a total score of 724 hours 29 minutes. The enemy dropped about 5 thousand high-explosive and more than 100 thousand incendiary bombs, fired 150 thousand artillery shells. The MPVO fighters of the city of Lenin eliminated over 30 thousand lesions, dismantled 6,540 rubble, removed more than 3,000 buildings damaged from the wreckage, and provided medical assistance to almost 25 thousand wounded. They also built bomb shelters, bunkers, bunkers, anti-tank ditches, delivered water to bakeries, peat, firewood and coal to power plants, and repaired municipal utilities. By the end of 1942, almost every second Leningrader was a fighter MPVO.

A huge number of people, both adults and adolescents, were involved in the MPLA of Stalingrad. The city did not have such a family, a member of which would not be in one of the divisions of the MPVO. On all the streets, in the yards, in city gardens and parks, at tram stops, in the territories of enterprises dug gaps, built dugouts. By the beginning of August 1942, 174 thousand linear meters of cracks were dug in the city, at least 350 thousand people could hide in them, and 5250 bunkers and bunkers, about 14 thousand reinforced concrete and armored metal firing points were built on the defensive contours of the city with the participation of the MPVO formations. The fighters of the Sevastopol MPVO formations made heroic efforts to eliminate the rubble that people were under, extinguish fires, restore water supply, electricity, telephone communications, and help the injured. For a day on June 18, 1942 several hundred high-explosive and more than 10 thousand incendiary bombs were dropped on Murmansk. 800 houses and a large number of industrial and office premises burned down.

The losses were great, and yet the enemy did not reach the goal. He was powerless to break the resistance of the city’s defenders. The bombing did not end yet, and the formation of the MPVO rushed to eliminate its consequences, to save people. About two and a half thousand MPVO fighters took part in this operation. By evening, the fires were eliminated. It was possible to save a significant part of the city, port, ship repair plant, fish factory, railway station. Over the years of the war, the MPVO pyrotechnics neutralized over 430 thousand unexploded bombs and nearly 2.5 million shells and mines. So, officer I. Kharchenko did not go on the offensive, did not storm the enemy fortifications, but performed feats at every step of his long front line. In a short time, he defused 1,245 air bombs and 2,500 shells and mines. For his work, the brave patriot was the first among the pyrotechnicians of the Soviet Army in November 1944 to be awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union.