Start in science. Military equipment of the Great Patriotic War Military equipment of the Second World War
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ARMED FORCES OF THE MAIN PARTICIPANTS OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR COUNTRY Number of armed forces (million people) By the beginning of 1941 By the beginning of 1945 Germany 7.2 9.4 Japan 1.7 7.2 Italy 1.5 - USA 1.8 11, 9 Great Britain 3.2 4.5 USSR 5.2 9.4 China (Kuomintang) 2.5 4.0 China (Communist) 0.4 0.9
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CORRELATION OF FORCES OF THE USSR AND GERMANY IN THE MOSCOW DIRECTION IN AUTUMN 1941 Combat forces and means Red Army German troops Personnel (thousand people) 120 1800 Number of tanks 990 1700 Number of guns and mortars (thousand) 7.6 14 Number of aircraft 667 1390
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Lend-lease (from the English “lend” - to lend and “lease” - to lease) is a kind of lending program for allies by the United States of America through the supply of machinery, food, equipment, raw materials and materials. Under the Lend-Lease Act, the United States could supply machinery, ammunition, equipment, and so on. countries whose defense was vital to the States themselves. All deliveries were free. All machinery, equipment and materials spent, expended or destroyed during the war were not subject to payment. Property left after the end of the war and suitable for civilian purposes had to be paid for.
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The share of Lend-Lease deliveries in the total amount of products manufactured and delivered to the USSR
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Aircraft 22,150 Tanks 12,700 SUVs and ATVs 51,503 Trucks 375,883 Motorcycles 35,170 Tractors 8,071 Rifles 8,218 Automatic weapons 131,633 Pistols 12,997 Freight wagons 11,155 Locomotives 1,981 Cargo ships and other anti-submarine ships 905
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Il-2 is the most massive combat aircraft in history, more than 36 thousand units were produced. In the Red Army, the aircraft received the nickname "humped" (for the characteristic shape of the fuselage). The designers called the aircraft they developed a "flying tank". The ground forces of the Wehrmacht had a bad reputation for the aircraft and earned several honorary nicknames, such as "butcher", "iron Gustav" Il-2 took part in the battles in all military operations of the Great Patriotic War, as well as in the Soviet-Japanese War. In February 1941, mass production began. The first serial Il-2s were manufactured in Voronezh at plant number 18 (in November 1941 the plant was evacuated to Kuibyshev). IL-2 was mass-produced at aircraft factories No. 1 and No. 18 in the city of Kuibyshev, at aircraft factory No. 30 in Moscow.
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The development was started by the designers and engineers of the special design bureau of the NKVD, SKB-29, in the middle of 1938. Created on the basis of an experimental twin-engine high-altitude fighter "100", the Pe-2 made its first flight on December 22, 1939 and began to be mass-produced at the end of 1940. The Pe-2 also served as a flying laboratory for testing rocket boosters. The first flight with an active rocket launcher took place in October 1943. The speed increased by 92 km/h. Experiments with various versions of the Pe-2 with rocket launchers continued until 1945.
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The first three serial Tu-2s, produced by plant No. 166, hit the Kalinin Front in September 1942. The machines were part of the 3rd Air Army. Front-line pilots highly appreciated the Tu-2. They emphasized the high efficiency of the aircraft, capable of dropping large bombs on the target, powerful defensive weapons, ease of piloting and high flight qualities. For the creation and organization of serial production of the Tu-2 bomber A.N. Tupolev was awarded the Stalin Prize of the 1st degree in 1943, in 1944 - the Order of the Patriotic War of the 1st degree and the Order of Suvorov of the 2nd degree, and was also promoted to major general of the engineering and technical service. In 1945, Tupolev became a Hero of Socialist Labor.
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Yak-7 Soviet single-engine fighter aircraft of the Great Patriotic War. It was developed at plant number 301 shortly after the start of the war on the initiative of the OKB brigade A. S. Yakovlev, who was at this plant to help in the development of the Yak-7UTI. The Yak-7 has been produced since 1941, a total of 6399 aircraft of 18 different modifications were built, including training and combat ones. By the end of 1942, it began to be rapidly replaced by a more advanced Yak-9, which later became the most massive Soviet fighter of the Great Patriotic War.
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The La-5 fighter appeared under circumstances that were not quite ordinary, if not dramatic, for a design team led by S.A. Lavochkin. Fighter LaGG-Z. for the release and improvement of which this design bureau was responsible, due to insufficient efficiency, they were removed from production. And the very existence of KB is now in question. Of course, the designers were well aware of the nature of LaGG's shortcomings and were already carrying out design work on its radical modification. Along with the need for a sharp improvement in flight data, the main thing in this matter was the efficiency and the requirement for the continuity of the LaGG-Z design and its new modification. Only if these conditions were met was it possible to transfer the plant to the production of a new aircraft before the Yak fighter was on the assembly line (as planned). And the design bureau of S.A. Lavochkin coped with this task successfully.
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For the production of armored vehicles in the Urals, the military-production complex "Tankograd" was created. Thousands of planes and tanks left the assembly lines of defense enterprises. This made it possible to form air and tank armies, which played a decisive role in the offensive of the Soviet Armed Forces in 1943-1945.
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T-34 - was the main tank of the Red Army until the first half of 1944, when it was replaced by the T-34-85 modification tank. From 1942 to 1945, the main production of the T-34 was deployed at powerful machine-building plants in the Urals and Siberia, and continued into the post-war years. The leading plant for modifying the T-34 was the Ural Tank Plant No. 183. The T-34 tank had a huge impact on the outcome of the war and on the further development of world tank building. Due to the combination of its combat qualities, the T-34 was recognized by many specialists and military experts as one of the best tanks of World War II. During its creation, Soviet designers managed to find the optimal ratio between the main combat, tactical, ballistic, operational, running and technological characteristics. The T-34 tank is the most famous Soviet tank and one of the most recognizable symbols of World War II.
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Serial production of the T-44 began in 1944, but during the Great Patriotic War it was carried out on a limited scale in order to prevent a reduction in the production of the T-34-85 during large-scale offensive operations. T-44
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In general, the tank fully justified the expectations of the command as a means of qualitatively strengthening units and subunits designed to break through well-fortified enemy lines in advance, as well as storm cities. Is -2
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OT-34 - was created on the basis of the T-34. Unlike the line tank, it was armed with an ATO-41 automatic gunpowder piston flamethrower, located in place of the course machine gun, which, for example, compared to the solution for the KV-8, made it possible to keep the 76-mm gun. OT-34
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Katyusha - appeared during the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945, the unofficial name of the barrelless systems of field rocket artillery (first and foremost - BM-13, and later also BM-8, BM-31 and others). Such installations were actively used by the Armed Forces of the USSR during the Second World War. The popularity of the nickname turned out to be so great that post-war MLRS on automobile chassis, in particular BM-14 and BM-21 Grad, were often called Katyushas in colloquial speech. Subsequently, by analogy with Katyusha, a number of similar nicknames ("Andryusha ”, “Vanyusha”) was given by Soviet fighters to other installations (BM-31 and others) of rocket artillery, but these nicknames did not receive such wide distribution and popularity and, in general, are much less known.
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The balance of forces in the Stalingrad direction in November 1942 Forces and means Red Army Germany and its allies Personnel (thousand people) 1134.8 1011.5 Number of tanks 1560 675 Number of guns and mortars 14934 10290 Number of aircraft 1916 1219
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The balance of forces in the Orel-Kursk direction in early July 1943 Forces and means Soviet troops German troops Personnel (thousand people) 1336 900 Number of tanks and self-propelled guns 3444 2733 Number of guns and mortars 19100 10000 Number of aircraft 2172 2050
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PRODUCTION OF MILITARY EQUIPMENT IN THE LARGEST COUNTRIES IN 1943-1944 COUNTRY PRODUCTION OF TANKS (thousand units) PRODUCTION OF AIRCRAFT (thousand units) 1943 1944 1943 1944 GERMANY 19.8 27.3 25.2 38.0 JAPAN 1.0 1.0 16.3 28.3 USSR 24.0 29 .0 35.0 40.3 UK 8.6 7.5 23.7 26.3 USA 29.5 17.6 85.9 96.4
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Of the divisional guns, the most common was the 76 mm ZIS-3 gun. In the initial period of the war, the 76-mm F-22 gun and the 76-mm USV gun were also used. The corps artillery was represented by 122 mm A-19 guns, a 152 mm howitzer of the 1909/30 model, and a 152 mm ML-20 howitzer-gun. Anti-tank guns included 45 mm 53-K, 45 mm M-42 and 57 mm ZIS-2 anti-tank guns. Anti-aircraft artillery used 37-mm 61-K anti-aircraft guns, as well as 76-mm 3-K and 85-mm 52-K guns.
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Before the war, increased attention was paid to the development of automatic weapons - the ABC self-loading rifle was followed by the SVT and AVT. However, the main small arms of the Soviet army was the Mosin rifle. In addition, the PPSh submachine gun also received some distribution. Nagan revolvers and TT pistols were used as officer weapons. The main light machine gun was the DP, and the Maxim machine gun, developed before the First World War, was used as an easel machine gun. The DShK heavy machine gun, also used as an anti-aircraft gun, also gained some distribution.
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Mosin rifle. 7.62-mm (3-line) rifle of the 1891 model (Mosin rifle, three-line) is a magazine rifle adopted by the Russian Imperial Army in 1891. It was actively used from 1891 until the end of the Great Patriotic War, during this period it was repeatedly modernized. The name of the three-ruler comes from the caliber of the rifle barrel, which is equal to three Russian lines (an old measure of length equal to one tenth of an inch, or 2.54 mm - respectively, three lines are equal to 7.62 mm). On the basis of the rifle of the 1891 model and its modifications, a number of samples of sports and hunting weapons, both rifled and smoothbore, were created.
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Shpagin submachine gun. The 7.62-mm Shpagin submachine gun of the 1941 model (PPSh) is a Soviet submachine gun developed in 1940 by designer G.S. Shpagin and adopted by the Red Army on December 21, 1940. PPSh was the main submachine gun of the Soviet armed forces in the Great Patriotic War. After the end of the war, in the early 1950s, the PPSh was withdrawn from service with the Soviet Army and gradually replaced by the Kalashnikov assault rifle, it remained in service with the rear and auxiliary units, parts of the internal troops and railway troops for a little longer. In service with paramilitary security units was at least until the mid-1980s. Also, in the post-war period, PPSh was supplied in significant quantities to countries friendly to the USSR, was in service with the armies of various states for a long time, was used by irregular formations, and throughout the 20th century was used in armed conflicts around the world.
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Pistol arr. 1933 (TT, Tulsky, Tokareva) - the first army self-loading pistol of the USSR, developed in 1930 by the Soviet designer Fedor Vasilyevich Tokarev. The TT pistol was developed for the 1929 competition for a new army pistol, announced to replace the Nagant revolver and several foreign-made revolvers and pistols that were in service with the Red Army by the mid-1920s. The German cartridge 7.63 × 25 mm Mauser was adopted as a regular cartridge, which was purchased in significant quantities for the Mauser S-96 pistols in service.
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-When I saw the Russians, I was surprised. How did the Russians get from the Volga to Berlin in such primitive vehicles? When I saw them and the horses, I thought it couldn't be. Technically advanced German and artillery were very much inferior to Russian technology. Do you know why? We have to be accurate. And the snow and dirt of accuracy do not help. When I was taken prisoner, I had a "Sturmgever", a modern weapon, but it failed after three shots - sand got in ... - Gunter Kühne, Wehrmacht soldier
Any war is a clash not only of troops, but also of the industrial and economic systems of the belligerents. This question must be remembered when trying to evaluate the merits of certain types of military equipment, as well as the successes of the troops achieved on this equipment. When evaluating the success or failure of a combat vehicle, one must clearly remember not only its technical characteristics, but also the costs that were invested in its production, the number of units produced, and so on. In other words, an integrated approach is important.
That is why the assessment of a single tank or aircraft and loud statements about the "best" model of war must be critically evaluated every time. It is possible to create an invincible tank, but quality issues almost always conflict with issues of ease of manufacture and mass production of such equipment. There is no point in creating an invincible tank if the industry cannot mass-produce it, and the cost of the tank will be like that of an aircraft carrier. A balance is important between the combat qualities of equipment and the ability to quickly establish large-scale production.
In this regard, it is of interest how this balance was observed by the belligerent powers at different levels of the military-industrial system of the state. How much and what kind of military equipment was produced, and how it affected the results of the war. This article attempts to bring together statistical data on the production of armored vehicles by Germany and the USSR during the Second World War and the immediate pre-war period.
Statistics.
The data obtained are summarized in a table, to which some explanations are required.
1. Approximate numbers are in red font. Basically, they concern two types - captured French vehicles, as well as the number of self-propelled guns produced on the chassis of German armored personnel carriers. The first is due to the inability to determine exactly how many trophies were actually used by the Germans in the troops. The second is due to the fact that the production of self-propelled guns on the chassis of an armored personnel carrier was often carried out by retrofitting already produced armored personnel carriers without heavy weapons, by installing a gun with a machine tool on an armored personnel carrier chassis.
2. The table contains information about all guns, tanks and armored vehicles. For example, the line "assault guns" includes German self-propelled guns sd.kfz.250/8 and sd.kfz.251/9, which are armored personnel carrier chassis with a short-barreled gun of 75 cm caliber installed. The corresponding number of linear armored personnel carriers is excluded from the line "armored personnel carriers" etc.
3. Soviet self-propelled guns did not have a narrow specialization, and could fight both tanks and support infantry. However, they are divided into different categories. For example, according to the designers, the closest to the German assault guns were the Soviet breakthrough self-propelled guns SU/ISU-122/152, as well as the Su-76 infantry support self-propelled guns. And such self-propelled guns as the Su-85 and Su-100 had a pronounced anti-tank character and were classified as "tank destroyers".
4. The “self-propelled artillery” category included guns designed primarily for firing from closed positions out of direct line of sight of targets, including rocket-propelled mortars on armored chassis. From the Soviet side, only BM-8-24 MLRS on the T-60 and T-40 chassis fell into this category.
5. Statistics include all production from 1932 to May 9, 1945. It was this technique, one way or another, that made up the potential of the warring parties and was used in the war. The technique of earlier production by the beginning of the Second World War was outdated and of no serious importance.
the USSR
The data obtained fit well into the well-known historical situation. The production of armored vehicles in the USSR was deployed on an incredible, massive scale, which fully corresponded to the aspirations of the Soviet side - preparation for a war of survival in the vast expanses from the Arctic to the Caucasus. To a certain extent, for the sake of mass character, the quality and debugging of military equipment were sacrificed. It is known that the equipment of Soviet tanks with high-quality communications equipment, optics and interior decoration was significantly worse than that of the Germans.
A clear imbalance in the weapon system is striking. In favor of the production of tanks, there are no entire classes of armored vehicles - armored personnel carriers, ZSU, control vehicles, etc. Last but not least, this situation is determined by the desire of the USSR to overcome the serious backlog in the main types of weapons, which was inherited after the collapse of the Republic of Ingushetia and the civil war. Attention was concentrated on saturating the troops with the main striking force - tanks, while support vehicles were ignored. This is logical - it is stupid to invest in the design of bridge layers and ARVs in conditions where the production of the main armament - tanks - has not been debugged.
Ammunition transporter TP-26
At the same time, the USSR was aware of the inferiority of such a weapon system, and already on the eve of the Second World War, they were actively designing a wide variety of support equipment. These are armored personnel carriers, self-propelled artillery, repair and recovery vehicles, bridge layers, etc. Most of this equipment did not have time to be introduced into production before the start of the Second World War, and already during the war its development had to be stopped. All this could not but affect the level of losses during the hostilities. So, for example, the absence of armored personnel carriers had a negative impact on infantry losses and their mobility. Making multi-kilometer foot marches, the infantrymen lost strength and part of their combat capability even before contact with the enemy.
Experienced armored personnel carrier TR-4
Partially, the gaps in the weapons system were filled with supplies from the allies. It is no coincidence that armored personnel carriers, self-propelled guns and SPAAGs on the chassis of American armored personnel carriers were supplied to the USSR. The total number of such vehicles was about 8500, which is not much less than the number of tanks received - 12300.
Germany
The German side followed a completely different path. Having suffered a defeat in WWI, Germany did not lose its design school and did not lose its technological superiority. Recall that in the USSR there was nothing to lose, tanks were not produced in the Russian Empire. Therefore, the Germans did not need to rush through the path from an agrarian state to an industrial state in a wild hurry.
Having begun preparations for war, the Germans were well aware that they could only defeat numerous and economically strong opponents in the person of Great Britain and France, and then the USSR, only by ensuring a qualitative superiority, which, traditionally, the Germans are excellent. But the issue of mass character for Germany was not so acute - relying on the blitzkrieg strategy and the quality of weapons gave a chance to achieve victory with small forces. The first attempts confirmed the success of the chosen course. Although not without problems, the Germans managed to defeat Poland, then France, and so on. The spatial scope of hostilities in the center of compact Europe fully corresponded to the number of tank forces that the Germans had at their disposal. Obviously, these victories further convinced the German command of the correctness of the chosen strategy.
Actually, that is why the Germans initially paid close attention to the balance of their weapons system. Here we see a variety of types of armored vehicles - ZSU, ammunition transporters, forward observers vehicles, BREM. All this made it possible to build a well-functioning mechanism for waging war, which, like a steamroller, went through all of Europe. Such a close attention to the technology of support, which also contributes to the achievement of victory, can only be admired.
Actually, the first shoots of the future defeat were laid in this weapon system. The Germans are Germans in everything. Quality and reliability! But as mentioned above, quality and mass are almost always in conflict. And one day the Germans started a war where everything was different - they attacked the USSR.
Already in the first year of the war, the blitzkrieg mechanism failed. The Russian open spaces were absolutely indifferent to the ideally debugged, but small German technology. Here a different scope was required. And although the Red Army suffered defeat after defeat, it became difficult for the Germans to maneuver with the modest forces that they had. Losses in the protracted conflict grew, and already in 1942 it became obvious that it was impossible to produce high-quality German equipment in the quantities necessary to make up for losses. Or rather, it is impossible in the same mode of operation of the economy. I had to start mobilizing the economy. However, these actions were very late - it was necessary to prepare for the current situation before the attack.
Technics
Assessing the potential of the parties, it is necessary to clearly separate the equipment for its intended purpose. The decisive influence on the outcome of the battle is exerted primarily by "battlefield" vehicles - equipment engaged in the destruction of the enemy by direct fire in the advanced echelons of troops. These are tanks and self-propelled guns. It should be recognized that in this category the USSR had an absolute superiority, having produced 2.6 times more military equipment.
Light tanks with machine-gun weapons, as well as wedges, are allocated in a separate category. Formally, being tanks, they represented a very low combat value for 1941. Neither the German Pz. I, neither the Soviet T-37 and T-38 tongue turns out to be included on a par with the formidable T-34 and even light BT or T-26. Passion for such technology in the USSR should be considered not a very successful experiment.
Separately, self-propelled artillery is indicated. The difference between this category of armored vehicles from assault guns, tank destroyers and other self-propelled guns lies in the possibility of firing from closed positions. Destruction of troops by direct fire for them is rather an exception to the rule than a typical task. In fact, these are ordinary field howitzers or MLRS mounted on the chassis of armored vehicles. Currently, this practice has become the norm, as a rule, any artillery gun has a towed (for example, 152-mm howitzer MSTA-B) and self-propelled version (MSTA-S). At that time it was a novelty, and the Germans were one of the first to implement the idea of self-propelled artillery, covered with armor. The USSR limited itself only to experiments in this area, and the self-propelled guns built using howitzers were used not as classic artillery, but as breakthrough weapons. At the same time, 64 BM-8-24 rocket systems were produced on the T-40 and T-60 chassis. There is information that the troops were satisfied with them, and why their mass release was not arranged is not clear.
MLRS BM-8-24 on a light tank chassis
The next category is combined arms armored vehicles, whose task is to support first-line equipment, but not designed to destroy targets on the battlefield. This category includes armored personnel carriers and SPAAGs on armored chassis, armored vehicles. It is important to understand that such vehicles, by their design, are not designed to fight in the same formation with tanks and infantry, although they should be located behind them in close proximity. It is erroneously considered that an armored personnel carrier is a battlefield vehicle. In fact, the armored personnel carriers were originally intended to transport infantry in the front line and protect it from fragments of artillery shells at the initial lines of attack. On the battlefield, armored personnel carriers, armed with a machine gun and protected by thin armor, could not help either the infantry or the tanks. Their large silhouette makes them an excellent and easy target. If in reality they did fight, it was forced. Vehicles of this category influence the outcome of the battle indirectly - saving the lives and forces of the infantry. Their value in battle is significantly lower than that of tanks, although they are also necessary. In this category, the USSR practically did not produce its own equipment, and only by the middle of the war acquired a small number of vehicles supplied under Lend-Lease.
The temptation to attribute armored personnel carriers to battlefield technology is fueled by the presence of very weak tanks in the ranks of the Red Army, for example, the T-60. Thin armor, primitive equipment, a weak gun - why is a German armored personnel carrier worse? Why is a tank with such weak performance characteristics a battlefield machine, but an armored personnel carrier is not? First of all, a tank is a specialized vehicle, the main task of which is precisely the destruction of targets on the battlefield, which cannot be said about the armored personnel carrier. Even though their armor is similar, but the low squat silhouette of the tank, its mobility, the ability to fire from a cannon clearly speaks of its purpose. An armored personnel carrier is precisely a transporter, and not a means of destroying the enemy. However, those German armored personnel carriers that received specialized weapons, for example, 75 cm or 3.7 cm anti-tank guns, are included in the table in the corresponding rows - anti-tank self-propelled guns. This is true, since this armored personnel carrier was eventually made into a vehicle designed to destroy the enemy on the battlefield, albeit with weak armor and a high, clearly visible silhouette of the transporter.
As for armored vehicles, they were mainly intended for reconnaissance and security. The USSR produced a huge number of machines of this class, and the combat capabilities of a number of models came close to the capabilities of light tanks. However, this applies primarily to pre-war technology. It seems that the forces and means spent on their manufacture could have been spent with a better use. For example, if some of them were intended for the transport of infantry, like conventional armored personnel carriers.
The next category is special vehicles without weapons. Their task is to provide troops, and armor is needed primarily to protect against random fragments and bullets. Their presence in combat formations should be short-lived; they do not need to constantly accompany the advancing troops. Their task is to solve specific tasks at the right time and in the right place, advancing from the rear, avoiding contact with the enemy if possible.
The Germans produced about 700 repair and recovery vehicles, plus about 200 were converted from previously released equipment. In the USSR, such machines were created only on the basis of the T-26 and produced in the amount of 183 units. It is difficult to fully assess the potential of the parties' repair forces, since the matter was not limited to BREM alone. Feeling the need for this type of equipment, both Germany and the USSR were engaged in makeshift conversion of obsolete and partially defective tanks into tow trucks and tractors. In the Red Army there were a lot of such vehicles with dismantled towers based on T-34, KV and IS tanks. It is not possible to establish their exact number, since they were all made in combat units of the army, and not in factories. In the German army, despite the presence of specialized ARVs, similar homemade products were also made, and their number is also unknown.
Ammunition transporters were intended by the Germans primarily to supply advanced artillery units. In the Red Army, the same task was solved by ordinary trucks, the security of which, of course, was lower.
Forward observers' vehicles were also mainly needed by the gunners. In the modern army, their counterparts are the vehicles of senior battery officers and mobile reconnaissance posts of the PRP. However, in those years the USSR did not produce such machines.
In terms of bridgelayers, their presence in the Red Army may be surprising. Nevertheless, it was the USSR that produced 65 such vehicles on the basis of the T-26 tank under the designation ST-26 before the war. The Germans, on the other hand, made several of these vehicles based on the Pz IV, Pz II and Pz I. However, neither the Soviet ST-26 nor the German bridge layers had any effect on the course of the war.
Bridge tank ST-26
Finally, the Germans mass-produced such specific machines as demolition charge stackers. The most massive of these machines, the Goliath, was a remotely controlled disposable tankette. This type of machine is difficult to attribute to any category, so their tasks are unique. The USSR did not produce such machines.
findings
Analyzing the impact of the production of weapons on the consequences of the war, two factors must be taken into account - the balance of the weapons system and the balance of equipment in terms of quality / quantity.
The balance of the German army's weapons system is extremely commendable. The USSR in the pre-war period was unable to create anything of the kind, although the need for this was recognized by the leadership. The lack of auxiliary equipment had a negative impact on the combat capabilities of the Red Army, primarily in the mobility of support units and infantry. Of all the wide range of auxiliary equipment, one should regret the absence in the Red Army, first of all, of armored personnel carriers and self-propelled anti-aircraft guns. The absence of such exotic vehicles as remote demolition charges and artillery observer vehicles could be endured without tears. As for the BREM, their role was quite successfully solved by tractors based on tanks with weapons removed, and there are still no armored ammunition transporters in the army, and the troops as a whole cope with this task with the help of conventional trucks.
The production of armored personnel carriers in Germany should be considered justified. Knowing the cost of military equipment, it is not difficult to calculate that the production of the entire fleet of armored personnel carriers cost the Germans about 450 million marks. For this money, the Germans could build about 4000 Pz. IV or 3000 Pz.V. Obviously, such a number of tanks would not greatly affect the outcome of the war.
As for the USSR, its leadership, overcoming the technological lag behind Western countries, correctly assessed the importance of tanks as the main striking force of the troops. The emphasis on improving and developing tanks eventually gave the USSR an advantage over the German army directly on the battlefield. With the high utility of support technology, it was the battlefield vehicles that played the decisive role in the outcome of the battles, which in the Soviet army had the highest development priority. A large number of support vehicles in the end did nothing to help Germany win the war, although it certainly saved a considerable number of lives of German soldiers.
But the balance between quality and quantity in the end was not in favor of Germany. The traditional tendency of the Germans to strive for the achievement of the ideal in everything, even where this should be neglected, played a cruel joke. Preparing for a war with the USSR, it was necessary to pay close attention to the mass production of equipment. Even the most advanced combat vehicles in small numbers are not able to turn the tide of events. The gap between the combat capabilities of Soviet and German technology was not so large that the German qualitative superiority could play a decisive role. But the quantitative superiority of the USSR turned out to be able not only to make up for the losses of the first period of the war, but also to influence the course of the war as a whole. The ubiquitous T-34s, supplemented by small Su-76s and T-60s, were everywhere, while the Germans from the very beginning of the Second World War did not have enough equipment to saturate the huge front.
Speaking about the quantitative superiority of the USSR, it is impossible to bypass the discussion of the traditional template of "filled up with corpses." Having discovered such a striking superiority of the Red Army in technology, it is difficult to resist the temptation to put forward the thesis that we fought in numbers, and not in skill. Such statements should be stopped immediately. Not a single, even the most talented commander, will give up quantitative superiority over the enemy, even if he can fight with many times fewer troops. Quantitative superiority gives the commander the widest possibilities for planning a battle and does not at all mean an inability to fight in small numbers. If you have a lot of troops, this does not mean that you will immediately enthusiastically throw them into a frontal attack, in the hope that they will crush the enemy with their mass. Whatever the quantitative superiority is, it is not infinite. To provide our troops with the opportunity to operate in greater numbers is the most important task of industry and the state. And the Germans understood this very well, having squeezed out everything that was possible from their economy in the years 43-45 in an attempt to achieve at least not superiority, but parity with the USSR. They did not do it in the best way, but the Soviet side did it excellently. Which became one of the many bricks in the foundation of victory.
P.S.
The author does not consider this work exhaustive and final. Perhaps there are experts who can significantly supplement the information presented. Any reader can get acquainted with the collected statistics in detail by downloading the full version of the statistical table presented in this article from the link below.
https://yadi.sk/i/WWxqmJlOucUdP
References:
A.G. Solyankin, M.V. Pavlov, I.V. Pavlov, I.G. Zheltov “Domestic armored vehicles. XX century. (in 4 volumes)
W. Oswald. "Complete Catalog of German Military Vehicles and Tanks 1900 - 1982"
P. Chamberlain, H. Doyle, "Encyclopedia of German tanks of the Second World War."
Technique of the USSR
Tank of the USSR: T-34 (or "thirty-four")
The tank was put into service on December 19, 1939. This is the only tank in the world that retained its combat capability and was in mass production until the end of the Great Patriotic War. The T-34 tank deservedly enjoyed the love of soldiers and officers of the Red Army, was the best vehicle in the world tank fleet. He played a decisive role in the battles near Moscow, Stalingrad, on the Kursk Bulge, near Berlin and other military operations.
Soviet technology of World War II
Tank of the USSR: IS - 2 "Joseph Stalin"
IS-2 is a Soviet heavy tank of the Great Patriotic War period. The abbreviation IS means "Joseph Stalin" - the official name of the serial Soviet heavy tanks produced in 1943-1953. Index 2 corresponds to the second serial model of the tank of this family. During the Great Patriotic War, along with the designation IS-2, the name IS-122 was used on an equal footing, in this case, the index 122 means the caliber of the main armament of the vehicle.
Weapons of the USSR: 76-mm divisional gun model 1942
ZIS-3 became the most massive Soviet artillery gun produced during the Great Patriotic War. Due to its outstanding combat, operational and technological qualities, this weapon is recognized by experts as one of the best weapons of the Second World War. In the post-war period, the ZIS-3 was in service with the Soviet Army for a long time, and was also actively exported to a number of countries, in some of which it is still in service.
Military equipment of the USSR: Katyusha
Katyusha is the unofficial collective name for the BM-8 (82 mm), BM-13 (132 mm) and BM-31 (310 mm) rocket artillery combat vehicles. Such installations were actively used by the USSR during World War II.
A photo. Multi-purpose all-wheel drive army vehicle
Willys-MV (USA, 1942)
Weight without load 895kg. (2150lbs)
Liquid-cooled carburetor engine 42hp / 2500 rpm 4-cycle. 2200cm²
Gearbox: 3 speeds + 1 reverse
Maximum speed on the highway: 104 km / h.
Fuel consumption 14l/100kl.
Tank 57l.
A photo. Antitank gun. M-42. 45 mm. Caliber 45mm. Barrel length 3087mm. The maximum rate of fire is 15-30 rounds per minute.
A photo. Katyusha. Rocket mortar BM-13. Created in 1939 design bureau A. Kostyukov. Performance characteristics: Caliber: 132mm. Weight without shells: 7200kg. Number of guides: 16 Firing range: 7900m.
A photo. 122 mm. Howitzer. Model 1938 Created in 1938 F. Petrov's design team. Tactical and technical characteristics: Weight: in combat position 2400kg. Firing range: 11800m. Maximum elevation angle + 63.5°. Rate of fire 5-6 rds / min.
A photo. 76 mm. Divisional Cannon. Model 1942 Created in 1938-1942. design bureau V. Grabin. Tactical and technical characteristics: Weight: in combat position 1200kg. Firing range: 13290m. The maximum elevation angle is + 37°. Rate of fire 25 rds / min.
A photo. 57 mm. Anti-tank gun. Model 1943 Created in 1938-1942. design bureau V. Grabin. Tactical and technical characteristics: Weight: in combat position 1250kg. Firing range: 8400m. The maximum elevation angle is + 37°. Rate of fire 20-25 rds / min.
A photo. 85 mm. Anti-aircraft gun. Model 1939 Created in 1939 G. D. Dorokhin. Tactical and technical characteristics: Weight: in combat position 4300kg. Firing range in height: 10500m. Horizon: 15500m. Maximum elevation angle + 82°. Rate of fire 20 rds / min.
A photo. Barrel 203 mm. Howitzers. Model 1931 Designers F. F. Pender, Magdesnev, Gavrilov, Torbin. Tactical and technical characteristics: Weight: in combat position 17700kg. Firing range: 18000m. Maximum elevation angle + 60°. Rate of fire 0.5 rds / min.
A photo. 152 mm. Howitzer gun M-10. Model 1937 Created in 1937 design group of F. Petrov Tactical and technical characteristics: Weight: in combat position 7270kg. Firing range: 17230m. Maximum elevation angle + 65°. Rate of fire 3-4 rds / min
A photo. 152 mm. Howitzer D-1. Model 1943 Created in 1943 design group of F. Petrov Tactical and technical characteristics: Weight: in combat position 3600kg. Firing range: 12400m. Maximum elevation angle + 63.30°. Rate of fire 3-4 rds / min.
A photo. Field kitchen. KP-42 M.
A photo. Heavy Tank IS-2. Created in 1943 design group Zh. Ya. Kotina, NL Dukhov Tactical and technical characteristics: Combat weight: 46t. Booking: forehead of the hull; 120mm; side of the hull; 90mm; tower 110mm. Speed: 37km/h Highway range: 240km. Armament: 122mm gun; 3 machine guns 7.62mm; 12.7mm anti-aircraft machine gun Ammunition: 28 shells, 2331 cartridges Crew: 4 pers.
A photo. Heavy self-propelled artillery mount ISU-152 Created in 1944. Tactical and technical characteristics: Combat weight: 47t. Booking: forehead of the hull; 100mm; side of the hull; 90mm; cabin 90mm. Speed: 37km/h Highway range: 220km. Armament: 152mm gun-howitzer; 12.7mm anti-aircraft machine gun Ammunition: 20 rounds Crew: 5 people
A photo. Heavy Tank IS-3 Developed under the guidance of designer M. F. Blazhi. Adopted in 1945. Tactical and technical characteristics: Combat weight: 45.8 tons. Speed: 40 km/h Cruising range on the highway: 190 km. Power: 520hp Armament: 122mm gun D-25T model 1943. machine gun 7.62mm DT, machine gun 12.7mm DShK. Ammunition: 20 shells Crew: 4 people
Information from the Museum of the Battle of Stalingrad, in the city of Volgograd.
Each of the warring parties has invested staggering sums of money into the design and construction of powerful weapons, and we will try to consider some of the most influential. Today they are not considered the best or the most destructive, but the military equipment below, to one degree or another, influenced the course of the Second World War.
The LCVP is a type of US Navy landing craft. Designed for the transportation and landing of personnel on an unequipped coastline occupied by the enemy.
The LCVP, or Higgins boat, is named after its creator, Andrew Higgins, who designed the boat to operate in shallow water and swampy terrain, and was extensively used by the US Navy during amphibious operations during World War II. Over 15 years of production, 22,492 boats of this type were built.
The landing craft LCVP was built from pressed plywood and structurally resembled a small river barge with a crew of 4 people. At the same time, the boat could carry a full infantry platoon of 36 troops. At full load, the Higgins boat could reach speeds of up to 9 knots (17 km / h).
Katyusha (BM-13)
Katyusha is the unofficial name for the barrelless field rocket artillery systems widely used by the Armed Forces of the USSR during the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945. Initially, they called Katyushas - BM-13, and later they began to call BM-8, BM-31, and others. BM-13 is the famous and most massive Soviet combat vehicle (BM) of this class.
Avro Lancaster
Avro Lancaster - British heavy bomber, used during the Second World War, and was in service with the Royal Air Force. The Lancaster is considered the most productive night bomber of World War II and the most famous. He flew over 156,000 sorties and dropped over 600,000 tons of bombs.
The first combat flight took place in March 1942. During the war, more than 7,000 Lancasters were produced, but almost half were destroyed by the enemy. Currently (2014), only two machines have survived that are capable of flying.
U-boat (submarine)
U-boat is a generalized abbreviation for the German submarines that were in service with the German naval forces.
Germany, not having a strong enough fleet capable of withstanding the allied forces at sea, primarily relied on its submarines, the main purpose of which was the destruction of trade convoys transporting goods from Canada, the British Empire and the United States to the Soviet Union and allied countries in the Mediterranean. German submarines proved to be incredibly efficient. Winston Churchill would later say that the only thing that scared him during World War II was the underwater threat.
Studies have shown that the Allies spent $26,400,000,000 to fight German submarines. Unlike the Allied countries, Germany spent $2.86 billion on its U-boats. From a purely economic standpoint, the campaign is seen as a German success, making German submarines one of the most influential weapons of the war.
the plane Hawker Hurricane
The Hawker Hurricane was a British single-seat World War II fighter aircraft designed and manufactured by Hawker Aircraft Ltd. In total, more than 14,500 of these aircraft were built. Hawker Hurricane had various modifications and could be used as a fighter-bomber, interceptor and attack aircraft.
The M4 Sherman is an American medium tank from World War II. In the period from 1942 to 1945, 49,234 tanks were produced, it is considered the third most massive tank in the world after the T-34 and T-54. During the Second World War, on the basis of the M4 Sherman tank, a large number of various modifications were built (one of which the Sherman Crab is the strangest tank), self-propelled artillery mounts (ACS) and engineering equipment. It was used by the American army, and was also supplied in large quantities to the allied forces (mainly to Great Britain and the USSR).
The 88mm FlaK 18/36/37/41 is also known as the "eight-eight" - a German anti-aircraft, anti-tank artillery gun, which was widely used by the German troops during the Second World War. A weapon designed to destroy both aircraft and tanks was also often used as artillery. Between 1939 and 1945, a total of 17,125 such guns were built.
North American R-51 Mustang
The third place in the list of the most influential military equipment of the Second World War is occupied by the P-51 Mustang, an American single-seat long-range fighter developed in the early 1940s. Considered the best US Air Force fighter of World War II. It was used mainly as a reconnaissance aircraft and to escort bombers during raids on German territory.
Aircraft carriers
Aircraft carriers - a type of warships, the main striking force of which is carrier-based aviation. In World War II, Japanese and American aircraft carriers already played a leading role in Pacific battles. For example, the famous attack on Pearl Harbor was carried out using dive bombers stationed on six Japanese aircraft carriers.
T-34 is a Soviet medium tank, which was mass-produced from 1940 until the first half of 1944. It was the main tank of the Workers 'and Peasants' Red Army (RKKA) until it was replaced by the T-34-85 modification, which is still in service with some countries today. The legendary T-34 is the most massive medium tank and is recognized by many military experts and specialists as the best tank produced during the Second World War. Also considered one of the most famous symbols of the above-mentioned war.