Combat use of the tank t 70. The most massive of the light

Soviet light tank T-70

At the beginning of 1942, the team of N.A. Astrov developed a light tank, which was the development of the T-60. It was better armored, armed with a 45 mm cannon. Hull and turret - with rational angles of inclination of armor plates, connected by welding or riveting. Later, cast towers began to be installed.

The layout of the T-70 was inherited from the T-60. The control compartment was located in the front left case, the transmission compartment was in the front right. Due to the fact that the power unit - two twin six-cylinder automobile engines - was located along the starboard side, the fighting compartment with the turret was shifted to the left. The main clutch and gearbox were on the right in the block with the motors, and the main gear and side clutches were in the front.

From September 1942, T-70s were produced with a reinforced undercarriage, parts of which were not interchangeable with the previous model. The width of the track was increased (from 260 to 300 mm), rollers, sloths and supporting rollers. Some changes were made to the design of the drive wheel, main and final drives.

An attempt was made to install a mechanism for automated loading of the gun. It was caused by low aimed rate of fire, since the commander had to combine the functions of the gunner and loader. This circumstance forced the T-70 to be taken out of production in early 1943 and replaced by the T-80 with an enlarged turret that housed two tankers. The armor of the hull side was increased to 25 mm, the engines were boosted to 85 hp, the weight increased to 11.6 tons, and the height of the tank to 217 cm. The ammunition load now amounted to 94 rounds. The chassis, transmission, control units, etc., remained the same as the T-70, the T-80 was a kind of "anti-aircraft": the elevation angle of the gun and machine gun was 60, it was equipped with an anti-aircraft collimator sight and could fire on aircraft and on the upper floors of buildings.

The production of the T-80 did not last long - until the autumn of 1943. This was due to insufficiently strong weapons and armor, and yet the T-70 and T-80 were the best light tanks World War II, 8226 and 75 vehicles were produced respectively.

Self-propelled guns SU-76 and ZSU-37 were created on the extended T-70 base.

Soviet tank T-44

LIGHT TANK T-60 State adopted for service in 1941. Design Bureau GAZManufacturer. factories NN 37,38,264, GAZProduction. series 1941-42 Combat weight, t 5.8-6.4 Length, mm: - with gun forward 4100 - hull 4100 Width, mm 2392 Height on the roof of the tower, mm 1750 Clearance, mm 300 Avg. beats ground pressure,

adopted, everyone understood that he was only a temporary measure - his armor was too thin to withstand enemy tanks. At first there were attempts to modify the T-60 by installing a new turret on it, but this experimental tank The T-45 was not put into production due to insufficient engine power.

The new tank, which was named GAZ-70, was completed at the end of 1941. Its assembly was very slow, and the first prototype was completed in February 1942. At first, the tank did not cause much enthusiasm - in terms of armor protection, the new tank was not much superior to the T-60, and its combat power was minimized due to the fact that one person had to combine the functions of loader, gunner and commander. Soon the shortcomings were eliminated, and the T-70 was compared with the T-34-76 in terms of frontal armor, which was a serious achievement. As a result, it was decided to put the tank into mass production.

TTX T-70

general information

• Combat weight - 9.2 tons or 9.8 tons (T-70M);
• Crew - 2 people;
• The number of issued - 8231 pieces.

Dimensions

• Case length - 4285 mm;
• Hull width - 2348 mm (2420 mm for the T-70M);
• Height - 2035 mm;
• Clearance - 300 mm.

Booking

• Type of armor - homogeneous rolled high hardness;
• The forehead of the hull (top) - 35/61 ° mm / hail;
• Forehead of the hull (bottom) - 45 / -30 ° mm / hail and 15 / -81 ° mm / hail for the T-70M;
• Hull board - 15/0 ° mm / hail;
• Hull feed (top) - 15/76 ° mm / hail;
• Hull feed (bottom) - 25 / −44 ° mm / hail;
• Bottom - 10 mm and 6 mm for the T-70M;
• Hull roof - 10 mm;
• Gun mantlet — 50 + 15 mm/deg;
• The side of the tower - 35/23 mm / hail;
• Tower roof - 10 mm and 15 mm for the T-70M.

Armament

• The caliber and brand of the gun is 45 mm 20-K;
• Barrel length - 46 calibers;
• Gun ammunition - 90 (70 for T-70M)
• Angles HV: −6…+20°;
• GN angles - 360°;
• Sights - TMFP or TOP, mechanical;
• Machine gun - 7.62 mm DT.

Mobility

• Engine type - twin in-line 4-stroke 6-cylinder carburetor;
• Engine power - 2 × 70 hp;
• Highway speed - 42 km / h;
• Cross-country speed - 20-25 km / h;
• Power reserve on the highway - 410-450;
• Power reserve over rough terrain - 360 km (250 km for the T-70M);
• Specific power - 15.2 hp / t (14.2 hp / t for the T-70M);
• Suspension type - individual torsion bar;
• Specific ground pressure - 0.7 kg / cm²;
• Climbability - 34 °;
• Overcoming wall - 0.7 m;
• Crossable moat - 1.7 m;
• Crossable ford - 1.0 m.

Photos of T-70

Modifications

The T-70 was produced in two versions, which differed in the design of the chassis:

• T-70, a tank weighing 9.2 tons and with 90 rounds of ammunition, the original version of an infantry support tank;
• T-70M with widened tracks and road wheels and reinforced suspension torsion bars. It has a mass of 9.8 tons and a reduced ammunition load of 70 rounds.

Refinement of the T-70 to the T-70M was impossible due to incompatible structural components.

Experienced tanks

The T-70 became the basis for many development works, which investigated the strengthening of the tank's armament and the improvement of ergonomics.

• T-70 with gun Sh-37. It had unsatisfactory ergonomics of the fighting compartment, despite the extended turret and the absence of a machine gun;
• T-70 with a more powerful 45 mm VT-42 gun. The tank successfully passed the tests, but by that time the T-70 was discontinued and the BT-42 cannon was decided to be installed on the new T-80;
• T-70 with extra space in the turret for the loader. Work on this experimental model eventually led to the creation of the T-80 tank, and the T-70 was never equipped with a two-man turret;
• T-70-3, anti-aircraft tank. Had a converted turret with two heavy machine guns DShK. Together with the anti-aircraft T-90, he participated in tests that he did not pass due to an unbalanced weapon installation;
• T-90 - anti-aircraft tank based on the T-70M with DShK machine guns. Passed comparative tests with the T-70-3, but had a number of shortcomings. They needed to be eliminated, but they did not have time to do this - the requirements for the performance characteristics of such machines changed, and work on the T-90 was closed.

Application

The T-70 was actively used in many divisions and units of the Red Army along with other tanks, most often with the T-34. Baptism of fire these tanks received in the summer of 1942, in battles on southwest direction, and it was then that their vulnerability was revealed.

However, the T-70 also had advantages - for example, they were ideal for pursuing retreating enemies, and in 1943 this task became very relevant. In addition, the T-70 had a reliable undercarriage and power plant, which made it possible to march over longer distances than the T-34 could. The relative quietness of the machine was also a plus.

Best of all, the T-70 showed itself in the Battle of Kursk. Despite the fact that the "seventies" were struck quite easily, they had a much lower percentage of irretrievable losses compared to better armored T-34s.

The effectiveness of the T-70 is very big influence the crew's knowledge of the features of the tank provided - in really capable hands, it became a formidable force. For example, in July 1943, during the battles for the village of Pokrovka, one T-70 was able to knock out one Panther and three medium German tanks. And in August 1943 there was another unique case. The T-70 managed to catch up with the retreating enemy tank and get into the dead zone, while the crew commander jumped on the armor of the enemy tank and threw a grenade into the open hatch. So the Soviet troops received almost a whole German tank, which was then used in battles.

In 1944, one T-70 was able to knock out two Panthers, which was a real achievement.

The operation of the T-70 actually ended immediately after the war, although in January 1946, 1502 T-70s were still in service with the Red Army.

tank memory

The T-70 in both modifications is presented in many museums around the world - in Russia, in the countries former USSR and even in the tank museum in Parola in Finland. Also, the T-70 in the form of monuments is installed in many cities of Russia, as well as in Ukraine and Belarus.

Already in October 1941 it became clear that new lightweight the T-60 tank, whose serial production began a month earlier, is almost useless on the battlefield. His armor was easily penetrated by all Wehrmacht anti-tank weapons, and his own weapons were too weak to deal with enemy tanks. It was not possible to strengthen both without a fundamental change in the design. The engine and gearbox were already overworked. The increase in the mass of the combat vehicle, inevitable with increased armor and armament, would simply lead to the failure of these units. A different solution was required.

In September 1941, the Design Bureau of Plant No. 37, at that time the leader in the production of the T-60, proposed a variant of its modernization, which received the T-45 index. In fact, it was still the same T-60, but with a new turret, in which a 45-mm gun was installed. This vehicle was supposed to use a new 100 hp ZIS-60 engine, which would make it possible to increase the thickness of the tank's frontal armor to 35-45 mm. However, the ZIS plant could not master the production of the engine due to the evacuation from Moscow to the Urals, to the city of Miass. The attempt to install the ZIS-16 engine with a power of 86 hp did not save the situation. With its development, not everything went smoothly either, and time did not wait.

In parallel with plant number 37, work on the creation of a new light tank was launched at the Gorky Automobile Plant. There was nothing unusual in this development of events - this enterprise already had experience in the production of armored vehicles, being engaged in the serial production of T-27 tankettes and T-37A small amphibious tanks in the 1930s. A number of prototypes of armored vehicles were also designed and manufactured here. In September 1941, the plant received the task of organizing the mass production of the T-60 light tank, for which a separate structural unit of tank production and the corresponding design bureau were created at GAZ. In early September, the chief designer of plant No. 37 N.A. Astrov overtook on his own from Moscow to Gorky a prototype of the T-60 tank, which was to be used at GAZ as a standard. N.A. Astrov himself was also left at GAZ to help organize the production of tanks.

It was Astrov who presented to the GABTU of the Red Army a draft of a new light tank with reinforced armor and weapons, created on the basis of the T-60. As a power plant on this machine, it was supposed to use a pair of GAZ-202 automobile engines. Prototypes of twin power units, which received the GAZ-203 index, were manufactured by the end of November. However, at the very first tests of the twins, after 6-10 hours of operation, the crankshafts of the second engines began to break, and only thanks to the efforts of the designers under the guidance of A.A. Lipgart, the resource of the twin power unit was brought to the required 100 hours. The design of the new tank at the GAZ design bureau began at the end of October 1941. It was carried out very quickly, using the technique adopted in the automotive industry, unusual for tank designers. General views combat vehicles were drawn in full size on special aluminum plates measuring 7x3 m, painted with white enamel and divided into squares measuring 200x200 mm. To reduce the area of ​​the drawing and increase its accuracy, a plan was superimposed on the main view - a longitudinal section, as well as full and partial transverse sections. The drawings were made as detailed as possible and included all the components and parts of the internal and external equipment of the machine. These drawings later served as the basis for control during the assembly of the prototype and even the entire first series of machines.
At the end of December 1941, for the tank, which received the factory designation GAZ-70, an armored hull was welded and a turret designed by V. Dedkov was cast. Along with the cast, a version of the welded turret was also developed. The assembly of the tank began in January 1942 of the year and, for a number of reasons, was rather slow. It was completed only on February 14, after which the tank was sent to Moscow, where it was shown to representatives of the GABTU. The military did not arouse much enthusiasm for the new car. In terms of armor protection, the tank was only slightly superior to the T-60, and the nominally increased, thanks to the installation of a 45-mm gun, the power of weapons was leveled by the placement of one person in the tower, a master of all trades - commander, gunner and loader. However, N. A. Astrov promised the shortest time eliminate the shortcomings Quite quickly, it was possible to increase the armor, bringing the thickness of the lower frontal hull plate to 45 mm, and the upper to 35 mm. As a result, by a GKO decree of March 6, 1942, the new combat vehicle was adopted by the Red Army under the symbol T-70. Two days later, the GKO decree on the production of the tank was also published, according to which plants No. 37 and No. 38 were involved in its production from April. However, reality did not allow these plans to be fully realized. For example, the new tank required twice as many engines as the T- 60 It was not possible to establish the production of a cast tower, and GAZ had to hastily provide other plants with documentation for welded tower. As a result, the April plan for the production of the T-70 was fulfilled only by GAZ, which assembled 50 vehicles. Plant No. 38 in Kirov managed to produce only seven tanks, while Plant No. 37 failed to assemble them either by April or later.

Layout new car did not fundamentally differ from that of the T-60 tank. The driver was located in the bow of the hull near the left side. The rotating turret, also shifted to the port side, housed the tank commander. In the middle part of the hull along the starboard side, two engines were installed in series on a common frame, which made up a single power unit. The transmission and drive wheels were located in front. .
The hull of the tank was welded from rolled armor plates with a thickness of 6,10,15, 25, 35 and 45 mm. Welded seams were reinforced with riveting. Frontal and aft hull plates had rational angles of inclination. In the upper frontal sheet there was a driver's hatch, in the lid of which the tanks of the first releases had a viewing slot with a triplex, and then a rotary periscope observation device was installed.

The welded faceted tower, made of armor plates 35 mm thick, was mounted on a ball bearing in the middle part of the hull and had the shape of a truncated pyramid. The welded joints of the turret walls were reinforced with armored corners. The frontal part had a cast mask with loopholes for the installation of a gun, machine gun and sight. An entrance hatch for the tank commander was made in the roof of the tower. A periscopic mirror observation device was installed in the armored hatch cover, which provided the commander with a circular view. In addition, there was a hatch for flag signaling in the cover.

On the T-70 tank, a 45-mm tank gun mod 1938 was installed and, to the left of it, a coaxial DT machine gun. For the convenience of the tank commander, the gun was shifted to the right of the longitudinal axis of the turret. The length of the gun barrel was 46 calibers, the height of the firing line was 1540 mm. Sighting range firing was 3600 m, maximum - 4800 m When using a mechanical sight, only direct fire at a distance of no more than 1000 m was possible. The rate of fire of the gun was 12 rounds per minute. . The trigger mechanism of the gun was foot, the gun was lowered by pressing the right pedal, and the machine gun - by pressing the left one. The ammunition included 90 shots with armor-piercing and fragmentation shells for the cannon (of which 20 shots were in the store) and 945 rounds for the DT machine gun (15 discs). starting speed armor-piercing projectile weighing 1.42 kg was 760 m / s, fragmentation weighing 2.13 kg - 335 m / s. After firing an armor-piercing projectile, the cartridge case was ejected automatically. When firing a fragmentation projectile, due to the shorter recoil length of the gun, the shutter was opened and the cartridge case was removed manually.

The power plant GAZ-203 (70-6000) consisted of two four-stroke 6-cylinder carburetor engines GAZ-202 (GAZ 70-6004 - front and GAZ 70-6005 - rear) with a total power of 140 hp. The crankshafts of the engines were connected by a coupling with elastic bushings. The crankcase of the flywheel of the front engine was connected by a rod to the starboard side to prevent lateral vibrations of the power unit. The battery ignition system, lubrication system and fuel (except tanks) system for each engine were independent. Two gas tanks with a total capacity of 440 liters were located on the left side of the aft compartment of the hull in a compartment isolated by armored partitions.
The transmission consisted of a two-disc semi-centrifugal main clutch of dry friction (ferrodo steel), four-speed box automotive-type gears (4+1), main gear with bevel gear, two side clutches with belt brakes and two simple single-row final drives. The main clutch and gearbox were assembled from parts borrowed from the ZIS-5 truck.

The composition of the tank propulsion unit for one side included a drive wheel with a removable lantern gear ring, five single-sided rubber-coated track rollers and three all-metal support rollers, a steering wheel with a crank track tensioning mechanism and a small-link caterpillar of 91 tracks. The design of the guide wheel and the track roller were unified. The width of the cast track track was 260 mm. Suspension - individual torsion bar.
Commander tanks were equipped with a 9R or 12RT radio station located in the turret and an internal intercom TPU-2F. Line tanks were equipped with a light signaling device for internal communication between the commander and the driver and an internal intercom TPU-2.
During production, the mass of the tank increased from 9.2 to 9.8 tons, and the cruising range on the highway decreased from 360 to 320 km.

At the beginning of October 1942, GAZ, and since November, Plant No. 38 switched to the production of T-70M tanks with an improved undercarriage. The width (from 260 to 300 mm) and the pitch of the tracks, the width of the road wheels, as well as the diameter of the torsion bars (from 33 .5 to 36 mm) suspension and gear rims of the drive wheels The number of tracks in the caterpillar was reduced from 91 to 80 pcs. In addition, support rollers, stopping brakes and final drives were reinforced. The mass of the tank increased to 10 tons, and the cruising range on the highway decreased to 250 km. Gun ammunition was reduced to 70 shots.

From the end of December 1942, Plant No. 38 stopped producing tanks and switched to the production of self-propelled units SU-76 As a result, starting from 1943, light tanks for the Red Army were produced only at GAZ. At the same time, in the second half of 1943, the production was accompanied by great difficulties. From June 5 to June 14, the plant was subjected to German air raids. 2170 bombs were dropped on the Avtozavodsky district of Gorky, 1540 of them - directly on the territory of the plant. More than 50 buildings and structures were completely destroyed or badly damaged. In particular, the chassis workshops, wheel, assembly and thermal No. 2, the main conveyor, the locomotive depot burned down, and many other workshops of the plant were seriously damaged. As a result, the production of BA-64 armored vehicles and cars had to be stopped. However, the production of tanks did not stop, although it somewhat decreased - only in August was it possible to block the May production volume. But the age of the light tank had already been measured out - on August 28, 1943, a GKO decree was issued, according to which, from October 1 of the same year, GAZ switched to the production of self-propelled guns SU-76M. In total, in 1942-1943, 8226 tanks of the T-70 and T-70M modifications were produced.

The light tank T-70 and its improved version T-70M were in service with tank brigades and regiments of the so-called mixed organization, together with the medium tank T-34. The brigade had 32 T-34 tanks and 21 T-70 tanks. Such brigades could be part of tank and mechanized corps or be separate. The tank regiment was armed with 23 T-34 and 16 T-70. brigades or be separate By the spring of 1944, T-70 light tanks were expelled from the states tank units Red Army. Nevertheless, in some brigades they continued to be used for quite a long time. In addition, some tanks of this type were used in self-propelled artillery battalions, regiments and brigades of the SU-76 as command vehicles. Often they were equipped with tank units in motorcycle units. Patriotic War.

The T-70 tanks received their baptism of fire during the battles in the South-Western direction in June-July 1942 and suffered serious losses. vehicles in the Wehrmacht were rapidly declining), and the armor protection was insufficient when used as close infantry support tanks. In addition, the presence of only two tankers in the crew, one of which was extremely overloaded. numerous duties, as well as the lack of communications equipment on combat vehicles, made it extremely difficult to use them as part of units and led to increased losses.

The final point in the combat career of these tanks was put Battle of Kursk- the possibility of surviving, not to mention emerging victorious, in an open battle with new German heavy tanks for the T-70 was close to zero. At the same time, the positive merits of the "seventies" were also noted in the troops. According to some tank commanders, the T-70 was the best suited for pursuing a retreating enemy, which became relevant in 1943. The reliability of the power plant and chassis of the T-70 was higher than that of the T-34, which made it possible to make long marches. The "Seventy" was quiet, which again differed sharply from the roaring engine and the "thirty-four" rattling with caterpillars, which at night, for example, could be heard for 1.5 km.

In clashes with enemy tanks T-70 crews had to show miracles of ingenuity. Much also depended on the crew's knowledge of the features of their machine, its advantages and disadvantages. In the hands of skilled tankers, the T-70 was formidable. So, for example, on July 6, 1943, in the battles for the village of Pokrovka in the Oboyan direction, the crew of the T-70 tank from the 49th Guards Tank Brigade, commanded by Lieutenant B.V. Pavlovich, managed to knock out three medium German tanks and one Panther . A completely exceptional case occurred on August 21, 1943 in the 178th tank brigade. When repulsing an enemy counterattack, the commander of the T-70 tank, Lieutenant A.L. Dmitrienko noticed a retreating German tank. Having caught up with the enemy, the lieutenant ordered his driver to move next to him (apparently, in the "dead zone") It was possible to shoot at point-blank range, but when he saw that the hatch in the tower German tank open (German tankers almost always went into battle with open turret hatches), Dmitrienko got out of the T-70, jumped onto the armor of an enemy vehicle and threw a grenade into the hatch. The crew of the German tank was destroyed, and the tank itself was towed to our location and, after minor repairs, was used in battles.

Fans of military history are familiar with the Soviet T-70 tank designed by Nikolai Aleksandrovich Astrov.

The characteristics of this combat vehicle immediately speak for themselves: this Combat vehicles the battlefield is of the light type.

A depressing fact prompted the military to create a new tank: combat tests of light and medium tanks of the Red Army (models from T-38 to T-60) during the first year of the Second World War revealed their non-competitiveness.

In January 1942, the 70th tank was demonstrated to Stalin as an enhanced version of the previous representative of the T-60 light tank line, and its serial production began in March.

Brief TTX light tank T-70

Consider the main characteristics of the brainchild of Astrov:

Frontal armor thickness: bottom - 45 mm; top - 35 mm;

Side armor thickness - 15 mm;

Main armament: 20-K cannon, 45 mm caliber, (previously used in the T-50 tank);

Ammunition - 90 shells;

Machine gun 7.62 mm, 15 discs with 945 rounds;

Two four-stroke six-cylinder petrol engines with a capacity of 70 hp each. With.;

Cross-country speed - up to 25 km / h, on the highway - 42 km / h;

Power reserve over rough terrain - 360 km, on the highway - 450 km;

On the command vehicle - walkie-talkie 12T or 9R.

The project of the T-70 tank was initially critical

T-70 is a tank of the Great Patriotic War, reviews of which are rather contradictory. And this is despite the fact that the number of such manufactured tanks (almost 8.5 thousand units) was second only to the famous T-34! An objective look at its advantages and disadvantages reveals main reason this historical and technical incident. It is banal: often a failed project is initiated and promoted not by end users (in this case, the military), but by the top party leadership.

The original pre-war thesis for the development of armored forces is “The army needs a good light tank!” - turned out to be wrong. The strategists did not take into account the prospect of arming the Wehrmacht (and this happened in 1942) with artillery of 50 and 75 mm caliber. Reinforced enemy guns effectively hit the T-70 from any angle. The tank was inferior to the German "tigers" and "panthers" with 75-caliber guns both in terms of firepower and armor protection. Fifth Commander tank army Katukov M.E. wrote unflatteringly about them to G.K. Zhukov, pointing out the impossibility of using the T-70 in an oncoming tank battle due to pre-guaranteed losses.

Wrong direction of design?

Indeed, Russian WWII tanks were initially created in a banal way by improving the previous model, without predicting, based on intelligence, the weapons of the battlefield created by the enemies. Based on the foregoing, unflattering reviews about the imperfection of the T-70 seem natural. Just improving the T-60 tank was not enough. Now, after more than 70 years since the implementation of the project of this weapon, we can already justify the dead end of such motivation.

Light tanks (photos of them are proof of this) would be ideal on the fronts of the First World War. It was for the guns of that time that the armor of the tank designed by Astrov was practically impenetrable. The second important trump card was the speed and maneuverability of the T-70.

In other words, the need to produce light tanks for the army in the middle of the 20th century was a fantasy of the Soviet strategists of that time, who had not grown either tactically or strategically since civil war. Customers of weapons should think adequately to their contemporary military thought!

Are the identified design flaws of the T-70 an indicator of its failure?

Such shortcomings were characteristic of almost all light tanks of that time, therefore, looking ahead, we state the fact: none of them became really effective on the battlefield.

All light Russian tanks of the Second World War were designed to order by the lead designer Astrov Nikolai Alexandrovich, like the T-70. Tests of new weapons, carried out in 1941, revealed areas for improving the tank:

Strengthening armor;

Replacement of a single cast turret with a double hexagonal turret;

Reinforcement of transmission, tracks, tires of road wheels;

Replacing the main gun with a more modern one (the latter was never implemented).

What can be said here? Were there too many flaws in the base model? Is it really just such a basic model that was in demand by the Red Army?

The inappropriateness of light tanks on the battlefield was proved by the further evolution of tank building: armies different countries gradually, in principle, they abandoned such weapons of the battlefield. Instead, other light armored vehicles have been developed, mainly performing the role of support, which no longer act as the main fire armored force of the battlefield. However, on the other hand, the very process of creating and modifying the T-70 turned out to be very creative.

Serial types

The industrial production of light tanks T-70 was carried out in a version corresponding to the original design of the designer Astrov, as well as in a modified version of the T-70M.

The first variety had unreinforced armor, lighter weight - 9.2 tons and more ammunition - 90 shells; the second - greater weight (9.8 tons), achieved through additional armor, strengthening of nodes and parts. The ammo capacity of the upgraded tank was reduced to 70 rounds.

In fact, they were structurally different combat vehicles having different, non-interchangeable parts.

- fiasco for the T-70 light tank

In reality, the army needed medium and heavy tanks capable of effectively hitting enemy armored vehicles.

Party bosses did not hear the dishonestly repressed and shot in the basement of the Military Collegium of the Supreme Soviet Court Marshal Soviet Union Mikhail Nikolaevich Tukhachevsky: " Future war will be a war of tank formations!”

And, accordingly, the defense industry of the USSR since 1942 mass-produced the T-70 - a tank whose combat potential in 1943 did not stand the severe test - an uncompromising oncoming tank battle near the village of Kursk Bulge).

The armor did not save: the 75th and 50th caliber of enemy artillery easily penetrated even its frontal part. Moreover, the tank turned out to be vulnerable even to outdated German regimental artillery of 37 mm caliber. Exam counter tank battle was a failure and, accordingly, after the Kursk Bulge, the mass production of the T-70 was stopped.

However, oddly enough, it was at the second stage of the Great Patriotic War, when the Red Army was advancing uncontrollably, that a number of qualified combat commanders expressed regret at the premature farewell to the T-70. The tank still, despite the obvious shortcomings, was useful!

On the positive combat qualities of the T-70

It was not given to reveal its positive to new tankers. At the same time, aces tank battle in conditions of crossed and wooded area even preferred this light car more armored medium T-34. What motivated them to make this choice? First, the German heavy guns and heavy tanks hit the T-34 and T-70 almost equally. Moreover, due to the smaller lung size tank, aimed fire at it is possible from a distance of half a kilometer, while at the T-34 - from a kilometer distance.

Also, with the help of the T-70, it was possible to use the surprise factor when attacking the enemy. At the same time, both the heavy tank IS and the medium T-34 were deprived of such an opportunity due to noisier diesel engines.

Almost close, unnoticed, a light tank T-70 drove up over rough terrain to the enemy camp. After all, the noise of the twin gasoline car engine with a capacity of 140 liters. With. the sound level resembled only a passenger car. Lieutenant General Bogdanov reported to the main armored directorate that the T-70, due to its low noise, ideally performed the function of pursuing a retreating enemy.

The location of the fuel tanks in the rear of the hull contributed to the extremely rare detonation of fuel when it hit the tank.

In 1944, when about one and a half thousand T-70 tanks remained in the tank units of the Red Army, the OGK of the People's Commissariat of Heavy Industry stated its effectiveness in urban battles. The "Seventy" was difficult to hit with "faustpatrons" and grenades due to its small size and high maneuverability.

Manufacturability

It should be recognized that the Soviet T-70 tank in its design turned out to be one of the most technologically efficient. For its manufacture, a thoroughly balanced production base of the GAZ plant was used. Cooperation with factories-suppliers of components and parts was effectively established.

The repair of weapons on the basis of the T-70, damaged on the fronts, was effectively organized.

Initially, the designer Astrov set up its production at the Gorky Automobile Plant.

In 1942, the factory workers produced 3495 units of this weapon, and in 1943 - 3348. Then the production of the T-70 in 1942 was also debugged at plant No. 38 (Kirov). 1378 of these tanks were manufactured here.

It was also planned to involve the Sverdlovsk Plant No. 37 in the production of the tank. However, it was not prepared here, and the technological costs turned out to be critically high. Twice as many engines were required as for the T-60, making more powerful rolled armor more labor intensive. As a result - a modest result: 10 tanks and the cessation of production.

An objective look at the design flaws of the tank

The fact is obvious: the idea of ​​an effective light tank on the fronts of World War II turned out to be a complete utopia. Therefore, the work on the project to create the T-70 (despite the mass of original engineering findings, which we will write about later) obviously looked like, i.e., was doomed to failure.

Let's begin with that soviet tanks The Second World War (and the subject of our description as well) had a layout design that was not devoid of obvious shortcomings, involving 5 compartments:

managerial;

Motor (right - in the middle of the body);

Combat (tower and left - in the middle of the hull);

Aft (where the gasoline tanks and the radiator were located).

A tank with similar compartments was front-wheel drive, so its undercarriage was characterized by increased vulnerability.

T-70 - an exhibit of the armored museum in Kubinka (Moscow region)

It's no secret that light tanks (a photo of the Japanese "Ha-Go" and the German PzKpfw-II, modern with the T-70, is presented below) should be designed taking into account mutually exclusive technical and combat criteria:

Efficient distribution of duties between crew members (functional overload of the tank commander in a crew of two, which also included the driver);

The firepower of the gun was insufficient ( lung design tank assumed as the main armament a 45-mm rifled automatic gun 20-K model 1932).

Those wishing to see the typical armament of the T-70 - the main gun and the coaxial machine gun DT-29 with a caliber of 7.62 mm - are recommended to visit the specialized military armored museum (Kubinka). Museum guests can see both the equipment and the equipment of the crew members' seats.

The tank commander was in the turret compartment, which is shifted to the left relative to the longitudinal axis, and also captures the left middle part of the hull. According to his duties, he directed the actions of the driver through intercom, monitored the situation, loaded and fired from the weapon and the machine gun coaxial with it.

The driver was in front of the hull, in the middle.

Since the exhibits of the museum have been carefully restored and, as they say, are on the move, tourists can see the operating components and assemblies of the T-70, making a visual impression for themselves. What do we mean when we mention the functional overload of the tank commander? Too many mechanical, routine processes in it were not automated. This shortcoming can be noticed by those who visited the museum (Kubinka). One has only to carefully examine the mechanisms of the restored combat vehicle. Judge for yourself:

Manual drive of the turret rotation device;

Manual lift for the gun;

When firing shells of a fragmentation type, the semi-automatic did not work, and the commander was forced to manually open the shutter and pull out a red-hot spent cartridge case.

Due to these factors, which objectively interfere with combat, the design rate of fire - up to 12 rounds per minute - turned out to be unattainable. In reality, the T-70 fired up to 5 shots per minute.

By the way, in the same museum, namely in pavilion No. 6, visitors will be able to see the tanks of fascist Germany: “tigers” and “panthers”, which opposed the Soviet tank we are considering.

Rapidly evolving, but still far from perfect, Soviet tanks from the Second World War invariably attract the attention of visitors.

Demanded undercarriage T-70

Especially for the T-70, a twin GAZ-203 engine was developed. Ahead is the GAZ-70-6004 engine, and behind is the GAZ-70-6005. Six-cylinder four-stroke engines - both have been derated for increased reliability and service life.

The T-70 transmission, inherited from the previous model, received generally positive reviews. It consisted of:

Double disc clutch;

Gearboxes 4-speed;

Cardan shaft of stepped type;

bevel final drive;

Onboard clutches multi-disc;

Single row final drives.

The T-70 caterpillar consisted of 91 tracks 26 cm wide.

Instead of a conclusion: military equipment based on the T-70

However, the T-70 tank was not a dead end model. was developed by the Design Bureau of Plant No. 38 (Kirov) on the basis of its extended undercarriage. The main armament of this self-propelled gun was the 76 mm ZIS-3 gun. The T-70 itself turned out to be technologically advanced and promising.

The design of the new weapons was dramatic. The first designer, Semyon Alexandrovich Ginzburg, was accused of non-existent "sins" after the depressing consequences of Kuskoy Duga, deprived of the right to design, sent to the front, where he died. The commissar of tank construction I. M. Zaltsman, who was in conflict with him, had a hand in this. However, this ambitious official was soon motivatedly dismissed from his post.

Vyacheslav Aleksandrovich Malyshev, appointed to his position, appointed a competition for the modification of the SU-76, where representatives of GAZ and plant No. 38 were involved.

As a result, the ACS was reconfigured and put into mass production. The 75-mm gun made it possible to successfully destroy enemy self-propelled guns, light and medium tanks. It was also relatively effective against the heavy Panther, penetrating the gun mantlet and side armor. In the fight against the newer and more armored “tiger”, the SU-76 turned out to be ineffective before the introduction of cumulative and

In the second half of 1944, the Red Army entered service created on the basis of the chassis of the T-70 tank.

Today, amateur collectors have the opportunity to purchase any model of the T-70 tank. The price of the base model (full size) is 5 million rubles. Let's make a reservation that it is equipped with the original chassis, but, of course, it is not intended for combat. At the same time, the latest improvements are offered: from a leather interior to an echo sounder.