Marry

Tank t 34 85 year of release. History of creation. Additional fuel tanks

In 1943, the tank units of the Wehrmacht had vehicles that, unlike in 1941, were not inferior to the tanks of the Red Army, and surpassed them in some performance characteristics. The appearance of the new Panzer kampfwagen VI Tiger and Panzer kampfwagen Panther finally confirmed the advantage of the Panzerwaffe.

In order to correct the situation and return parity, it was necessary to radically change the medium tank T-34, which has been in service since 1940. The T-34-85 became such a tank, capable of fighting almost on an equal footing with any Wehrmacht tank.

The appearance of the T-34-85

To develop a more powerful art. systems began in January 1943. Five months later, the drawings of the new gun were ready, and in June the D-5T 85 mm guns were fired in metal. At the same time, other design bureaus were developing new artillery systems: S-53, S-50, LB-85.

In order to install a new gun in the T-34, it was necessary to make a new tower. Tower design with 85 mm installation art. the system was taken over by the design bureau of the Krasnoye Sormovo plant, as well as the designer of plant No. 183. As a result, two projects of a cast tower were released.

This plant was given an order for the manufacture of "thirty-fours" with an 85-mm artillery system.

In December 1943, the T-34 tank with an 85-mm artillery system under the symbol T-34-85 was adopted by the Red Army. The main change in the modified machine was the installation of a new form of turret, with the extension of the turret ring.

With the advent of the oversized turret, the main problem of the T-34-76 was eliminated, namely the tightness and the impossibility of adding a fifth crew member. The artillery system D-5T with a caliber of 85 mm, developed in the design bureau No. 9, was mounted in the tower.

tank design

There were 5 rollers on each side (dual type with external shock absorption with a diameter of 830 mm). The suspension on the car was individual, spring type. The rear wheels were driving, the ridges on the tracks were engaged by the rollers installed on them. The guide wheels were cast and had a crank mechanism to adjust the tension of the tracks. The mass of each caterpillar was 1150 kg, the link width was 550 mm. The number of steel tracks was 72 pieces (36 ridge and 36 without ridge).

The power plant of the machine was a 12-cylinder V-2-34 diesel engine, delivering a maximum power of 500 hp.

The fuel tanks contained 545 liters of diesel fuel of the DT brand, two external fuel tanks were additionally installed, the volume of which was 90 liters each, while these tanks were not connected to the engine power system. Two tubular-type radiators mounted at an angle provided engine cooling.

Air cleaning was carried out by air cleaners "Cyclone" in the amount of 2 units. The engine was started with compressed air stored in 2 cylinders (located in the control compartment) or using an electric starter.

The transmission included main and side clutches, a gearbox (with 5 gears), final drives and brakes. The wiring is made according to a single-wire circuit (with a voltage of 12 and 24V). The following electrical equipment was used on the tank: a starter, a motor for driving the turret traverse mechanism, ventilation systems, lighting, instrumentation, etc. Radio communication was provided using the 9-RS radio station (reception and transmission), inside the crew used TPU-3bisF devices for communication.

Initially, the installation of the D-5T artillery system with a caliber of 85 mm with a coaxial DT machine gun with an ammunition load of 56 rounds for the main gun and 1953 machine gun cartridges was carried out. For guidance, a PTK-5 panorama and a telescopic articulated sight were used.

The turret housed a new commander's cupola with two opening hatches and equipped with an MK-4 all-round view periscope.

The armor protection of the hull has not changed and was: booking the forehead of the hull 45 mm (the angle of inclination of the sheets: upper 60 °, lower 53 °), armor protection of the stern of the vehicle 45 mm (top 48 °, bottom 45 °), side armor was 45 mm at an angle of 40 °, and armor protection roof was 20 mm. The hull itself was welded, made of rolled armor sheets.

In 1943, attempts were made to increase the armor of the T-34 to 75 mm (version T-43). The design bureau was faced with the question of how much the mass of the tank could be increased so that its maneuverability would not suffer. The installation of a new gun on the T-43 project greatly increased the weight of the tank, so the idea of strengthening armor protection had to be abandoned.

The new turret of the T-34-85 tank had fairly good armor: the forehead of the turret had 90 mm armor, the side armor was 75 mm, and the armor protection of the turret rear was 52 mm. The combat weight of the vehicle increased and amounted to 32 tons.

The crew of the T-34-85 tank consisted of 5 tankers. The location of the crew in the tank was as follows: the gunner (gun commander), commander and loader were in the turret, the driver and radio operator were in the vehicle body.

T-34-85 with ZIS-S-53 gun

At the beginning of 1944, the State Defense Committee adopted the T-34 with the ZIS-S-53 85 mm artillery system. The reason for the abandonment of the D-5T gun was design flaws, for example, the lifting mechanism often failed. The first vehicles with the ZIS-S-53 cannon left the shops in March 1944. The tank itself has also undergone a number of design changes: com.

The turret was moved and installed near the stern of the turret, which made it easier for the crew members to be located, the radio station was dismantled from the hull and installed on the turret, and the PTK-5 was dismantled.

Also replaced with new air cleaners "Multicyclone". The rest of the design has not changed. In 1945, the double hatch of the turret was replaced by a hatch with one opening flap.

The number of T-34-85s produced during the Great Patriotic War

Tank modification	1944, no.	1945, no.	Total, number of units
T-34-85	10499	12110	22609
T-34-85 com.	134	140	274
T-34-85 OT	30	301	331
Total, number of units	10663	12551	23214

Combat use

The first T-34s, armed with an 85 mm gun, began to be delivered to the armored units of the Red Army at the end of the winter of 1944. One of the first combat units equipped with the modernized "thirty-four" was the 38th separate tank regiment. The towers were inscribed with paint "Demetrius of the Don", they were made with funds provided by the Russian Orthodox Church. In total, the regiment consisted of 21 units in the state, in addition to the T-34-85, the regiment's staff consisted of flamethrower versions of the T-34-76.

As part of the 58th Army, the tank regiment conducted combat operations on the territory of Ukraine. Another unit equipped with new equipment with a D-5T gun was the 119th Tank Regiment. Since the tank was made with the collected money from the inhabitants of the Republic of Armenia, the inscriptions in the national language “David of Sasun”, in honor of the hero of the republic, were inscribed on the tank towers. The regiment took part in the fighting as part of the 2nd Ukrainian Front.

In the early spring of 1944, the modernized "thirty-fours" began to be sent to tank brigades, as well as to tank and mech corps. So, the 2nd, 6th, 10th and 11th tank corps received new equipment. When forming the crews of new cars, there was a problem in the presence of the 5th crew member. The issue was resolved by manning the crews of tankers at the expense of fighters from a company of anti-tank rifles.

New vehicles were primarily delivered to the best combat formations of the Red Army.

At the same time, the crews were given only a few hours to master new tanks. The widespread use of the T-34-85 occurred in battles in the Right-Bank Ukraine, especially during the crossing of the Dniester.

In collisions with enemy armored vehicles, the new technology showed itself well, but was still inferior to heavy German tanks. The 88 mm guns of the Tigers had high armor-piercing, especially the armor protection of the hull of the "thirty-fours" did not change, and in terms of power of 85 mm the gun of the Soviet tank was slightly inferior to the German 88 mm.

Also, the T-34 with the 85th D-5T artillery system in the amount of 23 units in the early spring of 1944 entered service with the 7th separate Guards Red Banner and Order of the Red Star Novgorod Tank Brigade, which led the offensive as part of the Karelian Front. The brigade also included 42 "thirty-fours" with a 76 mm gun and "Valentine IX" in the amount of 10 units.

The offensive was successful, especially since the enemy (Finnish and German combat formations) had practically no tank units. With the liberation of Kirkenes in Norway, the front was disbanded.

During the offensive operation "Bagration" in the summer of 1944, the T-34-85 occupied most of the armored park of the Red Army. Thus, out of 811 T-34s participating in the offensive, vehicles armed with 85 mm artillery systems accounted for more than 50% of the tank fleet.

The largest number of new "thirty-fours" took part in the offensive operations of the Red Army in 1945. Participating in the Vistula-Oder offensive operation, the 3rd TA of General Rybalko P.S. had 640 T-34-85 tanks, 22 T-34-76 tanks (used as minesweepers), as well as IS-2 heavy vehicles (21 units) and self-propelled artillery mounts (63 ISU-122, 63 units SU-85, 63 units SU-76 and 49 SU-57I).

In the battles for Berlin, the T-34-85 faced a very big problem, namely the widespread use of faustpatrons by the enemy.

Ease of production and use, as well as combat in urban environments - all this made the Faustniks another dangerous enemy of Soviet tankers in the battles for the capital of the Reich.

In order to somehow protect their vehicles from shots from hand-held anti-tank grenade launchers, the crews hung their tanks with various devices. But, despite the active use of grenade launchers in battles, most of the losses of the T-34-85 suffered from the action of enemy artillery.

In the battles with Japan in the summer of 1945, 670 T-34-85 tanks took part, and, together with them, the armored units of the Red Army operating against Japanese units included outdated T-26 and BT-7 models. The 6th Tank Army became the main striking force, its fleet consisted of 408 brand new T-34-85s, which arrived from two factories: No. 174 and No. 183.

A small number of "thirty-fours" were captured by German troops and their allies and later used by them, for example, formations of the SS division Wiking. T-34-85 at the end of the war also entered the armies of the allies of the USSR (Poland, Yugoslavia, Czechoslovakia), and later to the countries that were part of the Department of Internal Affairs.

T-34-85 in the post-war period

The production of the last serial "thirty-four" was completed in 1946, it was replaced by a medium one. In the post-war period, the T-34-85 was still the main tank, in this status it was until the 1950s. Deliveries of the T-44 to the troops were in small quantities, and the release of the T-54 was very slow.

As the armored fleet of the USSR was updated, the T-34-85 passed into the status of training and was gradually removed from service, and for example, the vehicles located in the training units of the Trans-Baikal and Far Eastern districts were used until the beginning of the 1970s.

After the end of the war, the T-34-85 took part in almost all military conflicts: in Korea, Vietnam, Kampuchea, the Middle East, Cuba, Afghanistan and others. The "thirty-fours" also participated in military conflicts in Europe: the Hungarian uprising of 1956, military clashes between the Turks and Cypriots on the island of Cyprus and the war in Yugoslavia in the 1990s.

The T-34-85 was in service with the ATS countries, a number of African countries, and was also in service with the states of Southeast Asia. Today, the "thirty-fours" continue to carry out military service in several states (Vietnam, Guinea, Yemen, North Korea, Laos, Cuba, etc.).

TTX of the T-34-85 tank and similar armored vehicles

Analogues of "thirty-fours" with 85 mm art. the system was the German "fours" of late modifications (Pz Kpfw IVH, J) and. At the same time, the powerful gun allowed the T-34-85 to fight heavier armored vehicles of the Wehrmacht than its competitors.

Model	T-34-85	PzKpfw IVJ	M4 Sherman (M4A1(76)W)
Weight, t	32	25	30,3
Length, mm	5920	5920	5893
Width, mm	3000	2880	2616
Height, mm	2720	2680	2743
Clearance, mm	400	400	432
Power, l/s	500	272	395
Maximum speed, km/h	52	40	42
Hull armor protection (forehead, sides, stern), mm	45, 45, 45	80, 20, 30	51, 38, 38
Tower armor protection (forehead, sides, stern), mm	90, 52, 75	50, 30, 30	76, 51, 51
Armament	85 mm S-53, 2 machine guns	75 mm KwK.40 L/48, 2 machine guns	76.2 mm gun M-1, 3 machine guns
Projectile speed, m/s	800	790	792
Armor penetration (1500m), mm	93	74	83

The T-34-85 was better in almost all characteristics than similar machines from both Germany and the Allied countries. Despite the large mass, thanks to a more powerful engine, the "thirty-four" was noticeably faster and more maneuverable than the American and German tanks. The Soviet tank was inferior only in the armor protection of the forehead of the hull.

The Soviet medium tank T-34-85 surpassed its predecessor, the T-34-76, in many ways. Ease of manufacture and maintainability, ease of use and maneuverability - all this, coupled with good weapons, led to success on the battlefield and made it possible to become the most popular and one of the best tanks of the Second World War.

In addition, the high performance characteristics of the T-34-85 contributed to the use of the tank in many world military conflicts, in which it took part until the 90s of the XX century.

Video

The T-34-85 is a Soviet medium tank from the Great Patriotic War, the final modification of the T-34.

History of the T-34-85

By the second half of 1943, the most important Soviet tank, the T-34, was significantly inferior to enemy tanks. Although the Red Army managed to win the Battle of Kursk, it was done mostly because of numerical superiority and personal courage, but not because of a technical advantage. The victory cost the Soviet troops very dearly, and it was obvious that a new tank was needed, more armored and with a more powerful gun.

By that time, the T-43 tank had already been created, surpassing the T-34 in a number of parameters. However, it turned out that it was impossible to install a more powerful 85-mm cannon on it, which would be ideal for breaking through German tanks - the tank would become too heavy. So work on the T-43 was stopped, instead providing a new T-34 gun and creating the final modification - T-34-85.

The T-34-85 was distinguished not only by a more powerful gun, but also by enhanced armor, as well as additional fuel tanks. Because of all this, the tank began to weigh 32 tons, but its speed and maneuverability did not change.

In December 1943, the T-34-85 entered serial production, and by the end of January 1944 it was being used in battles. The tank was produced until 1958, including for export. In total, more than 35 thousand T-34-85 units were produced.

TTX T-34-85

general information

Classification - medium tank;
Combat weight - 32.2 tons;
The layout scheme is classic;
Crew - 5 people;
Years of production - 1943-1958;
Years of operation - 1944 to 1993 (officially in the USSR and the Russian Federation);
The number of issued - more than 35,000 pieces.

Dimensions

Case length - 6100 mm;
Length with gun forward - 8100 mm;
Hull width - 3000 mm;
Height - 2700 mm;
Clearance - 400 m.

Booking

Type of armor - steel rolled homogeneous;
Forehead of the hull (top and bottom) - 45 / 60 ° mm / hail;
Hull board (top) - 45 / 40 ° mm / hail;
Hull board (bottom) - 45 / 0 ° mm / hail;
Hull feed (top) - 45 / 48 ° mm / hail;
Hull feed (bottom) - 45 / 45 ° mm / hail;
Bottom - 20 mm;
Hull roof - 20 mm;
Tower forehead - 90 mm;
Gun mask - 40 mm;
The side of the tower - 75 / 20 ° mm / hail;
Tower feed - 52 / 10 ° mm / hail;
Tower roof - 15-20 mm.

Armament

The caliber and brand of the gun is 85 mm ZIS-S-53;
Gun type - rifled;
Barrel length - 54.6 calibers;
Gun ammunition - 56-60;
Angles VN- 5 ... + 22 degrees;
GN angles - 360 degrees. (manual turning mechanism or electromechanical drive);
Sights - telescopic articulated TSh-16, periscope PTK-5, side level;
Machine guns - 2 × 7.62 mm DT-29.

Mobility

Engine type - V-shaped 12-cylinder liquid-cooled diesel with direct injection;
Engine power - 500 hp;
Highway speed - 55 km / h;
Cross-country speed - 25 km / h;
Power reserve on the highway - 250 km;
Power reserve over rough terrain - 220 km;
Specific power - 15.6 hp / t;
Suspension type - Christie suspension;
Specific ground pressure - 0.83 kg / cm²;
Climbability — 30°;
Overcoming wall - 0.75 m;
Crossable moat - 3.4 m;
Crossable ford - 1.3 m.

Modifications

T-34-85 1943. Small-scale modification with a new three-man turret and 85 mm D-5-T85 gun. It was produced from January to March due to the unsatisfactory placement of the S-53 gun in the original turret;
T-34-85. Main serial modification with 85-mm gun ZIS-S-53;
OT-34-85. Instead of a course machine gun, he had an ATO-42 piston flamethrower;
T-34-85 of 1947 with a new V-2-34M engine, a new radio station and optical instruments;
T-34-85 of 1960 with a 520 hp V-54 or V-55 engine, redesigned interior, new electronic equipment, new radio station, increased ammunition load and undercarriage from the T-55;
PT-34 is a tank trawl created on the basis of the T-34 of 1943.

Application

T-34-85 began to enter the troops in February 1944. Unfortunately, the first tank battles were not very successful - the crews were not given time for retraining, and very few tanks were provided.

One of the first T-34-85s was received by the 38th Tank Regiment, which also had OT-34s, flamethrower tanks based on the T-34. In March 1944, this regiment became part of the 53-1 combined arms army and participated in the liberation of Ukraine, where, in fact, the T-34-85 were first used on a large scale.

When the attack on Belarus began in June 1944, about four hundred T-34-85s took part in it. However, they were used much more massively in 1945, for example, in the battle at Lake Balaton and in the Berlin operation.

By the middle of 1945, the Soviet tank divisions in the Far East mainly had outdated equipment - light tanks BT-5, BT-7 and T-26. When the war with Japan began, 670 T-34-85s were sent there. Thus, these tanks actively participated in the defeat of the Kwantung Army, acting as the main strike force of tank units.

When even the power of the 85-mm gun was not enough to penetrate the armor of enemy tanks, work began on the T-34-100, as well as on the T-44. As a result, all of them led to the appearance of the T-54 tank, which replaced the T-34-85 in the first years after the war. However, the service of this tank did not end - it actively participated in the Korean War, in the wars in the former Yugoslavia and the Arab-Israeli wars. Officially, this tank was in service until 1993, and in some countries it is still in service!

The T-34-85 once took part in an interesting event in the 21st century. When there were anti-government demonstrations in Budapest in October 2006, demonstrators were able to launch museum T-34-85s along with BTR-152s, and used the vehicles in clashes with law enforcement officials.

tank memory

T-34-85 is one of the most popular tanks of the Great Patriotic War. Although most people have only heard of the T-34 tank, many museums have copies of the T-34-85. Also, it is this tank that most often stands on pedestals in many cities of Russia: in Novokuznetsk, Voronezh, Kharkov, Nizhny Novgorod and a number of others.

Tank in culture

The T-34-85 tank was widely reflected in culture, and they were often replaced by earlier T-34s, since it was not possible to find the originals.

Movies

There are quite a few films with the participation of the T-34-85. The most famous of them:

Chief designer. A film about the creation of the T-34, in which the T-34-85 was shot instead of this tank;
Fall of Berlin;
In war as in war;
The epic film "Liberation";
Hot Snow;
Eternal Call;
Four tankers and a dog (despite the fact that in the course of the series the crew fights first on the T-34, and then on the T-34-85, the T-35-85 was shot all the time in the film with minor alterations);
White tiger;
Rescue Private Ryan. There is no mention of the T-34-85 here, however, it was these tanks that were camouflaged under the PzKpfw VI "Tiger" appearing in the plot.

Games

The T-34-85 is featured in numerous WWII games such as Red Orchestra: Ostfront 41-45, World War II, Sudden Strike 3: Arms for Victory, and Sudden Strike: The Last Stand , "Call of Duty", "Blitzkrieg" as well as in the games "World of Tanks" and "".

Other

T-34-85 due to its popularity was produced by many different companies in the form of models. Also in Soviet times, this tank was on postage stamps.

History of creation

T-34-85 with D-5T gun. 38th separate tank regiment. The tank column "Dimitri Donskoy" was built at the expense of the Russian Orthodox Church.

Ironically, one of the greatest victories of the Red Army in the Great Patriotic War, near Kursk, was won at a time when Soviet armored and mechanized troops were qualitatively inferior to German ones (see "Armored Collection" No. 3, 1999). By the summer of 1943, when the most painful design flaws of the T-34 had been eliminated, the Germans had new tanks "Tiger" and "Panther", which were noticeably superior to ours in terms of armament and armor thickness. Therefore, during the Battle of Kursk, Soviet tank units, as before, had to rely on their numerical superiority over the enemy. Only in some cases, when the "thirty-fours" managed to get close to the German tanks, did the fire of their guns become effective. The question of a radical modernization of the T-34 tank was on the agenda.

It cannot be said that by this time attempts were not made to develop more advanced tanks. This work, suspended with the outbreak of war, resumed in 1942, as the current modernization was completed and the shortcomings of the T-34 were eliminated. Here, first of all, we should mention the project of the medium tank T-43.

This combat vehicle was created taking into account the requirements for the T-34 - strengthening its armor protection, improving the suspension and increasing the volume of the fighting compartment. Moreover, the design groundwork for the pre-war T-34M tank was actively used.

The new combat vehicle was 78.5% unified with the serial "thirty-four". The hull shape of the T-43 basically remained the same, as did the engine, transmission, undercarriage elements, and gun. The main difference was the strengthening of the armor of the frontal, side and rear hull sheets up to 75 mm, the turret up to 90 mm. In addition, the place of the driver and his hatch were moved to the right side of the hull, and the place of the gunner-radio operator and the installation of the DT course machine gun were eliminated. In the forward part of the hull, on the left, a fuel tank was placed in an armored enclosure; side tanks were seized. The tank received a torsion bar suspension. The most significant innovation, which sharply distinguished the T-43 from the T-34 in appearance, was a three-seat cast turret with an extended shoulder strap and a low-profile commander's cupola.

Since March 1943, two prototypes of the T-43 tank (they were preceded by the T-43-1, built at the end of 1942, which had a driver’s hatch plug and a commander’s cupola shifted to the rear of the tower) were tested, including front-line , as part of a separate tank company named after the NKSM. They found that the T-43, due to its increased mass to 34.1 tons, is somewhat inferior to the T-34 in terms of dynamic characteristics (maximum speed decreased to 48 km / h), although it significantly surpasses the latter in terms of smoothness. After the replacement of eight on-board fuel tanks (in the T-34) with one bow of a smaller capacity, the T-43's cruising range decreased by almost 100 km, respectively. Tankers noted the spaciousness of the fighting compartment and greater ease of maintenance of weapons.

After testing, at the end of the summer of 1943, the T-43 tank was adopted by the Red Army. Preparations for its serial production began. However, the results of the Battle of Kursk made significant adjustments to these plans.

Experienced tank T-43-1. Attention is drawn to the high commander's cupola with observation slots along the perimeter, located in the aft part of the tower.

Experienced tank T-43. Its characteristic details are the driver's hatch, borrowed from the T-34, and a low-profile commander's cupola.

At the end of August, a meeting was held at plant No. 112, which was attended by the People's Commissar for the Tank Industry V.A. Malyshev, the commander of the armored and mechanized troops of the Red Army, Ya.N. In his speech, V.A. Malyshev noted that the victory in the Battle of Kursk went to the Red Army at a high price. Enemy tanks fired at ours from a distance of 1,500 m, while our 76-mm tank guns could hit "tigers" and "panthers" only from a distance of 500 - 600 m. "and we're only half a kilometer away. We need to immediately install a more powerful gun in the T-34."

In fact, the situation was much worse than V.A. Malyshev described it. But attempts to rectify the situation have been made since the beginning of 1943.

As early as April 15, the State Defense Committee, in response to the appearance of new German tanks on the Soviet-German front, issued Decree No. - One day to submit your opinion. In accordance with this document, the deputy commander of the BT and MV, Lieutenant General of the Tank Forces V.M. The test results were disappointing. So, the 76-mm armor-piercing tracer of the F-34 cannon did not penetrate the side armor of a German tank even from a distance of 200 m! The most effective means of combating the enemy’s new heavy vehicle turned out to be the 85-mm anti-aircraft gun 52K of the 1939 model, which pierced its 100-mm frontal armor from a distance of up to 1000 m.

On May 5, 1943, the State Defense Committee adopted Decree No. 3289ss "On strengthening the artillery armament of tanks and self-propelled guns." In it, the NKTP and the NKV were given specific tasks to create tank guns with anti-aircraft ballistics.

Back in January 1943, the design bureau of plant No. 9, led by F.F. Petrov, began to develop such a gun. By May 27, 1943, working drawings of the D-5T-85 cannon were issued, designed according to the type of German tank-propelled guns and distinguished by its low weight and short recoil length. In June, the first D-5Ts were made in metal. Around the same time, prototypes of other 85-mm tank guns were ready: TsAKB (chief designer V.G. Grabin) presented the S-53 guns (leading designers T.I. Sergeev and G.I. Shabarov) and S-50 (leading designers V.D. Meshchaninov, A.M. Volgevsky and V.A. Tyurin), and artillery plant No. 92 - gun LB-85 A.I. Savin. Thus, by the middle of 1943, four versions of the 85-mm gun, intended for arming a medium tank, were ready for testing. But what is it?

The T-43 disappeared quite quickly - this machine weighed 34.1 tons even with a 76-mm gun. Installing a more powerful, and therefore heavier, gun would entail a further increase in mass, with all the ensuing negative consequences. In addition, the transition of factories to the production of a new tank, although it had much in common with the T-34, would inevitably cause a decrease in production volumes. And it was holy! As a result, the serial production of the T-43 did not begin. In 1944, an 85-mm cannon was nevertheless installed on it on an experimental basis, and that was it.

In the meantime, the D-5T gun was quite successfully assembled in a promising heavy tank IS. To install the D-5T in the T-34 medium tank, it was necessary to increase the diameter of the turret ring and install a new turret. The design bureau of the Krasnoye Sormovo plant, headed by V.V. Krylov, and the tower group of plant No. 183, led by A.A. Moloshtanov and M.A. Nabutovsky, worked on this problem. As a result, two very similar cast towers appeared with a clear diameter of 1600 mm. Both of them resembled (but did not copy!) the turret of the experimental T-43 tank, which was taken as the basis for the design.

The progress of work was negatively affected by the promise of the TsAKB management to install the 85-mm S-53 cannon in the regular turret of the T-34 tank with a shoulder strap diameter of 1420 mm. V.G. Grabin ensured that the plant N ° 112 gave him a serial tank, on which the front part of the turret was redone in the TsAKB, in particular, the trunnions of the gun were moved forward by 200 mm. Grabin tried to approve this project from V.A. Malyshev. However, the latter had serious doubts about the expediency of such a decision, especially since the tests of the new gun in the old tower, carried out at the Gorokhovetsky training ground, ended in failure. Two people, who were in the turret, which had become even tighter, could not properly service the gun. Ammunition was also drastically reduced. Malyshev ordered M.A. Nabutovsky to fly to plant N9 112 and sort everything out. At a special meeting, in the presence of D.F. Ustinov and Ya.N. Fedorenko, Nabutovsky completely criticized the Grabinsk project. It became obvious that there was no alternative to a tower with an extended shoulder strap.

At the same time, it turned out that the S-53 cannon, which won the competitive tests, could not be installed in a tower designed by the Sormovichi. When installed in this tower, the gun had a limited vertical aiming angle. It was required either to change the design of the tower, or to install another gun, for example, the D-5T, which would be freely assembled into a Sormovo tower.

According to the plan, the Krasnoye Sormovo plant was supposed to produce 100 T-34 tanks with the D-5T gun by the end of 1943, however, the first combat vehicles of this type left its workshops only at the beginning of January 1944, that is, in fact, before the official adoption of the new tank into armament. GKO Decree No. 5020ss, according to which the T-34-85 was adopted by the Red Army, saw the light only on January 23, 1944.

One of the first T-34-85 tanks with a D-5T gun at the Kubinka training ground. The cannon mask, antenna input on the right side of the hull, handrails on the frontal armor, etc., typical only for this modification, are clearly visible.

The same car, view from the left side. Pay attention to the location of the commander's turret and the additional fuel tank, which are strongly displaced forward, as well as the eyelets made of bars for dismantling the turret. The observation slot in the left side of the tower is typical only for Sormovo vehicles with a D-5T gun.

Tanks armed with the D-5T cannon differed markedly from the vehicles of a later release in appearance and internal structure. The tank turret was double, and the crew consisted of four people. On the roof of the tower there was a commander's turret with a double-leaf lid, which rotated on a ball bearing, strongly shifted forward. An MK-4 viewing periscope device was fixed in the lid, which made it possible to conduct a circular view. For firing from a cannon and a coaxial machine gun, a TSh-15 telescopic articulated sight and a PTK-5 panorama were installed. Both sides of the tower had observation slots with triplex glass blocks. The radio station was located in the hull, and the input of its antenna was on the starboard side, just like the T-34 tank. Ammunition consisted of 56 rounds and 1953 rounds. The power plant, transmission and chassis have not changed much. These tanks differed somewhat among themselves depending on the time of release. For example, early production machines had one tower fan, and most subsequent ones had two.

It should be noted that the modification discussed above in the statistical reporting as T-34-85, apparently, does not appear. In any case, today there are significant discrepancies in the estimates of the number of cars produced, given in the literature. Basically, the numbers fluctuate in the range of 500 - 700 tanks. In fact, much less! The fact is that in 1943 283 D-5T guns were produced, in 1944 - 260, and in total - 543. Of this number, 107 guns were installed on IS-1 tanks, 130 (according to other sources, no more than 100) -on KV-85 tanks, several guns were used on prototypes of combat vehicles. Thus, the number of T-34 tanks fired with the D-5T gun is close to 300 units.

As for the S-53 gun, its installation in the Nizhny Tagil tower did not cause any difficulties. By a GKO decree of January 1, 1944, the S-53 was adopted by the Red Army. In March, the production of these guns began in the commissioning mode, and in May - in the stream. Accordingly, in March, the first T-34-85 tanks armed with S-53 left the workshops of plant No. 183 in Nizhny Tagil. Following the lead one, factories No. 174 in Omsk and No. 112 "Krasnoye Sormovo" started the production of such machines. At the same time, the Sormovichi still installed D-5T guns on parts of the tanks.

Tower of the plant "Krasnoe Sormovo" with a gun D-5T. The first machines produced had only one tower fan.

T-34-85 plant "Krasnoye Sormovo". An intermediate model, which retained the characteristic details of early Sormovo machines, is an external fuel tank shifted forward and rod eyes.

Field tests, which continued despite the start of production, revealed significant defects in the C-53 recoil devices. Artillery Plant No. 92 in Gorky was instructed to carry out its revision on its own. In November - December 1944, the production of this gun began under the index ZIS-S-53 ("ZIS" - the index of the artillery plant No. 92 named after Stalin, "S" - the TsAKB index). In total, 11,518 S-53 guns and 14,265 ZIS-S-53 guns were manufactured in 1944-1945. The latter were installed both on the T-34-85 and T-44 tanks.

For "thirty-fours" with S-53 or ZIS-S-53 guns, the tower became three local, and the commander's cupola was moved closer to its stern. The radio station was moved from the building to the tower. Viewing devices were installed only a new type - MK-4. The commander's panorama PTK-5 was seized. They also took care of the engine: the Cyclone air cleaners were replaced with more efficient Multicyclone ones. The rest of the units and systems of the tank remained practically unchanged.

As was the case with the T-34, the T-34-85 tanks had some differences from each other related to the manufacturing technology at different factories. The towers differed in the number and location of the casting seams, the shape of the commander's cupola.

In the chassis, both stamped road wheels and cast ones with developed fins were used.

In January 1945, the two-leaf hatch cover of the commander's cupola was replaced with a single-leaf. On tanks of post-war production (Krasnoye Sormovo plant), one of the two fans installed in the aft part of the tower was moved to its central part, which contributed to better ventilation of the fighting compartment.

At the end of the war, an attempt was made to strengthen the armament of the tank. AT

T-34-85 with D-5T gun. The main production version.

1945, field tests of prototypes of medium tanks T-34-100 with a turret shoulder strap, broadened to 1700 mm, armed with 100-mk< пушками Л Б-1 и Д-10Т. На этих танках, масса которых достигла 33 т, был изъят курсовой пулемет и на одного человека сокращен экипаж; снижена высота башни; уменьшена толщина днища, крыши над двигателем и крыши башни; перенесены в отделение управления топливные баки; опущено сиденье механика-водителя; подвеска 2-го и 3-го опорных катков выполнена так же, как и подвеска первых катков; поставлены пятироликовые ведущие колеса. Танк Т-34-100 на вооружение принят не был - 100-мм пушка оказалась "неподъемной" для "тридцатьчетверки". Работа эта вообще имела мало смысла, поскольку на вооружение уже был принят новый средний танк Т-54 со 100-мм~ пушкой Д-10Т.

Another attempt to strengthen the armament of the T-34-85 was made in 1945, when the TsAKB developed a modification, the ZIS-S-53, equipped with a single-plane gyroscopic stabilizer, the ZIS-S-54. However, this artillery system did not go into the series.

But another version of the T-34-85 with weapons different from the base tank was mass-produced. We are talking about the flamethrower tank OT-34-85. Like its predecessor, the OT-34, this machine was equipped with an ATO-42 automatic piston tank flamethrower from plant No. 222 instead of a course machine gun.

Slippers T-34-85 before the parade. Leningrad, November 7, 1945. On the left of the car, the characteristic armor mask of the S-53 cannon is clearly visible.

Form of armored masks

Left: S-53 cannon

Right: ZIS-S-53 cannon

Flamethrower tanks OT-34-85 on the street. Gorky in Moscow before the May Day parade in 1946.

In the spring of 1944, at the former plant No. 183, restored after the liberation of Kharkov, which was assigned No. 75, prototypes of the AT-45 heavy tractor, intended for towing guns weighing up to 22 tons, were manufactured. The AT-45 was designed on the basis of the units of the T-34-85 tank . It was equipped with the same V-2 diesel engine, but with a power reduced to 350 hp. at 1400 rpm. In 1944, the plant manufactured 6 AT-45 tractors, two of which were sent to the troops for testing in combat conditions. The production of tractors was stopped in August 1944 in connection with the preparation at plant No. 75 of the production of a new model of the T-44 medium tank. It will not be superfluous to recall that this tractor was not the first built on the basis of the thirty-four units. So, back in August 1940, they approved the project of the AT-42 artillery tractor weighing 17 tons, with a platform with a carrying capacity of 3 tons. With a V-2 engine with a power of 500 hp. it was supposed to reach speeds of up to 33 km / h with a hook pull of 15 tons. The prototypes of the AT-42 tractor were manufactured in 1941, but further work on their testing and production had to be curtailed due to the evacuation of the plant from Kharkov.

Serial production of the T-34-85 in the Soviet Union was stopped in 1946 (according to some sources, it continued in small batches at the Krasnoye Sormovo plant until 1950). As for the number of T-34-85 tanks produced by one or another plant, then, as in the case of the T-34, there are noticeable discrepancies in the figures given in different sources.

Experienced tank T-34-100.

General production of T-34-85 tanks
	1944	1945	Total
T-34-85	10 499	12 software	22 609
T-34-85 com.	134	140	274
OT-34-85	30	301	331
Total	10 663	12 551	23 214

This table shows data for 1944 and 1945 only. Tanks T-34-85 commander and OT-34-85 were not produced in 1946.

Production of T-34-85 tanks by NKTP plants
Factory	1944	1945	1946	Total
№ 183	6585	7356	493	14 434
№ 112	3062	3255	1154	7471
№ 174	1000	1940	1054	3994
Total	10 647	12 551	2701	25 899

Modernized in the post-war years, the T-34-85 tank. On the right side of the hull, the IR illuminator FG-100 of the night vision device is clearly visible.

Comparing the data of the two tables shows a discrepancy in the number of tanks produced in 1944. And this is despite the fact that the tables are compiled according to the most common and most reliable data. In a number of sources, you can find other figures for 1945: 6208, 2655 and 1540 tanks, respectively. However, these numbers reflect the production of tanks for the 1st, 2nd and 3rd quarters of 1945, that is, approximately at the end of World War II. Differences in numbers make it impossible to accurately indicate the number of T-34 and T-34-85 tanks produced from 1940 to 1946. This number ranges from 61,293 to 61,382 units.

Foreign sources give the following figures for the production of T-34-85 in the USSR in the post-war years: 1946 - 5500, 1947 - 4600, 1948 - 3700, 1949-900, 1950 - 300 units. Judging by the number of zeros, these figures are likely to be very approximate. If we take as a basis the number of vehicles produced in 1946, which is doubled in these sources, and assume that all other figures are inflated in the same way, it turns out that 4750 T-34-85 tanks were produced in 1947-1950. This indeed seems to be true. Indeed, one cannot seriously assume that our tank industry has been idle for almost five years? The production of the T-44 medium tank ceased in 1947, and the factories began mass production of the new T-54 tank almost only in 1951. As a result, the number of T-34 and T-34-85 tanks manufactured in the USSR exceeds 65,000.

Despite the introduction of new T-44 and T-54 tanks into the troops, "thirty-fours" made up a significant part of the tank fleet of the Soviet Army in the post-war years. Therefore, these combat vehicles were modernized in the course of major repairs in the 50s. First of all, the changes affected the engine, which as a result received the name V-34-M11. Two VTI-3 air cleaners with ejection dust extraction were installed; a nozzle heater was built into the cooling and lubrication systems; the GT-4563A generator with a power of 1000 W was replaced by a G-731 generator with a power of 1500 W.

To drive a car at night, the driver received a BVN night vision device. At the same time, an FG-100 IR illuminator appeared on the right side of the hull. The observation device MK-4 in the commander's cupola was replaced by the commander's observation device TPK-1 or TPKU-2B.

Instead of the DT machine gun, a modernized DTM machine gun was installed, equipped with a PPU-8T telescopic sight. Instead of the PPSh submachine gun, the AK-47 assault rifle was introduced into the laying of the personal weapons of the crew members.

Since 1952, the 9-R radio station was replaced by the 10-RT-26E radio station, and the TPU-Zbis-F intercom was replaced by TPU-47.

Other systems and units of the tank have not changed.

The vehicles upgraded in this way became known as T-34-85 of the 1960 model.

In the 60s, tanks were equipped with more advanced TVN-2 night vision devices and R-123 radios. In the chassis, road wheels were installed, borrowed from the T-55 tank.

Some of the tanks in the late 50s were converted into T-34T evacuation tractors, which differed from each other in the presence or absence of a winch or rigging equipment. The tower was dismantled in all cases. Instead, in the version of the maximum configuration, a loading platform was installed. Tool boxes were mounted on the fender liner. Platforms for pushing tanks were welded to the nose sheets of the hull using a log. On the right, in front of the hull, a boom crane with a lifting capacity of 3 tons was installed; in the middle part of the hull - a winch driven by an engine. Of the armament, only the course machine gun was preserved.

Part of the T-34T tractors, as well as linear tanks, were equipped with BTU bulldozers and STU snowplows.

To ensure the repair of tanks in the field, a self-propelled crane SPK-5, then SPK-5 / 10M, was developed and mass-produced (or rather, converted from linear tanks). Crane equipment with a lifting capacity of up to 10 tons made it possible to remove and install tank turrets. The car was equipped with a V-2-34Kr engine, which differed from the standard one by the presence of a power take-off mechanism.

In the 1960s and 1970s, a significant number of tanks, after the dismantling of weapons, were converted into chemical reconnaissance vehicles.

T-34-85, which passed the final stage of modernization in the 60s. Noteworthy are the new road wheels, the form of the antenna input of the R-123 radio station, as well as the second external fuel tank and a box for an individual refueling pump on the left side of the hull. Moscow, May 9, 1985.

Tractor T-34T with a set of rigging equipment, a loading platform, a boom crane and a set of accessories for repair work.

Self-propelled crane SPK-5. Kyiv, Museum of the Great Patriotic War, 1985.

T-34-85 issued in 1944.

In 1949, Czechoslovakia acquired a license for the production of the T-34-85 medium tank. She was given design and technological documentation, provided technical assistance by Soviet specialists. In the winter of 1952, the first T-34-85 of Czechoslovak production left the workshops of the CKD Praha Sokolovo plant (according to other sources, the Stalin plant in the city of Rudy Martin). Thirty-fours were produced in Czechoslovakia until 1958. A total of 3185 units were manufactured, a significant part of which was exported. On the basis of these tanks, Czechoslovak designers developed the MT-34 bridge layer, the CW-34 evacuation tractor and a number of other vehicles.

A similar license was acquired by the Polish People's Republic in 1951. The production of T-34-85 tanks was launched at the Bumar Labedy plant. The first four cars were assembled by May 1, 1951, while some of the components and assemblies were brought from the USSR. In 1953 - 1955, the Polish Army received 1185 tanks of its own production, and in total 1380 T-34-85 were produced in Poland.

Polish T-34s were upgraded twice under the T-34-85M1 and T-34-85M2 programs. During these upgrades, they received a pre-heater, the engine was adapted to operate on various types of fuel, mechanisms were introduced to facilitate tank control, otherwise the ammunition was placed. Thanks to the introduction of a remote control system for the course machine gun, the tank crew was reduced to 4 people. Finally, the Polish "thirty-fours" were equipped with underwater driving equipment.

On the basis of the T-34-85 tanks in Poland, several samples of engineering and repair and recovery vehicles were developed and produced.

In total, T-34-85 tanks (including those produced in Czechoslovakia and Poland) were manufactured over 35 thousand units, and if you add T-34 tanks here - 70 thousand, which makes the "thirty-four" the most massive combat vehicle in the world.

Polish-made T-34-85M2 tank with a sealed mask installation. An OPVT pipe is fixed on the left side of the hull in the stowed position.

Characteristic differences between Polish-made tanks: flanging around the mask-installation of a course machine gun for attaching a sealing cover - at the top; figured casting of armor protection of the exhaust pipe and the pipe itself with a flare - at the bottom.

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In February - March 1944, T-34-85 tanks began to enter the troops. In particular, at about this time they were received by the formations of the 2nd, 6th, 10th and 11th Guards Tank Corps. Unfortunately, the effect of the first combat use of new tanks was not high, since the brigades received only a few vehicles. Most of them were "thirty-fours" with 76-mm guns. In addition, very little time was allotted in combat units for the retraining of crews. Here is what M.E. Katukov, who in the April days of 1944 commanded the 1st Tank Army, which fought heavy battles in Ukraine, wrote in his memoirs in his memoirs: “We lived through those difficult days and joyful moments. One of these is the arrival of tank replenishment. The army received, albeit in small numbers, new “thirty-fours”, armed not with the usual 76-mm, but with an 85-mm cannon. The crews who received the new "thirty-fours" had to be given only two hours of time to master them. We couldn't give more then. The situation on the ultra-wide front was such that the new tanks, which had more powerful weapons, had to be brought into battle as soon as possible.

One of the first T-34-85s with the D-5T cannon was received by the 38th Separate Tank Regiment. This unit had a mixed composition: in addition to the T-34-85, it also contained OT-34 flamethrower tanks. All combat vehicles of the regiment were built at the expense of the Russian Orthodox Church and bore the name "Dimitri Donskoy" on their sides. In March 1944, the regiment became part of the 53rd Combined Arms Army and took part in the liberation of Ukraine.

T-34-85s were used in significant numbers during the offensive in Belarus, which began at the end of June 1944. They already made up more than half of the 811 "thirty-fours" that took part in this operation. In mass order, the T-34-85 was used in hostilities in 1945: in the Vistula-Oder, Pomeranian, Berlin operations, in the battle near Lake Balaton in Hungary. In particular, on the eve of the Berlin operation, the staffing of tank brigades with combat vehicles of this type was almost one hundred percent.

It should be noted that during the re-equipment of tank brigades, some organizational changes took place in them. Since the crew of the T-34-85 consisted of five people, the personnel of the company of anti-tank rifles of the battalion of submachine gunners of the brigade were turned to the understaffing of the crews.

Until the middle of 1945, the Soviet tank units stationed in the Far East were armed mainly with obsolete BT and T-26 light tanks. By the beginning of the war with Japan, the troops received 670 T-34-85 tanks, which made it possible to equip the first battalions in all separate tank brigades and the first regiments in tank divisions with them. The 6th Guards Tank Army, transferred to Mongolia from Europe, left its combat vehicles in its former deployment area (Czechoslovakia) and already received 408 T-34-85 tanks from factories No. 183 and No. 174 on the spot. Thus, machines of this type took a direct part in the defeat of the Kwantung Army, being the strike force of tank units and formations.

In addition to the Red Army, the T-34-85 tanks entered service with the armies of several countries participating in the anti-Hitler coalition.

The first tank of this type in the Polish Army was the T-34-85 with a D-5T cannon, transferred on May 11, 1944 to the 3rd Training Tank Regiment of the 1st Polish Army. As for the combat units, the 1st Polish tank brigade received these tanks - 20 units - in September 1944 after the battles near Studzianki. In total, in 1944-1945, the Polish Army received 328 T-34-85 tanks (the last 10 vehicles were transferred on March 11). The tanks came from factories No. 183, No. 112 and repair depots. During the hostilities, a significant part of the combat vehicles was lost. As of July 16, 1945, I ode in the Polish Army, there were 132 T-34-85 tanks.

All these machines were rather worn out and required a major overhaul. To carry it out, special brigades were created, which, at the sites of recent battles, removed serviceable components and assemblies from wrecked Polish and Soviet tanks. It is interesting to note that during the repair, a certain number of “synthesized” tanks appeared, when the turret plate was changed on the early production T-34 and a turret with an 85-mm gun was installed.

The 1st separate Czechoslovak brigade received the T-34-85 in early 1945. It then included 52 T-34-85s and 12 T-34s. The brigade, being operationally subordinate to the Soviet 38th Army, took part in heavy battles for Ostrava. After the capture of Olomouc on May 7, 1945, the remaining 8 tanks of the brigade were transferred to Prague. The number of T-34-85 tanks transferred to Czechoslovakia in 1945 varies from 65 to 130 units in different sources.

At the final stage of the war, two tank brigades were formed in the People's Liberation Army of Yugoslavia. The 1st tank brigade was armed by the British, and its MZAZ light tanks landed on the Adriatic coast of Yugoslavia in July 1944. The 2nd Tank Brigade was formed with the help of the Soviet Union at the end of 1944 and received 60 T-34-85 tanks.

A small number of T-34-85s were captured by German troops, as well as troops of states allied with Germany. There were only a few of these tanks used by the Wehrmacht, which is understandable - in 1944-1945, the battlefield in most cases remained with the Red Army. The facts of the use of individual T-34-85s by the 5th SS Viking Panzer Division, the 252nd Infantry Division and some other units are reliably known. As for Germany's allies, in 1944 the Finns, for example, captured nine T-34-85s, six of which were operated by the Finnish army until 1960.

As is often the case in war, military equipment sometimes changed hands several times. In the spring of 1945, the 5th Guards Tank Brigade, which fought as part of the 18th Army in Czechoslovakia, captured the T-34-85 medium tank from the Germans. It is interesting to note that at that time the material part of the brigade consisted of T-70 light tanks, medium T-34 tanks and a battalion of captured Hungarian tanks. The captured vehicle became the first T-34-85 tank in this brigade.

After the end of World War II, the T-34-85 for quite a long time - almost until the mid-50s - formed the basis of the tank fleet of the Soviet Army: the T-44 entered service in limited quantities, and the T-54 was too slowly mastered by industry. As the troops were saturated with modern armored vehicles, the T-34-85 tanks were transferred to training units, and also placed in long-term storage. In the training units of a number of military districts, in particular in the Trans-Baikal and Far East, these combat vehicles were operated until the beginning of the 70s. The author has no information about the presence of the T-34-85 in the troops today, but there has not yet been a formal order from the Minister of Defense to remove the tank from service with the Russian Army.

As part of the Soviet Army, the T-34-85 tanks did not take part in hostilities in the post-war years. There are known facts of the combat use of "thirty-fours" in some "hot spots" in the CIS, for example, during the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict. And sometimes even tanks-monuments were used for this purpose.

Outside the Soviet Union, the T-34-85 took part in hostilities on almost all continents and up to the most recent time. Unfortunately, it is not possible to indicate the exact number of tanks of this type transferred to this or that country, especially since these deliveries were carried out not only from the USSR, but also from Poland and Czechoslovakia.

After 1945, the T-34-85 at various times were in service in Austria, Albania, Algeria, Angola, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bulgaria, Hungary, Vietnam, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, East Germany, Egypt, Israel (captured Egyptian) , Iraq, Cyprus, China, North Korea, Congo, Cuba, Laos, Lebanon, Libya, Mali, Mozambique, Mongolia, Poland, Romania, North Yemen, Syria, Somalia, Sudan, Togo, Uganda, Finland (captured Soviet), Czechoslovakia, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, South Africa (trophy Angolan), Yugoslavia, South Yemen. As of 1996, tanks of this type were still in the armies of Cuba (400 units, mainly in coastal defense), Albania (70), Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Angola (58), Guinea-Bissau (10), Mali (18 ), Afghanistan and Vietnam.

The arena of the most widespread use of "thirty-fours" after the Second World War was Asia.

At 5 am on June 25, 1950, T-34-85s of the 109th Tank Regiment of the Korean People's Army (KPA) crossed the 38th parallel and the Korean War began.

The creation of armored units of the KPA began back in 1945, when the 15th training tank regiment was formed, which was armed with American Stuart and Sherman tanks received from the Chinese, as well as two Soviet T-34-85. The training of Korean military personnel was carried out by 30 Soviet tank instructors. In May 1949, the 105th tank brigade was formed on the basis of the regiment. By the end of the year, all three of its regiments (107th, 109th and 203rd) were fully equipped with "thirty-fours", 40 vehicles each. By June 1950, the KPA had 258 T-34-85 tanks. In addition to the 105th brigade, 20 vehicles were in the 208th tank training regiment, and the rest in the newly formed 41st, 42nd, 43rd, 45th and 46th tank regiments (actually - battalions, 15 tanks each) and in the 16th and 17th tank brigades (actually regiments of 40-45 vehicles each). The superiority of the North Korean troops, in terms of the quantity and quality of armored vehicles, was complete, since the South Korean army did not have a single tank at all, and the 8th American army, stationed in South Korea and Japan, had at that time only four separate tank battalions, armed with M24 Chaffee light tanks.

The mountainous nature of the central part of the Korean Peninsula did not allow the use of large masses of tanks, so tank regiments were attached to the 1st, 3rd and 4th KPA infantry divisions, which attacked in the direction of Seoul. The success of the tank attacks was complete! South Korean infantry units were completely demoralized. Not only did many soldiers never see tanks before, but they also quickly became convinced that their anti-tank weapons - 57-mm cannons and 2.36-inch bazookas - were powerless against the T-34-85. On June 28, 1950, Seoul fell.

A week later, a significant event occurred - on July 5, 33 T-34-85 tanks of the 107th KPA regiment attacked the positions of the 24th Infantry Division of the US Army. The Americans tried to beat off the tank attack with 105-mm howitzers and 75-mm recoilless guns. However, it turned out that high-explosive shells were ineffective, and there were only six 105-mm HEAT shells. They managed to knock out two tanks from a distance of 500 yards. During this battle, American infantrymen fired 22 shots at tanks from 2.36-inch bazookas - and all to no avail!

On July 10, 1950, the first tank battle took place between T-34-85s and M24s from Company A of the 78th Tank Battalion. Two M24s were hit, the "thirty-fours" had no losses. 75 mm American shells did not penetrate their frontal armor. The next day, Company A lost three more tanks, and by the end of July it had practically ceased to exist - it had two tanks left out of 14! Such results completely demoralized the American tankers and greatly upset the infantrymen, who now did not see any effective anti-tank weapons in the M24. The infantrymen experienced some relief only after the start of using the 3.5-inch "super bazooka". In the battles for Taejon, the 105th brigade lost 15 T-34-85s, seven of which were destroyed by super bazooka fire.

The thirty-four met a worthy opponent only on August 17, 1950. T-34-85s of the 107th Tank Regiment attacked the positions of the 1st US Marine Brigade in the Busan bridgehead. Accustomed to victories, the North Korean tankers, seeing the well-known M24s in front of them, confidently went into battle. However, they were wrong - they were M26 Pershings from the 1st Tank Battalion of the US Marine Corps. Three T-34-85s were hit by combined fire from 90-mm Pershing and Super Bazooka cannons. From that moment on, a turning point occurred in tank battles. North Korean tankers, well trained in offensive operations, were not ready to engage in single combat with American tanks in a positional struggle. The higher level of combat training of American crews affected. By September 1950, a balance of power had been established in the Pusan bridgehead. Having landed at Incheon, the Americans turned the tide of events in their favor.

A short route to Seoul opened from Incheon, in the area of which there were only 16 T-34-85s from the 42nd tank regiment with unfired crews and 10-15 tanks of the 105th brigade. In the battles of September 16-20, almost all of these vehicles were destroyed.

The first battle of the T-34-85 with the Shermans took place on September 27. 10 "thirty-fours" attacked M4AZE8 of the 2nd platoon of company C of the 70th tank battalion. Three Shermans were knocked out in a matter of seconds. Then one T-34-85 ironed a transport convoy, smashing 15 trucks and jeeps into chips, and was hit by a point-blank shot from a 105-mm howitzer. Four more T-34-85s fell victim to bazooka fire, and two North Korean tanks knocked out the main forces of the 70th tank battalion that had approached from the rear.

By the end of the year, the DPRK troops lost 239 T-34-85 tanks, most of which were hit by bazooka fire and aircraft. In battles with tanks, according to American data, 97 T-34-85s were shot down. North Korean tanks only destroyed 34 American combat vehicles with return fire. At the same time, the T-34-85 clearly outperformed the M24 Chaffee in all respects. According to their characteristics, the "thirty-fours" were close to the M4AZE8, but had more powerful weapons. If the T-34-85 easily hit the Sherman at a direct shot with conventional armor-piercing shells, then the American tank achieved a similar result only when using sub-caliber and cumulative shells. Only the M26 Pershing and M46 Patton, which had more powerful armor protection and weapons, turned out to be too tough for the T-34-85 in Korea.

In 1959, the first tank unit of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam was formed - the 202nd tank regiment, armed with T-34-85. In 1967-1975, these tanks were used in battles against American troops along with the more modern T-54, T-55, PT-76 and proved to be good. In any case, the last batch of "thirty-fours" arrived from the USSR in 1973. T-34-85 from the 273rd tank regiment of the Vietnam People's Army took part in the last battle of this war - the capture of Saigon in April 1975.

Subsequently, the T-34-85 fought in Kampuchea, and in 1979 they participated in repelling the offensive of Chinese troops in the northern provinces of the DRV. Some of the "thirty-fours" were converted by the Vietnamese into ZSU. Instead of regular towers, armored cabins with twin Chinese 37-mm Type 63 automatic anti-aircraft guns were installed on them. According to others, these combat vehicles were made in China.

The last Asian theater of operations where the T-34-85 fought was Afghanistan. Moreover, combat vehicles of this type in the 80s were used both by regular units of the Afghan army and by the Mujahideen.

In the most significant quantities, T-34-85 tanks were used during numerous wars in the Middle East.

The first 230 "thirty-fours" arrived in Egypt in 1953-1956. These were tanks of Czechoslovak production. Some of them were destroyed during the Anglo-French-Israeli intervention against Egypt in October - November 1956. Israeli tankers, who fought on Shermans and AMX-13s, knocked out 26 T-34-85s. There were no combat clashes between Egyptian and Anglo-French tanks.

A new large batch of T-34-85s - 120 vehicles - was delivered to the banks of the Nile from Czechoslovakia before the end of 1956. It was followed by the second (in 1962 -1963), and in 1965 - 1967 - the third, another 130 tanks. In the early 60s, deliveries of "thirty-fours" from the USSR and Czechoslovakia began to Syria.

During the "six-day" war of 1967, these tanks were in the first line of tank units along with the T-54. As you know, the Arabs were defeated in this war. In the Sinai Peninsula, Israeli troops knocked out and captured 251 T-34-85 tanks. The losses of the Syrians were much less, both due to the smaller number of armored vehicles involved, and because of the conditions for its use - the Golan Heights are not Sinai. It is interesting to note that in the Golan, former opponents fought against Israeli troops under the Syrian flag: German tanks Pz.lVAusf.l, received in the late 40s from Czechoslovakia and France, and T-34-85.

In the "Doomsday War" in 1973, T-34-85s were used on a much smaller scale and were mainly involved in auxiliary tasks. Like the Israeli Shermans, many of them underwent modernization and alterations on the eve of this war.

In an effort to strengthen the armament of the tank, the Egyptians managed to install a Soviet 100-mm BS-3 field gun on it. At the same time, the turret shoulder strap remained the same. True, only the front and lower parts of the standard tower were preserved.

Instead of everything else, a rather bulky superstructure of a simple form was built from light armor plates. A significant part of the armor plates on the sides and the roof of this new turret was hinged, which, on the one hand, facilitated the work of the crew in servicing the gun during firing, and on the other hand, solved the issue of ventilation of the fighting compartment. The combat weight of the vehicle has increased slightly, but the dynamic characteristics have not changed. Without stopping there, the Egyptian designers installed a 122-mm D-30 howitzer in a similar in design, but slightly larger tower! It goes without saying that both of these vehicles could not be used as tanks. It was only about their use as self-propelled artillery installations. Unfortunately, there is no data on the number of vehicles converted in this way, as well as on their participation in hostilities. The leading role in tank battles went to the modern T-55 and T-62.

Unlike the Egyptians, the Syrians took a different, simpler path. They decided to install the D-30 howitzer on the roof of the front of the hull, while firing was carried out backwards. At the same time, the tower, of course, was dismantled. Five steel boxes for shells were attached to the sides of the hull. A folding working platform for gun crew was mounted above the frontal armor plate. Inside the hull, places were equipped for storing ammunition and crew seats. Before being installed on a tank prepared in this way, the lower wheeled machine was removed from the gun and the shield was cut off. The re-equipment of tanks was carried out at the artillery school in Katanah and the armored school in El Kabun.

Due to the weight reduced to 20 tons, the dynamic characteristics of the machine even increased. The specific pressure on the ground also became less. The same, of course, remained the ballistic characteristics of the D-30. The disadvantage of such a howitzer installation, which had circular fire in the towed version, can be attributed to a limited guidance sector. Formally, here too the gun could turn 360°, but fire was fired only in the 120° guidance sector at the stern of the tank. Ammunition ACS T-34-122 consisted of 120 shells (80 inside the vehicle and 40 in boxes on the sides of the hull).

The first in early 1972, these self-propelled guns received artillery battalions of the 4th and 91st tank brigades (18 vehicles each) of the 1st armored division. By the start of the 1973 war, both Syrian armored divisions (1st and 3rd) were armed with T-34-122s. In the course of hostilities, these vehicles were primarily used for surprise fire raids on areas and direct fire support for troops. At the end of the war, they had to repel attacks by Israeli tanks, and mostly without success, mainly due to insufficient training of crews for firing at moving targets.

Again, these self-propelled guns went into battle in Lebanon in 1976, and then in 1982. Here another drawback of these vehicles affected - on the narrow mountain roads, self-propelled guns often could not turn around to fire. This was the last war in which the T-34-122 took part. Soon, modern self-propelled artillery mounts 2S1 and 2SZ arrived from the USSR, with which they began to replace "thirty-fours" in the artillery units of armored divisions. At the same time, the latter were transferred to the reserve.

In addition to Egypt and Syria, in the Middle East, T-34-85s were used by both sides during the war between North and South Yemen in 1962-1967. During the Lebanese Civil War, they were used both by various Lebanese warring factions and by units of the Palestine Liberation Organization, which received 60 tanks from Hungary. Finally, Iraqi T-34-85s were used during the war with Iran in the 80s.

The battlefield for the "thirty-fours" was the African continent. They first took part in the fighting in Western Sahara in 1970. Ethiopia used them in Eritrea and against Somalia in 1977-1978. However, the T-34-85 were also part of the Somali army that invaded the Ethiopian province of Ogaden.

According to Western data, the first T-34-85s entered the FAPLA (Angola's army) units in 1975, even before the country's formal declaration of independence. In 1976, 85 tanks of this type were delivered there, which took part in battles with units of the UNITA movement and units of the South African army. At the same time, they were very effectively used against the South African Panar AML-90 armored vehicles. Several tanks subsequently ended up at the disposal of the rebels in Namibia, where they participated in the hostilities against South African troops in 1981. At the same time, some of the tanks were hit by the fire of 90-mm cannons of the Ratel-90 armored vehicles, and a number of them were captured by the Yuarites.

The only country in Latin America that ever had T-34-85 tanks was Cuba. In 1960, she signed the first agreements with the USSR and Czechoslovakia on the supply of weapons and military equipment. Soon the first batch of tanks - about three dozen T-34-85 - arrived in Cuba.

Meanwhile, preparations were in full swing for the invasion of Cuba by the 2506 Brigade, formed from gusanos emigrants to overthrow Fidel Castro. The brigade had up to 10 M4 Sherman tanks (according to other sources - M41) and 20 M8 armored vehicles. The landing began on April 17, 1961 in the Bay of Pigs near Playa Larga and Playa Giron, and at first only small detachments of the people's militia - "milisianos" resisted the invasion forces. By noon on April 17, when the intentions of the "gusanos" became clear, F. Castro arrived at the positions for direct command of the troops. An infantry regiment, a tank battalion and a division of 122-mm howitzers advanced to the landing area.

On the evening of April 17, the Milicianos, with the support of several T-34-85 tanks that arrived in time, tried to advance in the direction of Playa Larga. Unable to turn around in battle formation in the swampy terrain, the tanks moved in a column along the highway, preventing each other from firing. "Gusanos" let them get closer and knocked out the head "thirty-four" from three bazookas at once. The rest of the tanks withdrew, the infantry also returned to their original positions. By the morning of April 18, the entire tank battalion from Santa Clara arrived at the battlefield under its own power, and two more tank companies were transferred from Managua on trailers. After several hours of artillery preparation, eight battalions of the army and police went on the offensive. T-34-85 tanks and SU-100 self-propelled guns moved behind the infantry battle formations, supporting them with continuous fire. By 10.30 in the morning they took Playa Larga and went ashore, where they transferred fire to landing craft trying to approach the shore.

On April 19, at 17.30, units of the Cuban army and the people's militia stormed the village of Playa Giron, the last point of defense of the "2506 brigade". The first to enter the village was a company of T-34-85 tanks, in the lead vehicle was Fidel Castro himself, who personally led the attack. In Playa Girona, the last two "Sherman" counter-revolutionaries were hit. Government troops lost only one T-34-85 during the entire operation.

In the fighting on the European continent after World War II, the T-34-85 was used three times. The first time was in 1956 in Hungary. In Budapest, the rebels captured five tanks of the Hungarian People's Army, and they then took part in battles with units of the Soviet Army that entered the city.

In 1974, during the Turkish intervention in Cyprus, T-34-85 tanks delivered to the Greek Cypriots from Yugoslavia and Poland fought with Turkish troops.

The last case of combat use of T-34-85 tanks took place during the civil war in Yugoslavia in 1991-1997. Combat vehicles of this type were used here by all the opposing sides, since before the collapse of Yugoslavia they were available in the territorial defense forces of almost all union republics. "Thirty-fours" showed themselves well in combat, although they were the most obsolete tanks in this war. The crews tried to compensate for the weakness of their armor by hanging steel sheets or sandbags on the sides. True, the T-34-85 was mainly used not as tanks, but as self-propelled gun mounts, firing from a place.

A story about the use of T-34-85 tanks in Yugoslavia would not be complete without mentioning the attempt to thoroughly modernize them, undertaken in this country in the late 40s. The main reason for this event was the desire to modernize the tank and, in this form, launch its own mass production in Yugoslavia, and not acquire licenses for its production from the USSR, relations with which then deteriorated sharply.

The changes did not affect, perhaps, only the chassis, suspension and engine. The transmission has undergone some improvement. The most significant innovations were made to the design of the hull and turret. The upper part of the hull was somewhat expanded, and she received lateral cheekbones in the bow. Because of this, the course machine gun had to be moved closer to the axis of the machine. The roof of the engine compartment was replaced with a new one, and the three standard cylindrical fuel tanks were replaced with semi-cylindrical ones. The tank received a completely new streamlined cast turret. Since the Yugoslav industry of those years was not able to produce such large castings, the tower was welded from six cast parts.

The ZIS-S-53 gun was also upgraded. A muzzle brake of the original form was installed on it. According to other sources, a 75-mm cannon, developed on the basis of the German KwK39, was installed on the tank. A 7.62-mm Browning M1919A4 anti-aircraft machine gun was mounted on the loader's rotating double-leaf hatch.

It should be noted that all these improvements really increased the projectile resistance of the hull and turret, but they could not significantly improve the characteristics of the vehicle. For this reason, and also because of technical difficulties, the mass modernization of the "thirty-fours" was never deployed. They made only 7 tanks, which took part in the parade on May 1, 1950 in Belgrade.

The designation T-34-85 was worn by the last generation of the T-34. It was a tank of the last year of the war and the post-war period. The number 85 denoted a new increased gun caliber. The place of the 76-mm guns of the previous issues was taken by the new 85-mm gun D-5T or ZIS-S-53. We note right away that the ZIS brand meant "Plant named after Stalin", but had nothing to do with the famous Moscow Automobile Plant. A completely different plant with the same name, located in Podlipki near Moscow (now the city of Korolev), produced artillery pieces developed at SKB-38 (later TsAKB), which was led by the famous designer V.A. Grabin. The new gun of the main caliber allowed the crew of the "thirty-four" to hit the target at a distance of up to 1.5-2 kilometers. Within a radius of a kilometer from the tank, a projectile fired from a D-5T or ZIS-S-53 pierced armor up to 100 mm thick. The sub-caliber projectile coped with armor up to 138 mm, but only at a distance of a maximum of half a kilometer. Such parameters were laid down in the terms of reference formulated on the basis of the experience gained during the Battle of Kursk, the Oryol offensive operation, the battles for Prokhorvka - the largest tank battles of the war. Soviet tankers had to endure heavy battles with Tigers, Panthers, Ferdinand self-propelled guns, so they needed a tank with more powerful weapons.

Tanks with the D-5T cannon differed from the vehicles with the ZIS-S-53 cannon, first of all, by the cannon mask: the former had it already. Instead of the TSh-15 sight (telescopic, articulated) on the T-34 with the D-5T gun, there was a TSh-16 sight. Tanks with a ZIS-S-53 cannon had an electric turret traverse that could be controlled by both the tank commander and the gunner.

For a more powerful gun, the tank needed a reinforced turret. The T-34-85 differed from its predecessors with a completely new cast turret. For her, it was necessary to make a new support - a stronger shoulder strap. Thus, the T-34-85 hull differed from the T-34-76 hull in the upper turret plate.

The new large turret made it possible to increase the crew by one person. The driver, the machine gunner-radio operator sitting to his right, and the loader, who was on the right in the turret, remained in their places. But the crew commander was relieved of his duties as a gunner. This role was assigned to the fifth fighter who appeared in the car. Now the commander could fully concentrate on his main duties: to observe the terrain, identify targets, destroy them with cannons and machine guns.

Powerful fans were called to improve conditions for the crew. They were in the characteristic "fungi" visible from the outside on the tower. The guns of that time did not yet have ejectors, and spent cartridges filled the inside of the tank with toxic gases, from which many tankers died. The crews tried to quickly throw the cartridge case out of the tank. Fans, which appeared on the T-34-85, made it possible to effectively deal with the concentration of harmful gases. The tanks, which were produced in Gorky by Krasnoe Sormovo (aka Factory No. 112), had fungi located differently than the machines of the Ural factories. In the post-war T-34-85, instead of the double-leaf hatch of the commander's cupola, a new single-leaf hatch was installed.

The engine, power transmission and chassis of the "thirty-four" remained virtually unchanged. Back in the days of the T-34-76 in 1943, the tank had a five-speed gearbox instead of a four-speed one. Then in 1943, under the leadership of the Chief Designer A.A. Morozov, the units of T-34 tanks produced by different factories were standardized.

The T-34-85 is considered the "Model 1943". The autumn and winter months were spent designing new weapons for the T-34 through the joint efforts of artillery and tank designers. The first car of the new model was assembled at Krasny Sormovo on December 31, 1943. In January and February, new cars were produced only in Gorky, and little by little - only 100 cars in two months. And only in March 1944, their production was mastered by the head enterprise No. 183 - Uralvagonzavod in Nizhny Tagil. And in the summer, the T-34-85 went into production at factory No. 174 in Omsk. The most massive were the Nizhny Tagil tanks - in 1944-1945 they were built at about 720-730 per month. In second place were Sormovo - the monthly productivity of the plant was approximately 315 cars. Finally, in Omsk, the production of "thirty-fours" was kept at a modest level of 150-200 cars every month. The mass production and the difference in technologies at different plants determined the different cost of tanks. In 1945, the Nizhny Tagil T-34-85 cost 136,800 rubles, Gorky - 173 thousand rubles, Omsk - 170 thousand rubles.

Officially, T-34-85 tanks were produced until 1946. But the new T-54 tank that replaced them was still practically not ready for production. It took a whole year to modernize the equipment to transfer the factories to its production. All this time, in Nizhny Tagil, Chelyabinsk and Gorky, “thirty-fours” were assembled from the stock of components, so their release was completed only in 1947. Licenses for the production of the T-34-85 were transferred to the fraternal socialist countries - Poland and Czechoslovakia, where their modernized versions were produced in the 50s.

Although the late "thirty-fours" with 85-mm weapons appeared before all of Europe in the last year of the war, and then participated in post-war conflicts, until 1958 the T-34-85 officially remained a secret tank. Only after the neck was removed, the old tanks began to be installed on pedestals as monuments. Most often, T-34-85s were used for this, since much more of them survived than T-34-76s. Also, it was the late "eighty-fifths" that usually starred in feature films about the war.

But the T-34-85 in the post-war decades was often used for its intended purpose during various armed conflicts, because it was in service with the countries participating in the Warsaw Pact, as well as Albania, Angola, Congo, Cuba, Vietnam, China, North Korea, Mongolia , Egypt, Guinea, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Mali, Syria, Finland, Yugoslavia. For example, during the Middle East wars that began in 1967, Arab troops fought against Israel in Czech T-34s. "Thirty-fours" in the early 50s participated in the Korean War, and in the 60-70s - in the Vietnam War. The last cases of mass use of the T-34-85 were noted during the civil war in Yugoslavia in the 1990s. Interestingly, in their homeland, the T-34-85 was finally withdrawn from service not in the Soviet, but in the Russian army. The corresponding decree was issued in September 1997, that is, after the first war in Chechnya.

Technical specifications

Crew	5 persons
dimensions	8100x3000x2700 mm
Ground clearance	400 mm
Engine	diesel, V-shaped, twelve-cylinder V-2-34
Working volume	38 880 cm 3
Power	500 HP
Armament	85 mm gun ZIS-S-53,two 7.62 mm machine guns
Ammunition	56 shells, 1920 rounds
Boev th mass	32 t
Armor: - forehead, side - feed - roof, bottom - tower
Max speed	55 km/h
Power reserve	250 km