History of tanks. History of tanks, tank building

REASONS FOR THE APPEARANCE OF TANKS

The history of military art proves that only an offensive can lead to the defeat, encirclement and destruction of the enemy. During the First World War, rapid-fire weapons, artillery and engineering structures on the ground created an insurmountable barrier to the advancing troops. To break through such defenses, a new type of weapon was needed. Tanks were such a weapon. The emergence of tanks, as a new type of weapon, certainly contributed economic development countries. In his work "Ati-Dühring" F. Engels said that nothing depends on economic conditions as much as the army and navy. The armed composition, organization, tactics and strategy depend primarily on what has been achieved in this moment stages of production and from the means of communication.

The creation of a tank, a complex modern combat vehicle, became possible only at the beginning of the 20th century, when science, technology and machine production reached a high level of development, when automatic weapons, reliable armor, internal combustion engines adapted for installation on vehicles, caterpillar propulsion appeared. This is a huge merit of Russian scientists, engineers, inventors.

Armament

An outstanding Russian scientist in the field of artillery Maievsky N.V. developed the theory of rifled weapons, created a number of new artillery systems, which contributed to the rearmament of Russian artillery with rifled weapons. In 1860 Russian metallurgist Obukhov cast a steel cannon. In 1877, the founder of rapid-fire artillery Baranovsky V.S. created a 2.5-inch rapid-fire gun, and in 1902 a three-inch gun with a large initial speed projectile. A significant step in the development of firearms was the creation of automatic weapons. In 1889, master Dvoeglazov made a sample of an automatic rifle. In 1907, the Russian inventor Roschepey presented to the artillery committee automatic rifle. In 1906-1907. Russian inventors Fedorov and Tokarev offer their self-loading rifles, which in 1910-1911. are successfully tested.

Armor protection

Outstanding Russian scientists Amosov P.P., Obukhov P.M., Chernov D.K. made the greatest discoveries in the field of metallurgy, technology for the manufacture of high-quality steels. The talented Russian metallurgist P. P. Amosov investigated the effect of manganese, chromium, titanium on the properties of steel, developed the gas carburizing process.

P. M. Obukhov created the famous "Obukhov" steel cannon plant in St. Petersburg.

The works of Amosov P.P., Chernov D.K., Obukhov P.M. formed the basis for the production of steel armor. Obukhov invented bulletproof armor.

In 1865, the Ural master Pyatov V.S. for the first time in the world rolled armor plates on a special machine, and in 1859 he also proposed a method for cementing armor plates.

In 1876, they began to manufacture high-carbon steel armor, which has better projectile resistance. In 1877, the production of two-layer carbon armor began. Since 1893, the production of armor from nickel steel, up to 10 inches (254 mm) thick, has been organized at the Obukhov plant. At the end of the 19th century, armor began to be used on armored trains and armored vehicles.

Internal combustion engine

In the creation and improvement of internal combustion engines in Russia, the work of Russian engineers and inventors Lutsky B. G., Yakovlev E. A., Trinkler G. V., Grinevetsky V. I., Trashutin I. Ya. internal combustion gas engines were built. In 1879-1884. The world's first gasoline engine, 53 kW, multi-cylinder, carburetor, with electric spark ignition was built at the Okhta Shipyard. In 1885, the young designer Lutsky B.G. built a carburetor engine with a vertical arrangement of cylinders. In 1888, Yagodzinsky, the foreman of the Baltic Plant, built a light, compact aircraft gasoline engine. In 1899, in St. Petersburg, at the Putilov (now Kirov) plant, the first stationary compressorless internal combustion engine with compression ignition was built.

In the same year, the first compressor internal combustion engine with compression ignition was built at the Russian Diesel mechanical plant in St. Petersburg.

In 1899-1903. The Russian inventor Ya. V. Mamin built and installed a compressorless engine with compression ignition on a tractor. In 1900, a talented Russian engineer, professor at the Gorky Industrial Institute, G. V. Trinkler, developed a compressorless internal combustion engine with compression ignition, running on heavy fuel. In 1910 According to the project of Professor Maliev, a two-stroke engine with direct-flow scavenging was built.

caterpillar mover

For the first time, the main elements of the caterpillar track were developed in 1837 by staff captain D. Zagryazhsky in his project of a carriage with movable tracks.

In 1876, Captain Mayevsky proposed a method for moving a locomotive along ordinary roads using the "Rail Chain". At the same time, he provided a mechanism that made it possible to change the traction force on the caterpillar (a prototype of a modern gearbox).

In 1888, the Russian inventor Blinov F.A. built the world's first tractor with metal tracks. It was powered by two steam engines. In 1907-1917. was mastered industrial production tractors with internal combustion engines.

Thus, at the beginning of the 20th century, the logistical prerequisites for creating a tank were finally formed. It remains only to combine in one machine the mobility inherent in cars with the maneuverability of caterpillar tractors, protecting it with armor and arming it with a cannon and machine guns. This was done during the First World War.

The history of the development of domestic tank building is usually divided into 5 periods:

• the first domestic tanks (1915-1917);
• the first Soviet tanks (1920-1931);
• the period of creation of a complete set of armored vehicles (1931-1939);
• armored vehicles on the eve and during the Great Patriotic War (1939-1945);
• period of post-war tank building:

The first domestic tanks (1915-1917)

In 1914, under the guidance of engineer A. A. Porokhovshchikov, an armored wheeled-tracked vehicle, called the "All-Terrain Vehicle", was developed, and in 1915 in Riga, it was built. The mass of the car was 3.5-4 tons, the crew was 1 person, machine-gun armament, bulletproof armor. 15 kW engine, planetary transmission, combined wheel-caterpillar mover (one caterpillar and two steered wheels) provided top speed 25 km/h. First prototypes English tanks appeared only in September 1915, and the French in 1916. Both British and French tanks were inferior to the "all-terrain vehicle".

In 1915-1916, the talented engineer-inventor Mendeleev V.D. (son of the famous scientist Mendeleev D.I.) developed in detail the design of a super-heavy tank weighing 170 tons, a crew of 8 people, a 120-mm cannon and a machine gun mounted in a rotating turret , bulletproof armor 100-150 mm, maximum speed 24 km/h, air suspension, possibility of movement on railroad tracks.

Picture- The project of a super-heavy tank engineer V.D. Mendeleev

Lengthwise cut: 1-120-mm Kane cannon, 2-movable armored mask, 3-window for feeding shells, 4 - 7.62-mm Maxim machine gun, 5 - machine gun suspension bracket, 6 - machine-gun turret, 7 - turret shoulder strap, 8 - “battery ” air tanks, 9 armored door, 10 batteries, 11 final drive, 12 gas tanks, 13 ammunition supply monorail, 14 shell cart.

In the summer of 1917, not far from the city of Dmitrov, under the guidance of engineer N. N. Lebedenko, a wheeled tank, weighing 40 tons. The well-known Russian scientists Zhukovsky N. E. and Stechkin B. S. took part in its creation. They tried to ensure the increased patency of the tank by using wheels with a diameter of 9 m. The rear wheel of a smaller diameter was for control. Due to technical imperfections, the development of the tank was stopped; the built sample was dismantled in 1923.

Picture- Heavy wheeled tank Lebedenko

Despite the availability of detailed designs and prototypes presented much earlier than abroad, royal army During the First World War, it had no tanks. This is due to the reactionary nature of rotten tsarism, the low level of industrial development of pre-revolutionary Russia, the dominance of foreign capital, the venality and indifference of tsarist officials to the fate of the Motherland. It is not surprising that the mass production of tanks and their use on the battlefield during the First World War was carried out not in the Russian, but in the British, and then in the French armies.

For the first time, tanks were used by the British army on the western front in September 1916 in an operation on the Somme (49 tanks). The use of tanks was prepared in strict secrecy. They crossed over to the mainland disguised as large tanks; capacity, in English tank. That's where their name came from.

This period covers years civil war, as well as years of restoration and reconstruction National economy young Soviet republic. It is characterized by the creation of the first samples of Soviet tanks, the accumulation of design and production experience.

At the III Extraordinary All-Russian Congress Soviets in March 1918, V. I. Lenin said that in modern war "... the one who has the greatest technique, organization, discipline and best cars..." (PSS, vol. 27, p. 167).

This Leninist position formed the basis for the activities of the party and government in creating the armored forces of the young Republic of Soviets. At the beginning of 1918, the first central authority control of armored parts - Central Armor Directorate (Tsentrobron).

By October 1918, the Red Army had 23 armored trains and 38 armored detachments, in which there were 150 armored vehicles.

In 1919, V. I. Lenin set the task for machine builders - to start building their own, Soviet tanks as soon as possible. At the end of 1919, the Krasnoye Sormovo plant in Nizhny Novgorod commissioned by the government to design and manufacture light tank. The tank was created jointly with the Izhora plant, which manufactured armor, and the Moscow Automobile Plant AMO, which manufactured the engine.

Picture- The first Soviet tank "Freedom Fighter Comrade Lenin"

On August 31, 1920, the first Soviet tank came out of the gates of the Krasnoye Sormovo plant, called "Freedom Fighter Comrade Lenin". He passed official tests and entered service with the Red Army. The tank had a mass of 7 tons, armed with a 37-mm cannon, one machine gun, armor 8-16 mm thick, and a maximum speed of 8.5 km/h. This tank was superior in armament to similar foreign tanks, which had only machine guns. A total of 17 such tanks were built and each of them had its own name: "Paris Commune", "Red Fighter", "Ilya Muromets". They took part in the battles on the fronts of the civil war.

By creating tanks, Soviet tank building was looking for new original ways of development. In 1919, engineer Maksimov developed the world's first project of an ultralight single-seat tank - the "shield-carrier". This tank, armed with a machine gun and protected by bulletproof armor, was supposed to weigh 2-2.5 tons, with an engine power of 29 kW, the speed could reach 17 km / h.

In 1920, a competition was organized for the best tank project. The first prize for the development of a floating tank was awarded to the project of the Izhora plant. However, the deployment of tank building for the destroyed industry was an unusually difficult task, since all forces were mobilized to restore the destroyed industry and raise agriculture.

In 1927, the MS-1 tank or a small infantry escort tank (T-18) entered service with the Red Army. It was armed with a semi-automatic 37 mm cannon and two machine guns located in a rotating turret. The thickness of the hull armor was 8-16 mm, the maximum speed of the tank was 16.5 km/h. The original solution for the design of the motor-transmission group: the main clutch, gearbox, turning mechanism (a simple differential with brakes on the axle shafts) were in the same crankcase with the engine (monoblock) and worked in an oil bath. In view of this, the design was compact, which made it possible to reduce the size and weight of the tank. For its time, the MS-1 was the perfect combat vehicle.

Picture- Light Soviet tank MS-1 (T-18)

During this period, the tankettes T-17, T-23 and the medium tank TG were created. In 1929, the T-24 tank was created, and in 1931 it was put into service. It had a three-tier placement of weapons, including one 45-mm cannon and 4 machine guns, a crew of 5 people, a powerful engine, a planetary transmission, which ensured a speed of 22 km / h. Thus, during this period, the most massive were light tanks with small-caliber cannon-machine-gun armament, bulletproof armor and relatively low speeds. Such tanks were adapted to carry out the tasks of direct infantry support. During this period, experience was gained and accumulated in the design and production of tanks.

In 1928, the mechanization and motorization department of the Red Army was created. At the same time, the party and the government raised the question of cadres for the new type of troops.

In 1930, at the military-technical academy. F. E. Dzerzhinsky, the Faculty of Mechanization and Motorization of the Red Army was formed, on the basis of which the Academy of Mechanization and Motorization of the Red Army, now the Order of Lenin and the Order of the October Revolution, the Red Banner Academy was deployed in 1932 armored forces named after Marshal of the Soviet Union Malinovsky R. Ya. It became the main training and scientific center of tank troops Soviet army. In 1930, on the basis of the Moscow School of Automotive Technicians, a school of tank technicians was deployed, which was later transformed into a school. Now it is the Kiev Higher Tank Engineering Order of the Red Star School named after Marshal of the Soviet Union Yakubovsky I.I.

The period of creation of a complete set of armored vehicles (1931-1939)

This period covers the years of the first five-year plans, when heavy industry, the basis of the might and defense capability of our country, was created. Soviet designers, technologists, and production workers used the achievements of Soviet science and created the best tanks in the world. After the implementation of the first five-year plan, having an automobile and tank industry, the Soviet Union was able to start building tanks. The need for this was caused by the threatening international situation. From 1931 to 1933, the Red Army received light tanks T-26 (1931), tankette T-27 (1931), BT-2 (1931), BT-5 (1933), amphibious tank T-37 (1932), medium tank T-28 (1932), heavy tank T-35 (1932).

By 1933, the Red Army already had 5 types of modern tanks weighing from 2.5 to 50 tons. The maximum speed increased from 17 to 53 km / h. The speed of the BT wheeled-tracked tank especially increased, which reached 72 km/h Tanks of this period are characterized by high rates of mobility and an increase in firepower. On the T-28 and T-35 tanks, 76-mm guns are installed. The reliability of mechanisms and machines as a whole has significantly increased compared to the tanks of the second period. On tanks of this period, protection was improved (the thickness of the armor plates increased to 22 mm), the shape of the hull was improved, welding of the armor plates was applied.

Picture- Light Soviet tank T-26 (mod. 1931)

Thanks to increased mobility and reliability, tanks could perform not only the tasks of direct infantry support, but also independently break through enemy defenses and operate in operational depth.

During these years, a classification of tanks was developed. The classification is based on the weight attribute:

• light tanks - weighing up to 20 tons;
• medium tanks - weighing from 20 to 40 tons;
• heavy tanks - weighing over 40 tons.

Picture- Light tank BT-7

The definition of a tank is given.

Tank- This is a combat tracked vehicle with firepower, armor protection and mobility. This emphasized the organic combination of the three most important combat qualities of the tank: firepower, protection, mobility.

Firepower - the ability to hit targets on the battlefield. It is characterized by: the caliber of weapons, the armor penetration of the projectile, the range of a direct shot, the perfection of guidance mechanisms, sights, aimed rate of fire, loading speed, the amount of ammunition and the type of projectiles, the number and caliber of machine guns and ammunition for them.

Protection modern tank includes armor and special protection.

Armor protection- a set of parts of the hull and turret of the tank made of special materials, providing protection for the crew and internal equipment of the tank from the enemy’s machine-gun and artillery fire, its missile weapons, shock waves, penetrating radiation, thermal and light radiation from nuclear explosions. It is provided by the thickness and angles of the armor, its quality and design, the shape of the hull and turret, and the strength of the connection of the armor plates.

Special Protection- designed to protect the crew from nuclear, chemical and biological weapons, it is achieved by sealing the armored hull and turret, using filter-ventilation units that clean the air and create excess pressure in the habitable object.

Tank mobility- the ability to move in a given direction. It is characterized by maximum, average speeds, power reserve, high cross-country ability.

patency characterized by an average specific pressure on the ground, the amount of clearance, the size of the obstacles to be overcome.

The combat properties and technical qualities of tanks are reflected in its combat and technical characteristics. The combat and technical characteristics define a systematized list of the main parameters that characterize the tank.

The combat and technical characteristics have the following sections:

• common data;
• armament;
• protection;
• mobility;
• special equipment;
• general characteristics of the units.

After 1933, the main types of tanks were improved, especially the T-26 and BT.

Tanks of this period were distinguished by weak armor, which was revealed during the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939), due to the rapid development anti-tank weapons. The multi-tower layout did not justify itself. It prevents the increase in the caliber of weapons.

Table- Basic data of tanks of the second period

Armored vehicles on the eve and during the Great Patriotic War (1939-1945)

The period is characterized by the creation of single-turret tanks with anti-cannon armor and powerful weapons.

In 1939, the A-32 medium tank was developed, weighing 19 tons, with a 76-mm cannon and two machine guns. Crew 4 people, maximum speed 65 km/h. In the same year, a project was developed for a multi-turret heavy tank SMK with a 76- and 46-mm gun. However, the tank did not go further than the prototype.

Beginning in 1932, at the direction of the Soviet government, intensive work was carried out to create a powerful, economical tank engine. In 1936, such an engine was created. It was the world's first tank diesel of the Soviet V-2 brand. In 1939, the engine was successfully tested on BT and A-32 tanks. In terms of efficiency, the V-2 engine was significantly superior to gasoline engines.

Picture- Medium Soviet tank T-34

On December 19, 1939, the T-34 medium tank developed under the direction of M.I. Koshkin was put into service. For the first time in the world, a powerful, long-barreled (for that time) 76-mm cannon was installed on it with an initial velocity of an armor-piercing projectile of 662 m / s. In terms of armor penetration, the gun surpassed all foreign tank guns of that time. The powerful armor of the tank reliably protected against small-caliber projectiles. anti-tank artillery and tank guns from all distances. The tank was distinguished by its original hull shape with large angles of inclination of the armor plates, the installation of a new high-speed V-2 diesel engine, a four-speed gearbox and turning mechanisms - side clutches. The tank had an individual spring suspension and wide tracks, which ensured its good maneuverability. The mechanisms and units of the tank were well developed and easy to manufacture. This circumstance made it possible during the war years to quickly establish large-scale production of tanks.

Picture- Heavy Soviet tank KV-1

Simultaneously with the T-34 tank, in 1939, the KB heavy tank, created under the leadership of Zh. Ya. Kotin, entered service. A 76-mm cannon was installed on the first model of the tank, and a 152-mm howitzer was installed on the second model of the KV-2 at the beginning of 1940. The KV tank in terms of armor protection was significantly superior to the T-34 tank and had sufficiently high mobility parameters for its mass (47.5 tons) (maximum speed 35 km / h). There were many new and interesting things in the designs of units and mechanisms of the KV tank. For the first time, a torsion spring was used as a suspension. On the T-34 and KB, the engine and transmission were placed in the rear of the vehicle. This facilitated repairs in the field.

In 1940, the production of light amphibious tanks T-40 began, in April 1941 the light tank T-50 was adopted, then T-60 and T-70. These light tanks were developed under the direction of N. A. Astrov. The T-40 tank was armed with machine guns, the T-50 was equipped with a 45-mm cannon. The T-60 and T-70 tanks were developed with extensive use of solutions tested on the T-40. Unlike the floating T-40, they were non-floating. The T-60 was armed with a 20 mm automatic cannon, while the T-70 was armed with a 45 mm cannon.

Picture- Light Soviet tank T-60

By the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, we had worked out the designs of medium and heavy tanks with the most rational combination of weapons, armor and mobility. The Soviet Union had a developed tank production and qualified tank builders. From the first days of the war, the superiority of the then small T-34 and KB tanks over the tanks of the fascist army was revealed. Here is what Lieutenant General of the German Army E. Schneider wrote after the war: “Russian T-34 tanks showed our tankers accustomed to victories their superiority in armament, armor and maneuverability. The T-34 tank made a sensation ... Having created an exceptionally successful and a new type of tank, the Russians have made a big leap forward in tank building."

During the war, as a result of the modernization of anti-tank artillery and tanks carried out by Germany, it became necessary to increase the firepower and armor protection of Soviet tanks.

At the end of 1942, the production of self-propelled artillery mounts SU-122 with a 122-mm howitzer was launched, and in the summer of 1943 - SU-85 with an 85-mm gun. In December 1943, the T-34-85 tank with an 85 mm caliber gun and an initial projectile velocity of about 800 m/s was put into service. The tank had an increased armor thickness (45-90 mm), a crew of 5 people.

In 1944, on the basis of the T-34, they began to produce the SU-100 self-propelled gun with a 100-mm gun.

At the end of 1943, the IS-1 heavy tank with an 85-mm cannon was developed and began to be produced, as well as the IS-2 tank and the ISU-122 self-propelled artillery mount with a 122-mm cannon on a common base with it.

Starting from 1943, on the basis of the KV-1 and IS-2 tanks, self-propelled artillery mounts were produced to escort the SU-152 and ISU-152 tanks with a 152-mm howitzer gun. This gun had a huge muzzle energy and, along with 100-mm and 122-mm guns, was a formidable means of fighting the new heavy German tanks. On the basis of light tanks, self-propelled artillery mounts SU-76 with a 76-mm cannon were produced.

Picture- Medium Soviet tank T-34-85

Picture- Heavy Soviet tank IS-2

In 1944, a new medium tank T-44 was developed with an 85-mm cannon and a transverse engine. This made it possible to increase the armor and made it possible to further increase the caliber of weapons and have a large ammunition load.

At the end of the war, the IS-3 heavy tank with a 122-mm cannon with two machine guns (one anti-aircraft) was put into service. The ship's shape of the nose of the hull, the increased thickness of the armor provided it with high security. The designers managed to reduce the height of the tank, improve the smoothness of the ride, increase maneuverability and maneuverability. The IS-3 tank, along with the T-34 tank, became a role model for many years.

In the development of Soviet tanks of this period, the following features should be noted:

1. The transition to single-turret high-speed tanks with anti-shell armor and long-barreled guns,
2. Increasing the power of weapons and improving armor protection with an almost unchanged mass of the tank (for example, KB, IS-2);
3. Adaptability of tank designs for large-scale production and field repairs;
4. The use of powerful diesel engines, individual torsion bar suspensions, wide tracks, improved transmission;
5. Creation of self-propelled artillery installations. The mass type of this period was the medium tank. Significantly increased the importance of a heavy tank.

Having received in hand ready samples foreign armored vehicles and having mastered them in production, Soviet specialists immediately found themselves in line with world tank building, but were forced to adhere to two of its directions for some time: British school tank design and design school W. Christie. These two directions for the entire pre-war decade determined the nature of Soviet developments in this area, and at the same time, it was towards the end of it that our engineers learned to work independently.
However, at the very beginning of this path - by the way, this was already the case with what was borrowed from the West during the years of Peter's reforms - the Russians were very timid in their approach to somehow improving the cars they got.
So, on the prototype of the Vickers 6-ton tank, known as TMM-1, from the very beginning it was decided to put three machine guns, and not two, as on an English tank, and to increase the crew by one person. But even the improved version of the TMM-2 did not satisfy the military, and it was the Vickers that went into the series with the most minimal alterations.

Soviet experienced light tank TMM-1

Like the English prototype, the T-26 had two independently rotating machine gun turrets. According to the British, such placement of weapons should have ensured the maximum rate of fire on both sides, which was considered especially important for an infantry tank.
And the opinion of the British in the USSR was considered at the highest level. So, for example, having familiarized himself with the Vickers-6 tons tank purchased in England, M. Tukhachevsky wrote the following (the style and spelling are preserved): “Regarding the English Vickers tank I recently examined, I found it the best fit for the task of escorting when attacking enemy trenches ... The location of the tank turrets side by side very advantageously allows the tank to develop strong side fire when crossing the trenches and trenches, from which the parapet does not hide in any way ... It is easy to understand that the two-turret and three-turret schemes were adopted by the British because they are very promising and most advantageous for overcoming enemy defenses among their own infantry.
But it soon became clear that, contrary to the opinion of M. Tukhachevsky, the tank most often had to fire at one target, and in this case it was impossible to concentrate fire on one side.
This became especially noticeable when, in 1932, a 37-mm gun was placed in the right turret. The firepower of the tank seemed to have increased, but now the towers interfered with each other in the distribution of fire power. Although only about 1600 of these tanks were produced, in the future they decided to abandon the two-turret version, and the T-26 of the 1933 model received already one tower, armed with a 45-mm tank gun of 1932 and a DT machine gun coaxial with it. Command tanks were equipped with an antenna in the form of a handrail around the turret, but the experience of the battles showed that the enemy, noticing such a tank, first of all shoots at it, which is why the handrail antenna was replaced with a whip antenna, which was not so noticeable from afar.
In 1936, the tank received a machine gun in the aft niche of the turret, and in 1937, another one - an anti-aircraft gun mounted above the commander's hatch. At the same time, the T-26 tanks were equipped with a conical turret, and since 1939, inclined armor plates were placed on the turret box. Engine power gradually increased, but the weight of the tank also increased, due to which the reliability of the undercarriage was steadily declining. Finally, to enhance protection, about a hundred tanks during the Soviet-Finnish war were urgently armored by hanging screens on them. At the same time, the thickness of the lower frontal part of the hull and the front wall was increased to 60 mm. Sometimes these machines are called T-26E. However, they were clearly overweight and, due to their low mobility, were a good target.

The release of the T-26 was stopped in the first half of 1941, but in July - August 1941, about a hundred vehicles were completed in Leningrad from the unused backlog of buildings. In total, the Red Army received more than 11,000 T-26s of 23 series or modifications, including flamethrower (then called "chemical") and sapper bridge-laying tanks.

In the 30s. The T-26 served as the basis for the development of the first domestic self-propelled guns, for example, the SU-1 and SU-5-1 with a 76.2 mm gun, the SU-5-2 with a 122 mm howitzer and the SU-5-3 with a 152 mm mortar. Was designed " artillery tank» AT-1, which had a 76.2 mm gun and even a 76 mm SU-6 self-propelled anti-aircraft gun. It is interesting that another medium roller was used in the undercarriage of this machine, which had a waste suspension. On both sides of the hull, the sides were hinged to protect the calculation during movement, which, when they folded horizontally, served as a platform for the calculation. The SU-6 could leave the position without moving to the traveling position, it was only necessary to raise the front armor plate from it.

During the tests, it was noted that it sways when fired, that the aiming goes astray, and the engine overheats greatly. The fact that this anti-aircraft SU is very easy to turn into an anti-tank one, the designers did not notice, although for this it was enough to lower the aiming line of the gun in a horizontal position and install a muzzle brake on the barrel, softening the recoil force. The most interesting thing is that during the war years, having got their hands on captured T-26 tanks and French guns of the 1897 model, the Germans did just that, although, it is clear that not from a good life.
By the way, for the first time in our country, a short-barreled 76.2-mm cannon on a tank was also installed on a T-26A (artillery) tank. The T-26 sailed with inflatable floats and even walked along the bottom of the river (tankT-26PKh - “underwater passage”) with a pipe through which the engine “breathed”, in a word, played the role of a laboratory on which many solutions were tested, which later received an independent life.

BT tanks had a chance to live an equally bright life in the Red Army, although compared to the T-26, their industrial development was much more difficult. The first BT-2 tank was not too different from its American prototype, but even in this form, its production turned out to be very difficult. The poor quality of the rubber led to its separation from the steel tire of the road wheels, while the wheels with American rubber withstood a run of 1000 km without any noticeable damage. The regular 37-mm B-3 guns intended for this tank were constantly in short supply due to the semi-handicraft nature of their production, and the military representatives constantly rejected the produced hulls and turrets. It got to the point that 350 out of 610 manufactured in 1932-1933. BT-2 tanks did not have guns and were armed only with machine guns. At the same time, the installation of machine-gun installations was carried out by military units. In one of the reports of the military representative on the fulfillment of the order for 1933, it was directly stated that, “despite the implementation of the program (instead of 1000 vehicles, 1005 were delivered according to the plan), the quality of the vehicles cannot be considered good ... During the first half of the year, 5-8% of vehicles were rejected per month , for the second - 9-41%, which indicates a decrease in attention to quality, especially in assembly.

True, then attempts were made to radically strengthen the armament of light tanks in general and BT in particular. So, on June 6, 1931, I. A. Khalepsky approved the assignment for the design of a wheeled-tracked tank of the Christie type, which, with a mass of 14 tons, armor of 13-20 mm and a speed of at least 40 km / h - on tracks and 70 km / h - on wheels it was supposed to be armed with 37-mm and 76-mm cannons and two machine guns. Moreover, one cannon and one machine gun were supposed to be installed in a rotating turret, and the rest - in the hull. The crew of the car is at least 3 people. According to these requirements, the experimental design and testing bureau of the Red Army, led by N. I. Dyrenkov, developed a project and built a life-size model of the D-38 tank. On November 18, 1931, the project was considered, but it was considered unsatisfactory.
The following year, using the experience of working on the D-38, the Dyrenkov Design Bureau manufactured and installed an oversized turret with a 76-mm regimental cannon with a shortened recoil (previously installed on the SU-1) and a DT machine gun in separate installations on the BT-2 tank. On March 25, 1932, the machine was tested at the artillery range of the Proletarian Division, but due to the unsuccessful design of the gun mount and jamming of the turret ring during firing, this version did not go further than the prototype.

In 1933, the Krasny Putilovets plant designed a cylindrical turret with a 76-mm gun, the same for the T-26 and BT tanks, but it was also rejected due to a number of shortcomings. It all ended with the unification of the turrets for the T-26 and BT tanks, which received a turret with a 45-mm cannon of the 1932 model, which had an initial velocity of an armor-piercing projectile of 760 m / s and a DT machine gun coaxial with it. Interestingly, the 45-mm caliber appeared in the Red Army all from the same traditional for our military reasons of economy. The fact is that a huge amount of 47-mm armor-piercing shells of 47-mm Hotchkiss naval guns has accumulated in the military warehouses of Russia. When grinding the old leading belts, the caliber of the projectile became 45 mm. So it is the thrifty tsarist admirals who should be thanked for the fact that, without suspecting it, they provided the Soviet tank building with significant assistance in providing it with ammunition!
With the new turret, the tank became somewhat heavier, but its speed and armor remained unchanged. The BT-5 had a chance to fight on the Khal-Khin-Gol River, as well as during the civil war in Spain of 1936-1939, in Poland and in the Soviet-Finnish campaign. In total in 1933-1934. 1884 BT-5s were produced.

As for the operation of these machines in the pre-war period, it revealed many shortcomings in both the BT-2 and BT-5. Due to the lack of an adequate number of spare parts for engines and spare tracks, up to 50% of the vehicles were ordered to be kept in the army in an emergency reserve, 25% to be operated by half and only 25% - completely.
However, tankers fell in love with them for their excellent speed qualities, and many of them even learned to jump with acceleration over obstacles at 15-20 meters, and some at all 40!
In 1935, the production of a new BT-7 tank began, which had a new engine and a number of other improvements.
The first samples were produced with a cylindrical turret, which was soon replaced by a conical one, the tank's ammunition load depended on whether a radio station was installed on it. The gun pointing mechanism was improved in 1938 by introducing stabilization of the aiming line in the vertical plane. In 1936-1937. a 76.2-mm KT cannon with an initial projectile velocity of 381 m / s (BT-7A) was installed on part of the tanks, of which 155 units were fired.
Compared to the BT-5, the new machine had an improved hull shape, thicker armor, a large fuel supply and, consequently, a cruising range.
The technical reliability of these machines increased especially after the installation in 1939 of the latest modification of the BT-7M tanks with the V-2 diesel engine. The speed and power reserve immediately increased, since the diesel engine turned out to be, above all, much more economical than the gasoline one. The production of BT-7M was stopped due to the transition to the production of T-34 in the spring of 1940, and in total more than 8 thousand BT tanks of various modifications were produced in the USSR!

Like the T-26, experienced flamethrower and even radio controlled tanks- "teletanks" in the terminology of that time, SBT bridge-laying tanks, which had a tower from the T-38 tank and a bridge span 9 m long. In 1935, a set of metal and later rubber floats were tested on the BT-5 tank to overcome water obstacles . As in the case of the T-26, there was a version of the BT-5 tank for underwater walking - BT-5PKh, equipped with an air supply pipe for the engine and a set of rubber seals to seal the tank. Its immersion depth was 5 m.
BT tanks, and mainly BT-7, together with the T-26 were the main tanks in the parts of the Red Army in the pre-war period. They fought at Lake Khasan, at Khalkhin Gol, in Poland, Finland, and were also widely used at the very beginning of World War II.

In 1942-1943. individual BT-5 and even BT-2 tanks were still in action. The BT-7 fought with them, and both of them fought their last battle together with the T-26 in the Far East, where in 1945 they again had a chance to fight with the Japanese troops.
The first medium tank of the Red Army, in which the influence of the English tank school is equally obvious, was the T-28, created in 1931-1934.
The experimental tank had three turrets, the main one of which was armed with a 45 mm gun, but on serial vehicles a short-barreled 76.2 mm gun was installed in the main turret. In addition to her, there were 2 more machine guns in the tower - one in front, the other in the back, and the front one was aimed separately from the gun. Two more were in small machine-gun turrets on both sides of the driver's seat, which, as the designers believed, ensured the maximum rate of fire on both sides, as well as forward.
The average specific ground pressure of 0.66-0.72 kg/cm2 was not high for such a machine, and a good choice of suspension elements ensured a smooth ride and fairly good cross-country ability. The suspension itself was covered by an armored bulwark, which at that time became a characteristic feature of medium and heavy tanks of the USSR.
In 1938, a more powerful 76.2-mm cannon with a 26-caliber barrel was installed on the T-28, and on the latest copies, the cylindrical turret was replaced with a conical one.
During the "winter war" with Finland (1939-1940), insufficient armor protection was revealed, and some of the tanks were urgently armored with additional armor screens. The thickness of the frontal armor of the hull and turret reached 50-80 mm, side and stern - 40 mm, the mass of the tank increased to 31-32 tons.
A hinged anti-mine trawl was tested on the T-28, and in 1938 an engineering IT-28 with a 13-meter bridge with a carrying capacity of 50 tons was manufactured. minutes. T-28s were produced until 1940. (more than 600 units in total), and they also participated in the battles of the initial period of the Great Patriotic War.
The T-35 was intended for the qualitative reinforcement of troops when breaking through especially heavily fortified enemy positions. His project was developed in 1932, the following year, after testing a prototype and refinement, they were put into service and mass production began. He began to enter the troops in 1934, until 1939 the Red Army received about 6C vehicles.
The T-35 was the most powerful in terms of armament, the only serial five-turreted tank in the world. The tank turret was unified with the T-28 tank and had a polyk rotating with it and an electric drive for rough aiming. Two turrets with 45-mm guns had twin machine guns and two more only machine guns. Such an arrangement of weapons made it possible to concentrate fire of 76.2 mm, and 45 mm cannons and 3 machine guns forward and backward and on any side. 8 small-diameter road wheels were interlocked in twos and had rubber tires. The undercarriage was protected by a 10-mm armored bulwark. The average specific pressure on the ground - 0.78 kg / cm2 - was small for such a heavy machine. All T-35s were equipped with radios: first with handrails, and then with pins.

The last tanks of this type had 50 mm thick frontal armor and conical turrets, but even this upgrade was unable to raise their combat power. The fact is that the operation of these machines produced in 1933-1936. revealed their extremely low reliability and weak traction characteristics. So, according to the reports of the T-35 commanders, "the tank overcame the rise of only 17 degrees, could not get out of a large puddle." Movement on the bridges was strictly regulated, as the tank could get stuck on the bridges. In general, outwardly the tank turned out to be spectacular, but the combat value of this monster turned out to be very low.
It is traditionally believed that the T-35 was created according to the type of the English Independent tank, but there is no information in archival documents that Khalepsky's commission was interested in it. It is possible that the Soviet designers came up with the idea of ​​a five-turreted tank on their own, although a good specialist often only needs to look at some vehicle to be imbued with its concept as if he had come up with it himself.

In general, by the end of the 30s. we had a variety of tanks, but the fact was that they were produced on the basis of those doctrines that were born in other states. Therefore, they did not cancel the creative search conducted by the designers in our country. That's just one of them managed to make their cars, while for many others, such experiments ended in accusations of sabotage with all the ensuing consequences. The fate of the inventor N. Tsyganov in this sense is especially evident, although under other circumstances he could well be called at least "Russian Christie."

Before the advent of tanks, the army already used armored vehicles, such as armored cars and armored trains. However, these machines were rather limited in use. The first lacked cross-country ability even if they had a combined wheeled-caterpillar undercarriage, while the latter were tightly tied to the railways. The need to create an armored self-propelled combat vehicle of all terrain was understood by the military of each of the leading powers of Europe.

The Russian Empire was no exception. At the beginning of the 20th century, tanks were also invented here. Even those who are rather superficially interested in the history of armored vehicles are well aware of such projects as Porohovshchikov's All-Terrain Vehicle, Lebedenko's Tsar Tank, or Vladimir Mendeleev's super-heavy tank. And there were other developments: Günther Burshtyn's tank, Demyanenko's "Ground battleship", Kazansky's "Armored tractor". In general, there were enough ideas - both quite sane and frankly erroneous. Another thing is that there was no time for their implementation. In 1917, two revolutions happened in Russia, after which the country, frankly, was not up to tanks.

But not for long. In August 1919, the Council of People's Commissars and the Council of the Military Industry of the RSFSR decided to organize the production of Renault FT tanks at the Krasnoye Sormovo plant in Nizhny Novgorod. Since that time, the history of the tank-building industry of the Soviet Union begins.

The Soviet version of the Renault tank was not a 100% copy of its French prototype. When the sample arrived at the factory, it turned out that some parts did not reach their destination. The most unpleasant surprise for the engineers was that the gearbox was among the missing components. The plant's engineers, headed by N. I. Khrulev and P. I. Saltanov, were forced to design the lost parts on their own. Their work was successful, and in 1920 the very first Soviet tank "Freedom Fighter Comrade Lenin" rolled off the assembly line.

Russian Renault was produced only 15 copies. There was not enough industrial resource for more. At that time, the USSR was still a rather backward state from an industrial point of view, and a lot of efforts had to be made to change the situation.

Despite the weakness and insufficiency of industry, work on the design of tanks in the USSR was quite active. The first competition for the best design was held in 1920. Its winner was a ten-ton amphibious tank engineer Kondratiev. It was an independent development, not based on imported prototypes. At a similar competition in 1922, 7 projects were already submitted.

In 1923, the Main Directorate of the Military Industry became in charge of armored vehicles. In 1924, a special Tank Bureau was created under him, which began work on May 6. The bureau was supposed to be engaged in the collection and systematization of existing experience, the study of tank building, the preparation of human resources and, finally, the development of its own tank model. The latter was especially relevant in the difficult political situation in which the USSR was located, and the fact that the state of the fleet of foreign equipment that was in service with the Red Army could not be called anything but deplorable.

At the initial stage of work, it was planned to design three types of tank: a heavy breakthrough vehicle, a maneuverable tank for mobile formations, and a small one to support infantry. In October 1925, after a meeting on the problems of tank construction in the Mobilization and Planning Directorate of the Red Army, work on a heavy tank was practically stopped.

The "small" tank was made in metal already in 1927. It still very much resembled the Renault Russian, but a number of borrowings from the Italian Fiat 3000 also appeared in the design. The new Soviet tank, assembled at the Bolshevik plant in Leningrad, received the T-16 index and went for testing in March. It turned out that the car has many shortcomings of the chassis and power plant. Improvements were underway until the summer, and after state tests on June 11-17, 1927, the improved tank, already with the new T-18 index, was adopted by the Red Army under the designation "Small Escort Tank Model 1927" (MS-1).

The terms of reference for a "maneuverable" tank were formulated in November-December of 1927. The development was entrusted to the Gun-Arsenal Trust together with the Design Bureau of the Kharkov Plant, which opened in October of the same year. The trust did not react to the task very warmly and tried to shift most of the work to the Kharkovites, although they did not yet have experience in designing armored vehicles. The result is something like this. The Muscovites were supposed to develop the hull and turret, while the Kharkovites were to develop the transmission and running gear. But since the Muscovites did not show zeal, several employees of the Kharkov plant went to the capital and worked with them.

It is appropriate to mention here that starting from October 1928, a young technical draftsman A. A. Morozov, a future outstanding tank designer and twice Hero of Socialist Labor, joined the design bureau of the Kharkov plant.

The T-12 was designed taking into account the experience gained during the creation of the MS-1, as well as using the idea of ​​​​a multi-tiered arrangement of weapons, which was actively developed by the Americans in the mid-20s on experimental medium tanks. It was supposed to install two rotating towers on the T-12. The gun room was supposed to have a 45 mm gun or a 57 mm howitzer. In the small tower, located on the roof of the cannon, there was a twin machine gun mount of 7.62 mm caliber.

This scheme had two shortcomings. Firstly, when the main turret rotated, the aim of the small turret inevitably went astray. Secondly, due to the two-tier layout, the height of the vehicle was almost three meters, which was too much for a tank even at that time.

The construction of the experimental T-12 was carried out from October 13, 1928 to October 15, 1929. The official acceptance of the prototype took place in February 1930, and the first stage of testing began in April.

As in the case of the MS-1, the first tests showed serious deficiencies in the engine and running gear. After their elimination, the tank was demonstrated to a commission headed by K.E. Voroshilov, I.A. Khalepsky and G.G. Bokis. Here the car showed itself well, but the designers were instructed to finalize the T-12.

The refinement of the machine was, in fact, a deep modernization. The Design Bureau of the Kharkov Locomotive Plant completely redesigned the location of the internal modules, changed the design of the turret, and increased the cruising range. The modernized tank, which received the T-24 index, was adopted by the Red Army in August 1930, but it was not possible to establish its mass production for technical and economic reasons. The troops received only 25 copies of the T-24. They did not take part in hostilities and were used only as training ones. Already in 1931, the design bureau of the Kharkov plant switched to design work wheeled-tracked tanks BT series. Because of this, the design bureau was left by its chief, who did not agree with such a change in the vector of activity. Shortly thereafter, the T-24 was finally excluded from production plans.

: The history of the invention of the tank and the development of tank building up to the start of WWII (World War II) inclusive is interesting. The answer is extensive, but at least highlight the most relish.)))

Let's start from the very beginning.

When on November 20, 1917, 10 years ago, 350 tanks advanced through the morning mist to fall on the sleeping "Hindenburg positions", a new chapter was opened in history, which we are only beginning to understand with full clarity today. And although the Mark IV tank was new at the Battle of Cambrai, the principle embodied in it - the protection of motor and manpower leading an offensive under cover - was fully implemented 300 years ago.

The first thought of a tank, or rather a tank-like mechanism, originated in China. From Sunn-Tse reports, we learn that in the 12th century BC, a military wagon called "Lu" was used. This cart had 4 wheels and could accommodate 12 people. The historian does not mention horses, and one must think that the wagon was set in motion by people from the inside with the help of special devices. It was protected by skin and used during attack and defense.

"Tank" of the times of ancient Rome.

The idea of ​​the tank was further developed in the countries that are currently classified as the Middle East. Xenophon, describing the Battle of Timbrae (554 BC), tells with his characteristic fantasy that Cyrus placed behind the line of his positions a row of wagons with towers erected on them, from which they fired.

In Europe, elephants, as a cavalry avant-garde, ceased to be used after the conquest of Greece by the Romans. The chariot was kept in the East and in some countries, as, for example, in England. But the idea of ​​the tank did not disappear and was revived again in the armored knights of the crusades. The knight dressed in armor on his feet was in every respect a "tank". His motor force, although limited, was fully protected, and he could develop his offensive under cover.

At the battle of Crécy, the British had only a small number of cannons at their disposal, but a hundred years later, firearms came into general use, and a new military era began. The old passed under the sign of steel, in the new lead began to dominate. Did the bullet kill the idea of ​​a tank? No, on the contrary, she breathed new life into it. The ancient Chinese "Lu" has resurfaced on the scene. In 1395, a man named Konrad Keyser invented an internally powered military wagon, and a little later a wagon was built that could hold at least 100 people. It was, in all likelihood, a real moving fortress, extremely cumbersome. In Scotland, in 1456 and 1471, two Acts of Parliament were passed concerning the use of these mechanisms.

"Tank" of the seventeenth century.

But to set in motion such a machine with the help of the muscular power of people or animals was unthinkable, and therefore the inventive genius of the Renaissance took advantage of the then existing mechanical power. In 1472, Valturio proposed wind wheels as a propulsion force, and later Simon Steven spoke of sails, or rather, small armored sailing boats on wheels. The great Leonardo da Vinci, one of the most amazing visionaries in the history of mechanical inventions, built enclosed armored carts. This was in 1482, and a little more than 100 years later, John Napier develops the same idea.

From then until the construction of the first steam engine by Watt. In 1769, the idea of ​​a tank popped up from time to time, but always in its early Chinese "Lo" form. Simultaneously with the invention of Watt, a steam locomobile appeared, which had a speed of 2.5 miles per hour. A year later, in 1770, the "shod wheel" was invented, a device that prevented the wheel from sinking into soft soil. In these last two inventions one can find the germs of two essential moments of the future tank: internal propulsion and the ability to drive over uneven terrain and trenches.

Armored cart.

The Crimean War, declared in 1845, was a war of muddy roads and ravines, and therefore created a need for shod wheels, with which some of the Bodleian road locomotives in the Balaklava region, located in marshy terrain, were successfully equipped. The difficulty of taking the Russian trenches prompted James Cowan to suggest to Lord Palmerston the use of armored road locomobiles equipped with scythes.

The steam locomotive was the first to be used. First, for the transfer of troops, and later, a cannon was installed on the railway platform, and armored shields were installed for protection. This is how the first armored train turned out, which was used by the Americans in 1862 during the civil war in North America. The use of armored trains imposes its own limitations - railway tracks are needed. The military began to think about combining high firepower and mobility in a vehicle.

The next step was the booking of ordinary cars with the installation of machine-gun or light cannon weapons on them. They were to be used to break through the front line of the enemy's defenses and deliver manpower.

The main problem in the history of the development of tank building before the First World War was the lack of motivation and misunderstanding of the possibilities of using armored vehicles. Back in the 15th century, Leonardo da Vinci wrote about the basics of using an armored cart: “We will build closed chariots that will penetrate enemy lines and cannot be destroyed by a crowd of armed people, and infantry can follow behind them without much risk and any baggage.” In practice, no one took "expensive iron toys" seriously, as the British Minister of War once called the prototypes of tanks.

Tanks received real recognition during the First World War.

The First World War was a positional war, it is characterized by a multi-layered continuous line of defense with machine guns and architectural structures. For a breakthrough, artillery preparation was used, but due to the short firing range, it could suppress, and even then rather conditionally, only the firing points of the front line. When capturing the first line, the invaders inevitably encountered the next one, to suppress which it was necessary to bring up artillery. While the attackers were engaged in artillery, the defending troops mobilized reserves and recaptured the occupied line, and they themselves began to go over to the attack. Such an unsuccessful movement could continue for quite a long time. For example. In February 1916, the Battle of Verdun, for which the Germans had been preparing for almost two months, involved more than one thousand guns. For ten months of confrontation, more than 14 million shells were used up, and the death toll on both sides exceeded one million. With all this, the Germans advanced as much as 3 kilometers deep into the French defenses.

The military clearly faced the question of the need for a vehicle that could break through the enemy’s defense lines with complete suppression of firing points or at least promptly deliver artillery to the next lines.

For obvious reasons, armored trains could not be used, and armored cars quickly showed their failure - weak armor and ineffective weapons. Strengthening armor and armament significantly increased the weight of the car, which, along with wheel suspension and weak engines, reduced the cross-country ability of armored vehicles to zero. The use of a caterpillar loader (caterpillars) helped to improve the situation somewhat. The track rollers evenly distributed the pressure on the soil, which significantly increased the patency on soft ground.

To increase firepower and maneuverability, military engineers began to experiment with the size and weight of the new combat vehicle. Tried to combine tracks with wheels. There were several rather controversial projects among them. For example. In Russia, the designer Lebedenko, and independently in England, Major Hetherington, designed a tank on three huge wheels for greater cross-country ability. The idea of ​​both designers was to simply cross the ditch with a combat vehicle, so Lebedenko proposed to create a tank with wheels with a diameter of 9 meters, and Hetherington, respectively, 12 meters.

The Tsar Tank was built in 1915. The design of the machine was distinguished by great originality and ambition. According to the memoirs of Lebedenko himself, the idea of ​​this car was prompted by the Central Asian wagons-carts, which, thanks to large-diameter wheels, easily overcome bumps and ditches. Therefore, unlike the "classic" tanks using a caterpillar mover, the Tsar Tank was a wheeled combat vehicle and in design resembled a greatly enlarged gun carriage. The two huge spoked front wheels had a diameter of about 9 m, while the rear roller was noticeably smaller, about 1.5 m. The upper fixed machine-gun room was raised about 8 m above the ground. the plane of the wheels at the extreme points of the hull, sponsons with machine guns were designed, one on each side (the possibility of installing guns was also assumed). Under the bottom it was planned to install an additional machine-gun turret. The design speed of the vehicle was 17 km / h.

Paradoxical as it may seem, but with all the unusualness, ambition, complexity and huge size of the car, Lebedenko managed to "break through" his project. The car was approved in a number of instances, but the audience with Nicholas II finally decided the matter, during which Lebedenko presented the emperor with a clockwork wooden model of his car with an engine based on a gramophone spring. According to the memoirs of the courtiers, the emperor and the engineer crawled on the floor for half an hour, “like little children”, chasing the model around the room. The toy briskly ran across the carpet, easily overcoming stacks of two or three volumes of the Code of Laws Russian Empire". The audience ended with the fact that Nicholas II, impressed by the car, ordered to open funding for the project.

Work under imperial patronage proceeded quickly - soon the unusual machine was made of metal and from the end of spring 1915 was secretly assembled in the forest near Dmitrov. On August 27, 1915, the first sea trials of the finished machine were made. The use of large wheels assumed an increased cross-country ability of the entire device, which was confirmed in tests - the machine broke birch trees like matches. However, the rear steered roller, due to its small size and the incorrect distribution of the weight of the machine as a whole, almost immediately after the start of the tests got stuck in soft ground. The large wheels were unable to pull it out, even despite the use of the most powerful propulsion system at that time, which consisted of two captured Maybach engines of 250 hp each. With. each taken from a downed German airship.

The tests revealed the significant vulnerability of the vehicle - mainly the wheels - to artillery fire, which later seemed obvious, especially high-explosive shells. All this led to the fact that already in August the project was curtailed as a result of the negative conclusion of the High Commission, but Stechkin and Zhukovsky nevertheless began to develop new engines for the car. However, this attempt was unsuccessful, as well as attempts to move the Tsar Tank from its place and pull it out of the testing area.

Until 1917, the tank was guarded at the test site, but then, due to the political upheavals that began, the car was forgotten and no longer remembered. Design work on it was no longer carried out, and the huge surreal structure of the built combat vehicle rusted for another seven years in the forest, at the test site, until in 1923 the tank was dismantled for scrap.

The only positive effect of this project can be considered the experience gained by the then young Mikulin and Stechkin. When it turned out that the power of the apparatus’s engines was clearly insufficient, they developed their own AMBS-1 engine (short for Alexander Mikulin and Boris Stechkin), which had very advanced characteristics and technical solutions for that time, for example, direct fuel injection into cylinders. This engine, however, worked for only a few minutes, after which the connecting rods bent from high loads. Nevertheless, both Stechkin and Mikulin, who, by the way, were the nephews of the outstanding aviation theorist Nikolai Egorovich Zhukovsky, later became prominent Soviet specialists in aircraft engines, academicians of the USSR Academy of Sciences.

Despite the failure, Lebedenko's idea was not flawed in principle. A few years later, engineer Pavesi built a series of high-wheeled military tractors for the Italian army. The inventor also created several models of wheeled tanks, but they were not adopted. The tank remained a purely tracked vehicle.

There is also a conspiracy theory regarding the fate of the Tsar Tank project. According to it, it is assumed that the deliberately failed project of the machine was heavily lobbied in the General Staff by high-ranking officials acting in the interests of Great Britain. This theory is very close to the truth, since these same officials buried ATV Porokhovshchikova, the drawings of which were subsequently sold to the French and formed the basis of the French tank Renault-FT-17. Read more about this story.

Due to the imperfection of the armored vehicles presented, the debate about the need for their development and reconciliation among the military continued until September 15, 1916. This day was a turning point in the history of tank building and warfare in general. During the Battle of the Somme, the British first used their new tanks. Of the 42 two that were available, 32 participated in the battle. During the battle, 17 of them failed for various reasons, but the remaining tanks were able to help the infantry advance 5 kilometers deep into the defense along the entire width of the offensive, while losing manpower amounted to 20 times! less than calculated. For comparison, we can recall the battle at Verbena.

The idea to create a combat tracked vehicle capable of moving over rough terrain through trenches, ditches and barbed wire was first expressed in 1914 by English Colonel Swinton. After discussion in various instances, the Ministry of War as a whole accepted his idea and formulated the basic requirements that a combat vehicle had to meet. It was supposed to be small, have caterpillars, bulletproof armor, overcome funnels up to 4 m and wire fences, reach speeds of at least 4 km / h, have a cannon and two machine guns. The main purpose of the tank was the destruction of barbed wire and the suppression of enemy machine guns. Soon, Foster's firm in forty days created a combat vehicle based on the Holt caterpillar tractor, which was called "Little Willy". Its chief designers were engineer Tritton and Lieutenant Wilson.

"Little Willy" was tested in 1915 and showed good driving performance. In November, the Holt company began manufacturing a new machine. The designers had a difficult problem without making the tank heavier, to increase its length by 1 m so that it could overcome four-meter trenches. In the end, this was achieved due to the fact that the contour of the caterpillar was given the shape of a parallelogram. In addition, it turned out that the tank took vertical embankments and steep elevations with difficulty. To increase the height of the toe, Wilson and Tritton came up with the idea of ​​putting the caterpillar on top of the hull. This significantly increased the cross-country ability of the vehicle, but at the same time gave rise to a number of other difficulties associated, in particular, with the placement of cannons and machine guns. The armament had to be distributed along the sides, and so that the machine guns could fire on the course to the side and back, they were installed in the side ledges of the sponsons. In February 1916, the new tank, named "Big Willie", successfully passed sea trials. He could overcome wide trenches, move along a plowed field, climb over walls and embankments up to 1.8 m high. Trenches up to 3.6 m did not represent a serious obstacle for him.

The hull of the tank was a box-frame made of corners, to which armored sheets were bolted. The chassis was also covered with armor, which consisted of small unsprung road wheels (the shaking in the car was terrible). Inside, the "land cruiser" resembled the engine room of a small ship, on which you could walk without even bending down. For the driver and commander in front there was a separate cabin. Most of the rest of the space was occupied by the motor

"Daimler", gearbox and transmission. To start the engine, 3-4 people teams had to rotate a huge crank until the engine started with a deafening roar. On the machines of the first brands, fuel tanks were also placed inside. Narrow passages remained on both sides of the engine. Ammunition was on shelves between the top of the engine and the roof. On the move, exhaust gases and gasoline vapors accumulated in the tank. Ventilation was not provided. Meanwhile, the heat from the running engine soon became unbearable; the temperature reached 50 degrees. In addition, with each shot of the gun, the tank was filled with caustic powder gases. The crew could not stay in combat places for a long time, fumed and suffered from overheating. Even in battle, tankers sometimes jumped out to breathe fresh air, while not paying attention to the whistle of bullets and shrapnel. A significant drawback of the "Big Willie" turned out to be narrow caterpillars that got stuck in soft soil. At the same time, a heavy tank sat on the ground, stumps and stones. It was bad with observation and communication - the viewing slots in the sides did not provide inspection, but the spray from the bullets that hit the armor near them hit the tankers in the face and eyes. There was no radio contact. Carrier pigeons were kept for long-distance communications, and special signal flags were used for short-range communications. There was also no internal intercom.

Driving the tank required considerable effort from the drivers and the commander (the latter was responsible for the brakes on the right and left sides of the tracks). The tank had three gearboxes - one main and one on each side (each of them controlled a special transmission). The turn was carried out either by braking one caterpillar, or by switching one of the onboard gearboxes to the neutral position, while the first or second gear was switched on on the other side. With the caterpillar stopped, the tank turned almost on the spot.

For the first time, tanks were used in the battle on September 15, 1916 near the village of Fleur-Course during the grandiose battle on the Somme. The British offensive, launched in July, yielded negligible results and very tangible losses. It was then that the commander-in-chief, General Haig, decided to throw tanks into battle. There were 49 of them in total, but only 32 reached their original positions, the rest remained in the rear due to breakdowns. Only 18 participated in the attack, but in a few hours they advanced along with the infantry into the depths of the German positions for 5 km on a front of the same width. Haig was pleased - in his opinion, it was the new weapon that reduced infantry losses by 20 times against the "norm". He immediately sent a demand to London for 1000 combat vehicles at once.

In subsequent years, the British released several modifications of the Mk (this was the official name of the "Big Willie"). Each next model was more perfect than the previous one. For example, the first production tank Mk-1 weighed 28 tons, moved at a speed of 4.5 km/h, and was armed with two cannons and three machine guns. Its crew consisted of 8 people. The later MkA tank had a speed of 9,6 km / h, weight -18 tons, crew - - 5 people, armament - - 6 machine guns. MKS with a weight of 19.5 tons developed a speed of 13 km/h. The crew on this tank consisted of four people, and the armament consisted of four machine guns. The last amphibious tank Mkl, created already in 1918, had a rotating turret, a crew of four and an armament of three machine guns. With a weight of 13.5 tons, he developed a speed of 43 km / h on land, and 5 km / h on water. In total, the British produced 3,000 tanks of 13 different modifications during the war years.

Tank "Schneider" SA-1, 1916

Gradually, the tanks were adopted by other warring armies. The first French tanks were developed and produced by Schneider in October 1916. Outwardly, they looked little like their English counterparts - the tracks did not cover the hull, but were located along its sides or under it. The undercarriage was sprung with special springs, which facilitated the work of the crew. However, due to the fact that top part the tank hung heavily over the tracks, the patency of the Schneiders was worse, and they could not overcome even minor vertical obstacles.

About a hundred of them got into Russia, and all of them were in the service of the army of Denikin, the White Guard. After the Civil War, these tanks were installed in various cities as monuments. Today there are 5 left. Let's look at the Lugansk instance from the inside with the help of a blogger dymov

Sandblasted tank on the "stocks". Some of the hatches have been removed.

Drawing of the tank with numbered armor plates and a description of the problems for each of the damaged ones.
Also, on the table are pieces of armor and rivets (they checked the type of steel to select the optimal one, with a possible future replacement).

Numbered armor plates on the tank itself.

As you can see, there are enough cracks and holes from rust.

The bottom is quite rotten in some places. Standing in the open air, the tank collected water in itself during any precipitation.

Very spacious inside (no motor). It became clear how 7-8 crew members could fit there.

Stak engineering.Co
Wolverhampton
lettering on the gearbox.

The place of the only gunner in this crew. I must say that in terms of the number of "shots" this tank can give odds to any modern one. More than 40 next to the cannon and even more aft.

All levers and traction are in place.

Pedals too. I wonder what the letters B and C on them mean?

Convenient glovebox. The officer could put down the binoculars and the Browning.

The “head” of the gearbox is larger.

7 machine guns for one tank is very cool, in my opinion.

The ventilation duct (if that's it) is the most rusty.

The driver-mechanic has his own stash. And, by the way, the “steering wheel” is right! In English…

..... car factory
overhaul
19…

as usual, all the very interesting information erased time.


By this number, as it turned out, you can restore both the data on the tank and its combat path.
For example, both Lugansks were recaptured by the Red Army from Wrangel in the battles for the Crimea. Namely - on Perekop.

Items that have lain in the tank for many years. The button is the most interesting.

Once upon a time, these workshops produced other caterpillar shushiks for military needs - amphibious transport vehicles capable of transporting a truck of soldiers on board across any river.

LOT for recording stand-up in the depths of the war machine.

And now about the French

The best tank of the First World War was the Renault FT, manufactured by Renault and having a weight of only 6 tons, a crew of two, armament - a machine gun (a cannon since 1917), a maximum speed of 9, b km / h.

Renault FT-17

Renault FT became the prototype of the tank of the future. For the first time, the layout of the main components, which still remains classic, found its resolution on it: engine, transmission, drive wheel - at the back, control compartment - in front, rotating tower - in the center. For the first time, on-board radio stations began to be installed on Renault tanks, which immediately increased the controllability of tank formations. A large-diameter drive wheel helped to overcome vertical obstacles and get out of funnels. The tank had good maneuverability and was easy to operate. For 15 years, he served as a model for many designers. In France itself, Renault was in service until the end of the 30s, and it was produced under license in another 20 countries.

The Germans also tried to master new weapons. Since 1917, the Bremerwagen company began production of the A7V tank, but the Germans could not establish their mass production. Р1х tanks participated in some operations, but in quantities not exceeding several dozen vehicles.

On the contrary, the Entente countries (that is, England and France proper) had about 7,000 tanks by the end of the war. Here armored vehicles received recognition and firmly established themselves in the weapons system. Lloyd George, British Prime Minister during the war years, said: “The tank was an outstanding and amazing innovation in the field of mechanical aid to war. This final British response to the German machine guns and trenches undoubtedly played a very important role in hastening the Allied victory." Tanks were widely used by the British in the fighting. In November 1917, a massive tank attack was carried out for the first time. 476 vehicles participated in it, supported by six infantry divisions. It was a huge success for a new type of weapon. Firing from cannons and machine guns, the tanks tore down the barbed wire and overcame the first line of trenches on the move.

In just a few hours, the British advanced 9 km deep into the front, losing only 4 thousand people. (In the previous British offensive near Ypres, which lasted four months, the British lost 400 thousand people and managed to penetrate the German defenses only 6-10 km). The French also massively used tanks several times. So, in July 1918, more than 500 French tanks participated in the battle of Soissons.

From the first Soviet tank "Freedom Fighter Comrade. Lenin", built by the workers of the Sormovo plant in 1920, to a modern main tank with high firepower, protection against all means of destruction and high mobility - such is the great and glorious path of Soviet tank building.

In tsarist Russia, the country where the world's first model of a tank was created (A. A. Porokhovshchikov's tank), there was no tank building industry and no tanks were built. Only after the victory of the Great October Socialist Revolution began equipping the young Red Army with military equipment. Already in the spring of 1918, speaking at a meeting of military experts, V. I. Lenin proposed a program for the technical equipment of the Red Army, in which a significant role was assigned to armored forces.

August 31, 1920, the first Soviet tank, named "Freedom Fighter Comrade. Lenin”, came out of the gates of the factory “Krasnoe Sormovo”. By the hands of skilled workers with limited opportunities, 15 tanks of the same type were made. From this period begins the history of the development of tank building in the USSR.

The first Soviet tanks in terms of combat qualities were not inferior to the best foreign models, and in some design features and surpassed them. These domestic vehicles and the trophy ones captured from the invaders became the basis for the formation of tank detachments. The first such detachments, which included three tanks each, appeared in 1920. They participated in battles on various fronts and were used to directly support the infantry while in its combat formations. It should be noted that the main tanks of the Red Army during the civil war were captured.

In 1924, a technical bureau of the Main Directorate of the Military Industry was created, headed by engineer S.P. Shchukalov. This was an important event in the history of Soviet tank building. If earlier the development of tank technology was carried out by separate plants, which, of course, did not contribute to the accumulation of the necessary experience, then after the creation of the bureau, all work is concentrated in a single center.

Three years later, in 1927, the first sample of a light tank designed by this bureau was tested. According to the test results and by decision of the Revolutionary Military Council of the USSR of July 6, 1927, the sample is accepted into service with the Red Army. The modified version of the T-18 tank received the MS-1 brand, which meant "small escort, sample one."

In the 1930s, Soviet tank building began to develop rapidly. During this period, tank design bureaus were created, which in a short time developed a whole generation of tanks of all weight categories. An outstanding role in the creation of the first models of tanks of that period was played by N. V. Barykov, who in 1929 headed the special design and engineering department (OKMO).

Dissatisfaction with the harsh terms of the Treaty of Versailles, which the Germans were forced to sign on June 28, 1919. led to a general increase in revanchist sentiment, on the crest of which Germany begins to intensively build up its military-industrial power. The rapid development of the armored industry (thanks to the active infusion of American and British investments) became an integral part of this process. However, real rearmament began only in 1935, when Adolf Hitler refused to comply with the military articles of the Treaty of Versailles, which opened the way for the production of military products by more than 240,000 German enterprises.

In fact, this outcome was a foregone conclusion many years ago, when, immediately after the signing of the armistice, the victorious Allies decided to leave Germany permanently demilitarized, while obliging her to pay huge reparations. The nationwide desire to remain a powerful military power at all costs can be illustrated by the example of the gigantic industrial empire of Krupp. In words, Krypp fully agreed with the severe restrictions on the production of military products and under the motto "We do everything!" reoriented its enterprises to the production of purely peaceful products, such as typewriters and baby carriages. In reality, however, at Krupna's enterprises there was a hidden and ongoing process of developing and designing new types of weapons for a future war. Experienced engineers and specialists were temporarily sent to the subsidiaries of the German arms concern, settled in different countries, waiting for the day when they could return and openly begin mass production of weapons in their native Ruhr area.

Even now, after decades have passed, it is difficult to speak without indignation about the assistance provided to Germany by some of the allied countries, as well as by "neutral" states. To some extent, we can say that in 1939 Europe got what it deserved. A linear reminder of this should serve as a good lesson to those governments and politicians who, at critical moments in history, tend to choose an "ostrich" (N.Chamberlain's "appeasement" policy) policy that unties the hands of the aggressor.

During the First World War, the only outstanding German tank designer was, of course. Joseph Volmer. In addition to the famous A7V, the first German tank that took a real part in the hostilities of this war, he developed a project for a lighter model - the Leichte Kampfivagen I (“Light Tank 1"). The first prototype of this vehicle weighed about 7 tons. It was followed by a modification of the LK II This tank was 2 tons heavier than the previous one and was armed initially with a 57 mm horizontally-guided cannon, later replaced by a 37 mm Krupp cannon.Volmer built two prototypes of this tank and began production of eight more (having a government order for 580 units), but then the war ended. Volmer was not at a loss, quickly dismantled the tanks and fled to neutral Sweden, taking with him a complete set of parts for all ten models. M-21 The first tank company of the Swedish army was formed from these tanks.

german tank Leichter Kampfwagen by Josef Vollmer

However, Volmer did not stay in Sweden, but settled in Czechoslovakia, where he soon became the leading designer of the Adamov company. Since 1925, the Skoda and Tatra enterprises have been launching mass production of tanks designed by Josef Vollmer. When Nazi Germany occupied Czechoslovakia in 1938, the designer's creations returned to their homeland - the German army was replenished with first-class captured Czech tanks.

swedish trail

In his book on the secret rearmament of the German army in 1919-1939. (“Covert German Rearmament 1919-1939) Bart Valley gives a story about how Krupp created another branch of his company in Sweden: “... Since Sweden provided a safe and guaranteed cover for the process of militarization of the German economy and the rearmament of its army, Krupp decided to open there the second branch of its concern, in addition to the production plant artillery weapons Bofors AB.

Future German tank "Grosstractor"

Krupp's new acquisition turned out to be the old Landeverk AB machine factory in Landskrona, in southern Sweden, which made agricultural equipment. Already in 1929, the first model of the tank was developed there, and in 1931 a prototype came off the assembly line - an excellent light tank L-10, armed with a 37-mm cannon. In 1934, the L-10 entered service with the Swedish army. Since then, Landsverk has become the leader of the Swedish military industry, producing first-class tanks and armored vehicles. Curiously, the models made by the Landskrona plant bore a striking resemblance to German and Soviet tanks, which once again proves the now indisputable fact of close trilateral military cooperation between these states on the eve of World War II.

Feedback from inspectors

In January 1927, inspectors from the Allied Control Commission were recalled from Germany to monitor the strict implementation by the Weimar Republic of the military articles of the Treaty of Versailles. From this moment, the process of rapid rearmament of the German army begins, although for the time being Germany still pretends to strictly fulfill its obligations. By the way, it turned out to be not at all difficult for her to lead the European community by the nose. It is easiest to deceive someone who wants to be deceived himself! (or maybe it was a conspiracy???)

Meanwhile, the gigantic Krupp empire entered a period of “black (secret) armaments production. Already in 1928, the production of the first tanks began there. One of the official documents from the war times directly stated that: "... of all the guns that we used in 1939-1941, the main ones were created and fully tested by 1933. "In 1933, Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist Party, and two years later the Fuhrer openly violated the military articles of the Versailles Treaty.From now on, Germany not only ceases to maintain secrecy, but moves to
direct intimidation of the world community. The propaganda machine greatly increases the real military power of the Third Reich, instilling in the former victorious powers the myth of the invincibility of the German armed forces. The most amazing thing is the ease with which the Germans managed to once again fool the world community!

And this Grostractor. created by the company "Reinmegall". was armed with a 75 mm cannon. After secret tests in Soviet Russia he entered the disposal of the 1st Panzer Division. Like the other five models, this tank ended its days as a monument on the parade ground in front of one of the first tank regiments.

Back in the period of covert rearmament of the German army, the Ministry of the Reichswehr created the Inspectorate of Automobile Troops (Truppenamt), designed to coordinate and monitor the development of all types of motorized means, including secretly created tanks. The name of Heinz Guderian, the future famous tank general, who rightfully earned the title of “father of tanks”, is closely associated with this organization. In 1926, German enterprises received secret military orders for the production of tanks and armored vehicles. true purpose.

Thus, the 20-ton tank built by the Daimler-Benz AG concern in 1928-1929 received the official name Grosstraktor 1 (“Heavy Tractor I”). It was one of three prototypes built in secret at three German industrial giants - the Grosstraktor II came off the assembly line at the Rheinmetall plant, and the Grosstraktor III was the brainchild of Krupp *. Each firm made but two "tractors", all of them were made of low-carbon steel grades and armed with a 75-mm cannon. On the basis of a secret agreement between Germany and the Soviet Union, all vehicles were secretly tested at a tank range 30 km from Kazan.

By the way, according to the same secret articles of the Versailles Treaty of 1926, German designers and testers were constantly in Kazan ("The author means the secret tank school near Kazan, founded in 1926 under the code name "Kama", and since 1928 - Technical courses "SOAVIAKHIM". And this school trained Soviet and German tank crews, tested German tanks and other equipment. See Dyakov YL.. Bushueva TS The Nazi sword was forged in the USSR. The Red Army and the Reichswehr. Secret cooperation 1922-1933 Unknown documents. KS, 1992.- Note lane).

The last models of the Grosstraktor have ended their service as monuments at various armored regimental headquarters.

A wooden layout of the Zugfubrerwagen field combat vehicle (platoon commander's combat vehicle), later known as the PzKpfw III.

One cannot ignore the role of Sweden in the development of German tank building in those years. It is curious that the first tank driven by Guderian turned out to be Swedish, moreover, it was one of Volmer's "smuggled" vehicles! The Krupp and Rheinmetall factories also created three modifications of the so-called light tractor - the Leicbtetraktor, which weighed about 9.5 tons and was armed with a 37-mm cannon.

One can imagine with what mocking bewilderment the European generals looked at the "hot Heinz" Guderian (then still a colonel), who proudly led strange wooden tanks to the summer parade of 1929! What a sight it was! At first, the models had to be rolled by hand, but soon the tanks became fully motorized, and canvas and plywood cases were manufactured at the NSU * Dixy * and Adler automobile plants. The Germans quickly appreciated the convenience and low cost of using these easy-to-produce models for training tank crews. Toy* tanks are becoming ubiquitous. According to some reports, several plywood tanks even used in new tanks, they were even used at the very end of the war, when the Wehrmacht was sorely lacking military equipment.

Preparing for war

From the beginning of the 1930s German industry begins to steadily increase the volume of military production. Thus, the Krupp concern receives a direct order from Hitler for the development and manufacture of 100 light tanks by March 1934, and another 650 by 1935. Krupp immediately recalls its engineers from Sweden and proceeds to organize the production of tanks at native factories . With confusing speed, wooden models of tanks are being replaced by real ones. In his famous book Tanks Forward! Guderian recalls these events in this way: “... German tanks were changing right before our eyes. Once-wooden cannons suddenly spewed real fire, and imaginary armor turned into first-class steel*. By 1935, three tank divisions were formed and fully armed. It is characteristic that among the new tanks we will not see either the Leichtetraktor or the Grosstraktor. Both models were recognized as imperfect and unsuitable even for exercises, therefore, in order to fulfill Hitler's directive, two fundamentally new light tanks were re-designed and put into production at the Krupp factories. The first of these, created in 1933 and originally codenamed Landwirtschaftlicher Schleper ("Agricultural Tractor"), weighed 5 tons. When the model was launched into production, it was called PanzerKampfwagen I, or PzKpfw I. PzKpfw II was twice as heavy and combined the best qualities of two well-known models at once - the Krupp LKA II and the project developed by MAN. He received the PzKpfw II Ausf A index. Subsequently, it was decided to entrust the serial production of the tank to this company. By the way, both models, like their English counterparts, had very mediocre combat qualities and, being excellent training machines, practically did not receive real combat use.

The next heavy tank after the Grosstractor was simply called -NeubauFabrzeuge (NbFz) (newly built machine) and weighed about 24 tons. The tank did not go into mass production, because it was morally obsolete by the time the first sample appeared. Three NbFz managed to take part in the hostilities in Norway, but they were mainly used as training vehicles.

At the same time, two more tanks were developed for the rapidly emerging Wehrmacht tank divisions. It's about about medium and light slippers, known under the indices PzKpfw III and PzKpfw IV. During the period we are describing, the vehicles were codenamed ZW - Zugfiih-rerswagen (combat vehicle of the platoon commander) and BW - Bataillonfuhrerswagen (combat vehicle of the battalion commander). Subsequently, it was these tanks that were destined to become the main striking force of the German tank divisions.

The first enterprises to master the serial production of tanks were the Krupp plants (in Essen), Rheinmetall-Borsig (in Berlin-Tegel), Daimler-Benz AG (in Berlin-Marienfeld) and Henschel and son AG ( in Kassel). These were the real flagships of the German industry, having everything necessary for the independent production of most of the main tank units and assemblies. This was especially true of the Krupp and Rheinmetal concerns, huge military enterprises that were able to design, test and produce all the weapons, armor and other parts necessary for tanks. Two other giants - Daimler-Benz AG, a manufacturer of heavy trucks, and * Henschel and son AG, specializing in the production of railway locomotives, also had extensive experience in the production of heavy transport equipment. Soon, several other enterprises joined these four leaders. Including the machine-building enterprise "Gruzon Werke" - the second branch of the company "Krupp" in Magdeburg, which, since 1937, in parallel with the plant in Essen, produced tank parts and assemblies. The Nuremberg branch of the company "Maschinenfabrik Augsburg-Nürnberg" (MAN), which was a large engineering company, also had extensive experience and necessary equipment for the production of complex military technical-specialized military products. There were extremely rare cases of the construction of new factories designed exclusively for the production and assembly of various mechanisms and parts for tanks. Examples include the MIAG plants in Braungsweig and Alkett in Berlin-Borsigwald.

In 1939-1940. As a result of the occupation of Austria, Czechoslovakia and Poland, Germany greatly increased its military and economic power. The production of armored vehicles was now in full swing at the machine-building plants of the occupied territories (Steyer-Daimler-Puch in Austria, CKD / BMM in Czechoslovakia, Vaverma in Poland). As the army's demand for new tanks and armored vehicles increased sharply, the production of military equipment inevitably became more and more dispersed. Not a single plant could independently satisfy the growing appetites of the Wehrmacht. However, the more enterprises were involved in the production of each specific tank, the more they depended on each other and on strict observance of the schedule for the supply of certain parts and components under subcontracts within the framework of cooperation. This, in turn, required clear coordination between the army and industry, between designers and process engineers, as well as between the parent enterprises where finished products were assembled, and factories that produced components and parts. The organization of the production of armored vehicles was carried out by the Ministry of Armaments and Ammunition through the main committee on tank building, which in turn consisted of structural units: the production and repair of tanks; armor steel improvements; design and supervision of production; manufacture of engines, lightly armored and special vehicles; supplies, etc. Tank weapons were produced under the leadership of the Main Armaments Directorate, which in turn consisted of committees for light anti-tank and tank weapons and heavy anti-tank and tank weapons. Many special committees and subcommittees inspected the smaller branches of tank building (ammunition, optical devices etc.)-

Tank maneuvers in 1939. Tanks PzKpfw I Ausf A overcome a water barrier. Judging by the photo, it can be assumed that the first tank got into trouble, plunging deeper than the permissible level (58 cm). In fact, this is not so, although the tanks go to the limit.

As can be clearly seen from table No. 1, the rate of tank production in Germany has been steadily growing. In addition to light and medium tanks, German designers and manufacturers showed some interest in creating heavy models, the heirs of the already familiar Grosstraktor (“Heavy Tractor”).

March 1944. An interesting formation of the PzKpfw III and PzKpfw IV tanks, which were destined to serve as the strike force of the Nazi tank divisions for several years. From left to right: PzKpfw IV Ausf F (armed with 75 mm KwK 37 L/24 cannon), PzKpfw III Ausf L/M (armed with 50 mm KwK 39 L/60), PzKpfw III Ausf H (with 50 mm KwK L /42), PzKpfw IV Fl (armed with a 75 mm KwK40L/43 cannon). (Photo from the personal archive of retired colonel von Boxberg.)

One of these tanks under the simple name NeubauFahrzeuge PzKpfw (NbFz) (newly built vehicle) weighed about 24 tons. At the Krupp and Rheinmetall factories, five modifications of this tank were built, with the Ausf A having twin 75 and 37 mm guns, and the B model having 105 and 37 mm, respectively. In 1934-35. the tanks were supposed to go into production under the names PzKpfw V and PzKpfw VI, but since this never happened, the names went to the subsequent Panther and Tiger. As for the NbFz prototypes that have already been produced, they still managed to “sniff the gunpowder”. Initially, these heavy tanks were used as training vehicles at the ranges of the armored school in Putlos, and in 1940, three prototypes took part in the fighting in Norway as part of the 40th tank battalion special purpose. One of them was destroyed by the enemy, and the other two returned home at the end of the same year.
During the attack on Poland (September 1, 1939), Germany had 3,195 tanks, not counting the excellent Czech vehicles she had recently captured. Of them:

Tanks PzKpfw I-1445
Tanks PzKpfwII-1226
Tanks PzKpfw III-98
Tanks PzKpfw IV-211
Command tanks of all types -215(("The numbers are taken from the book: Richard Ogorkiewicz "Armour, the development of mechanised forces and they equipment".).

Most of these tanks took part in a short, 30-day war with Poland, during which 217 German vehicles were destroyed by the Poles (of which 89 PzKpfw I tanks, 83 PzKpfw II tanks, 26 PzKpfw III tanks and 19 PzKpfw IV tanks)
(The figures are taken from the military command report: Report of the Heereswaffenampt, pi IU HI 5/40.).
Tank production continued to grow. If the monthly production in 1939 amounted to 140 units, then the following year it increased to 170 tanks. By May 1940, Nazi Germany had 3379 combat vehicles. However, a much more significant indicator of the armored power of Germany was not even the total number of vehicles, but the fact that among them there were already 329 PzKpfw III tanks and 280 PzKpfw IV tanks - which formed the backbone of the Wehrmacht strike forces on the Western Front. If we compare quantitative indicators, then on the Western Front Germany had 2574 tanks, while the Allied armies had at their disposal about 3000 units, most of which were French (there were about 400 English tanks, Belgian - only a few units). However, despite the fact that France had many heavy, well-armed tanks, the Germans had an absolute superiority in tactical art.

Operation Barbarossa (Invasion of Russia)

By June 1941, at the time of the invasion of the Soviet Union, Germany had 5264 tanks, including captured Czech tanks, but not counting captured French ones. French tanks can not be taken into account for the reason that the Germans used these vehicles mainly in auxiliary and unimportant areas - to arm the occupying troops in Normandy, etc. Some of the captured French tanks were converted into other types of military equipment, in particular into various self-propelled guns .

In total, 3,350 German tanks took part in Operation Barbarossa, and most of the PzKpfw III and PzKpfw TV type vehicles that had just appeared in German service were thrown into the Soviet Union. It should not be forgotten that at the beginning of the war, the Soviet Union had a huge numerical advantage in military equipment. The Soviet armored forces numbered approximately 20,000 combat vehicles. "On June 22, 1941, the tank fleet of the Red Army amounted to 22,600 tanks of all types, of which more than 3,900 were either out of order or had a limited resource, although most of this giant fleet was stationed far from the line front - ed.

As in France, the blitzkrieg strategy initially brought quick results - the Nazi army advanced deep into Soviet territory in a matter of days. Losses Soviet troops in armored vehicles were truly huge - the Russians lost about 17,000 tanks. According to Soviet data - 20,500 tanks. See Classified removed. M., Military Publishing, 1993, p. 357, while German losses amounted to only 2700 units. - Approx. ed.

However, precious time was spent month after month, the enemy did not even think of giving up, the stubborn resistance of Russian soldiers, disgusting weather conditions ruthlessly revealed all the design flaws of German tanks - an overly complex gasoline engine that turned out to be almost impossible to repair in the field; narrow tracks, unsuitable for passing through viscous soil or ice; too difficult to maintain transmission and gearbox. In addition, the troops experienced an acute shortage of spare parts, armored vehicles and experienced mechanics.

The Hannover branch of the MAN company, the only company that simultaneously produced Panthers (Ausf G) and self-propelled guns Jagdpanthers (famous tank destroyers). In the photo you see the Jagdpanther assembly, and in the lower right corner there is a Panther tank.

If at the beginning of the war the German tanks PzKpfw III and PzKpfw IV were clearly superior in their combat characteristics to most Soviet models, then with the advent of the famous medium tank T-34 and especially the heavy KB-1, the situation changed dramatically. That the Russians are completing the creation new version medium tank was known as early as November 1941 (The author mistakenly believes that the production of T-34 medium tanks in the USSR also began in the fall of 1941. In fact, these tanks were put into service in December 1939 and by June 11, 1941. The Red Army had I225 tanks T-34 and 636 KB-1 and KV-2. - Pri", ed.), however, the Wehrmacht command did not attach of great importance this information until the T-34 was put into mass production.

As a result, in the midst of the war, the Germans had to immediately start creating more powerful vehicles capable of withstanding the Russian tank.

A few years before the appearance of the T-34, the Henschel & Son AG factories began developing heavier vehicles, and in 1937 this company received an order to create a 30-ton breakthrough tank, which would have stronger weapons and 50- mm armor. By 1941, the chassis of the new model was created and tested, but the order for the production of a 30-ton machine was canceled, and the company was recommended to devote all its efforts to the development and creation of a 65-ton giant. In an extremely short time, the order was executed, and two prototypes of the VK 6501 model were born. but then the order was frozen again and Henschel and Son AG were instructed to return to 30-ton tanks.

The company created two similar experimental tanks - DW-1 and DW-2, but none of them was put into serial production. They were followed by the models VK 3001 (30 tons), VK3601 (36 tons) and VK 4501 (45 tons). Hitler especially liked the last model, so already in April 1942, on his birthday, the Fuhrer received a modified and improved version of the new tank as a gift. Hitler personally took part in the testing of the new model and, as usual, ordered that the 75 mm gun be replaced by an 88 mm gun. After the best features of all prototypes were combined in the VK 4501 (H) modification, the tank was put into serial production. So, in July 1942, the legendary "Tiger" was born.

The Tigers received their first baptism of fire in September-August 1942 near Leningrad. Despite the unsuccessful start (due primarily to the unjustified haste with the introduction of new equipment into battle), the Tigers soon gained a formidable reputation as first-class battle tanks.

At the same time, two other firms, partly involved in the development of the 30-ton VK 3001 model, created a copy that became, without exaggeration, the best medium tank of the Second World War period. We are talking, as you probably guessed, about the famous "Panther", designed by MAN and created with the participation of "Daimler-Benz AG". The model for this tank, of course, was the legendary Soviet T-34. As in the case of the "Tiger", the matter was not without the personal participation of Hitler, who ordered the tank to be armed with a 75-mm long-barreled gun KwK 42 L / 70. The tank weighed 45 tons, about 15 tons more than the usual weight of a medium tank. The serial production of the Panther * was launched in August 1943. Domestic sources and literature indicate that the serial production of the medium tank PzKpfw V Ausf D / D-1 "Panther" began in January 1943. See Svirin. M Panther PzKpfw V.M., Armada. I996.C 6. - Ed.

On the battlefields, this tank was, perhaps, an even greater danger to the enemy than the Tigers.
From 1943 to 1944, the German military industry was working to the limit, trying to maximize the monthly production of tanks, however, its capacity was clearly not enough to satisfy the growing appetites of the Wehrmacht. Table N "2 clearly demonstrates the quantitative production of tanks by various firms in 1943. (Pay attention to the fact that table No. 2 and table No. 3 provide different data on the total number of tanks produced by Germany in 1943. Table No. 2 shows that that a total of 5,750 units were produced, while the following table gave a figure of 6,083 tanks, i.e. more than 333. It seems to me that the latter figure is more accurate, since the table was compiled after the end of the war on the basis of a large amount of factual material.)
However, even the appearance in the arsenal of the Wehrmacht of such unsurpassed tanks as the "Tiger" and "Panther" could no longer change the overall ratio military power warring parties, since the USSR and the countries of the anti-Hitler coalition were able to achieve an overwhelming quantitative advantage in military equipment. Table No. 3 irrefutably implies that, with the exception of 1940, the US alone produced several times more tanks than Germany, despite the fact that America had to develop its tank building literally from scratch. As for Great Britain, even during the period of the most brutal German bombings (1940-1941), it created about the same number of tanks as Germany, and with each subsequent year it was noticeably ahead of the enemy, the same situation was in the USSR.

German designers and manufacturers turned out to be unable to soberly assess the current situation, and instead of throwing all their efforts into the production of the well-proven Panthers and Tigers, they spent a huge amount of time, effort and money on creating super-heavy tanks, like 140 -ton E 100 or 180-ton "Mouse". It's hard to believe, but there was even a project for the birth of a 1000-ton colossus!
By 1945, common sense prevailed, and work on the fearsome giants was postponed, although it was at this time that a weighted modification of the "Tiger" appeared - the "Royal Tiger" weighing 68 tons. In general, despite certain difficulties in maintenance, the "Royal Tiger" proved to be an excellent tank with high fighting qualities. The tank continued to enter the troops until the end of the war, in addition to and partially replacing the conventional "Tiger". Nevertheless, until March 1945 The first heavy tank, the PzKpfw IV, was also in mass production, as were the excellent medium tanks of the Panther type.
production of self-propelled artillery mounts - "Jagdpanthers", based on the medium tank "Panther" and "Jagdtigra", based on the "King Tiger". The Jagdtigr, which weighed 70 tons, was armed with a 128 mm semi-automatic anti-aircraft gun and proved to be one of the best German combat vehicles of this class.

Problems of operation and logistics of German tanks

Since German tanks were much more complex and more advanced than most of their contemporary counterparts, their production, maintenance and repair required incomparably more effort and expense than the operation of cheap and simple American Shermans or Soviet T-34s. In wartime conditions, Germany was not able to produce a sufficient number of tanks and spare parts for them. Almost throughout the entire period of active hostilities, the tank units of the Wehrmacht experienced an acute shortage of both the tanks themselves and the parts, assemblies and assemblies for them. By the summer of 1942, the shortage of spare parts reached a critical point and was no longer overcome until the very end of the war. In many ways, the responsibility for this lies with the heads of military enterprises. In an effort to get and fulfill huge orders for the production of tanks at all costs, they completely lost sight of the need to provide their products with spare parts. As is usually the case, the epiphany came too late.

On October 2, 1936, a grandiose parade on the Kamenz market square near Bamberg, in which new tanks of the 3rd Panzer Regiment took part.

German tank production system

The large-scale production of tanks required an increase in the manufacturability of parts, assemblies and combat vehicles in general. In German tank building, an efficient conveyor method of production was widely used. Each machine, using a crane or special wheeled carts, moved around the workshop, passing through a number of successive stages of assembly and processing, and finally left the assembly line and went for testing and running. The hull of a heavy tank had to be lifted with powerful cranes and kept motionless for almost the entire period of undercarriage assembly. Then came the turn of the engine, transmission, gearbox, etc. Only then the hull was lowered, fixed and proceeded to the installation and fastening of the fighting compartment. After the installation and debugging of weapons, the assembly process as a whole could be considered complete. At the last stage, the tank was brought to perfection, supplying various optical devices (telescopic sight, surveillance devices), communications equipment, boxes for equipment, etc. The whole process required precise coordination and uniformity in the production of large and small tank parts, which, before getting into main assembly shop, tested and put together in special workshops of the manufacturer.

Post-war inspection of German tank factories

Immediately after the war, the countries of the anti-Hitler coalition created a special commission that carried out a complete inspection of German tank factories. The conclusions of the commission clearly showed that during the war years Germany managed to organize highly efficient, high-tech production. The Germans managed to achieve special art in the creation of special machines, with the help of which the process was brought to perfection. machining details. The commission noted the highest level and accuracy of drilling machines, as well as automatic electric welding, used to connect the armor plates of the hull and turret. The production of excellent armor plates was ensured by the high level of development of the steel industry, modern methods of melting, profiling, hardening and rolling of steel. During the war years, a highly developed machine tool industry functioned in Germany,” the commission concluded, noting that all these technical and technological achievements can be used to produce civilian products.
In total, the commission visited eight tank-building factories, as well as a tank training ground in Sennelager and an armored school in Paderborn. At the end of the book, in Appendix A, I give excerpts from the report of the commission that inspected the Kasselskos branch of Henschel & Son AG, one of the manufacturers of Tiger tanks.

Damage caused by the bombing of coalition countries

Until mid-1943, the German armored industry practically did not suffer from the bombing of the countries of the anti-Hitler coalition. The first difficulties began after the frequent raids on the Ruhr area - the forge of German engineering. It was from that time that interruptions began in the supply of tank manufacturers with the necessary parts and components. However, these bombings still could not break the spirit of the German people, even during the raid on Berlin and other major cities.

From the second half of 1943, tank-building factories began to suffer directly from the bombing. The first to be destroyed was the engineering giant Daimler-Benz AG in Marienfeld, followed by the Alkett workshops in Borsigwald, a suburb of Berlin. Serious damage was also caused to these plants by the destruction of assembly shops and Vehicle. It is impossible not to appreciate the efficiency and courage of the management of firms, who managed to relocate production to safer places in the shortest possible time. Despite the serious destruction of industrial buildings, the production of tanks did not stop even during the most fierce Allied bombing.

__________________________________________________________________________
Data source:
Quote from J. Fuller's book "German Armored Vehicles in World War II"