Light tank t 80 model 1943. When the first tanks appeared in the ussr . Armored corps and turret

T-80- Soviet light tank during the Second World War. Developed in the summer-autumn of 1942 at the tank design bureau of the Gorky Automobile Plant (GAZ) under the leadership of Nikolai Alexandrovich Astrov, the leading developer of the entire domestic line of light tanks of that period. In December 1942, the T-80 was adopted by the Workers 'and Peasants' Red Army and mass-produced at the Mytishchi Plant No. 40. Production of the T-80 continued until September 1943, when it was replaced on the assembly lines of Plant No. 40 with a self-propelled artillery mount SU -76M. A total of 77 units and two prototypes of T-80 light tanks were produced, which took part in the battles of the Great Patriotic War in 1943. Due to the unreliable operation of the propulsion system, weak weapons for 1943 and the great need for the Red Army self-propelled units The SU-76M T-80 was discontinued. At the beginning of 1943, an experimental tank was built on the basis of the T-80 with a high-powered 45-mm VT-43 tank gun, but it was not adopted by the Red Army either. Thus, the T-80 became the last light tank of domestic wartime design.

History of creation

From the very first moment the T-70 light tank was adopted by the Red Army, Soviet military experts pointed out its main weakness - a single-man turret. But the design of the tank still had reserves that could be used to eliminate this shortcoming. The GAZ tank design bureau, headed by N.A. Astrov, promised this to the military even when the GAZ-70 prototype was shown and got into work almost immediately after the serial production of the T-70 was established. During late spring, summer and early autumn 1942, it was found that the installation of a two-man tower would greatly increase the load on the engine, transmission and undercarriage tank. Tests up to the T-70 tank loaded up to 11 tons fully confirmed these fears - during the tests, suspension torsion bars burst, tracks broke, transmission units and assemblies failed. Therefore, the main work was carried out to strengthen these structural elements; it successfully ended with the adoption by the Red Army of the T-70M modification. Also by the fall, a double turret for the T-70 tank was manufactured and successfully tested, but on the way to serial production there were two obstacles.

The first of these was the insufficient power of the GAZ-203 twin propulsion system. It was planned to increase it by forcing up to 170 liters. With. in total due to an increase in the filling ratio of the cylinders and an increase in the compression ratio. The second obstacle arose from the requirements to provide large gun elevation angles for hitting targets on the upper floors of buildings in urban battles. It could also make it possible to increase the possibilities of fire countermeasures against enemy aircraft. In particular, the commander of the Kalinin Front, Lieutenant General I. S. Konev, insisted on this. The already developed double turret for the T-70 did not meet this requirement and was redesigned to allow the gun to be fired at a high elevation angle. The second prototype with the new turret received the factory designation 080 or 0-80. For more convenient placement of a gun with the possibility of anti-aircraft fire and two crew members, it was necessary to widen the diameter of the shoulder strap and make an armor ring-barbette 40-45 mm thick under the inclined sides of the tower. Due to the wider shoulder strap of the turret, it became impossible to dismantle the engine without first removing the turret - the armor ring began to enter the removable armor plate above the engine.

In December 1942, the prototype 080 successfully passed field tests and was adopted by the Red Army under the symbol T-80. However, the organization of its release was not planned at GAZ, since the transition of the Gorky auto giant to the production of the "eighties" could lead to a decrease in the production of SU-76 tanks and self-propelled guns, which could not be allowed in wartime conditions. Therefore, the task of mastering the production of T-80 was entrusted to the newly organized Mytishchi Plant No. 40.

Design

The T-80 had a typical layout for Soviet light tanks of the time. The tank had five compartments, listed below in order from the front of the vehicle to the stern:

• transmission department;
• department of management;
• engine compartment on the starboard side of the middle of the hull;
• fighting compartment on the left side of the middle of the hull and in the turret;
• aft compartment, where the fuel tanks and engine radiator were located.

This layout scheme determined, in general, a set of advantages and disadvantages of the tank within the framework of vehicles of its class. In particular, the front location of the transmission compartment, that is, the drive wheels, led to their increased vulnerability, since it is the front end of the tank that is most susceptible to enemy fire. On the other hand, unlike the Soviet medium and heavy tanks, in the T-80, the fuel tanks were located outside the fighting compartment in a compartment isolated by an armored bulkhead, which reduced the risk of a fire when a tank was hit (especially high for a vehicle with a gasoline engine) and this increased the survival of the crew. Other advantages of the layout chosen for the T-80 include the low height and total weight of the tank (compared to other mine-laying machines), which were achieved, moreover, despite the forced use of the “lanky” GAZ-203F power unit. As a result, increased dynamic characteristics tank, and it did not require a powerful specialized engine. The crew of the tank consisted of three people- driver, gunner and vehicle commander, who also served as a loader.

Armament

The main armament of the T-80 was a rifled semi-automatic 45-mm tank gun mod. 1938 (20-Km or 20Km) The gun was mounted on trunnions in the plane of longitudinal symmetry of the turret. The 20-Kimela cannon had a barrel length of 46 calibers, the height of the line of fire was 1630 mm, the direct fire range reached 3.6 km, the maximum possible - 6 km. A 7.62-mm DT machine gun was paired with the gun, which could be easily removed from the twin mount and used outside the tank. The twin installation had a range of elevation angles from -8 ° to + 65 ° and circular horizontal fire. The rotary mechanism of the gear-type turret, with a manual drive, was located to the left of the tank commander, and the lifting mechanism of the gun (screw type, also with a manual drive) was located on the right. The descent of the machine gun is mechanical, the gun was equipped with an electric trigger.

The ammunition load of the gun was 94-100 rounds of unitary loading (cartridges). When firing armor-piercing shells, the extraction of the spent cartridge case was carried out automatically, and when firing with fragmentation shells, due to the shorter barrel recoil due to the low initial velocity of the fragmentation shell, semi-automatic did not work, and the commander had to open the shutter and remove the spent cartridge case manually. The theoretical rate of fire of the gun was 12 rounds per minute, but due to the need to manually extract the spent cartridge case from the fragmentation projectile, the rate of fire in practice was several times lower, 4-7 rounds per minute.

Production

Serial production of the T-80 was launched in Mytishchi at plant number 40 in February 1943. Production volumes were small, until the end of production in October 1943, about 80 vehicles were produced. The total number of T-80s produced remains unclear. According to the documents of the Main Armored Directorate of the Red Army, a total of 75 "eighties" were built. However, the reports of the People's Commissariat of the Tank Industry contain somewhat different figures. According to this department, 81 T-80 tanks were produced in 1943, and 85 during the entire war. However, prototypes, experimental and pre-production vehicles may be included in this number. Also, some authors include experimental vehicles built by GAZ in the total number of produced T -80.

The cessation of production of the T-80 was to a certain extent due to several reasons: to a lesser extent, the unreliable operation of the M-80 forced propulsion system (in the sources, its designations also differ - the M-80 or GAZ-203F indices are mentioned); to a greater extent, the reasons were insufficient firepower and armor protection "eighties". By the end of 1943 - the beginning of 1944, the forced propulsion system was brought to an acceptable level of reliability, but there was no question of resuming the production of the T-80 at all.

Specifications

Developer: GKB under the direction of N.A. Astrov
Started work: 1942
Year of production of the first prototype: December 1942

Immediately after the adoption of the GAZ-70 tank, and the establishment of its mass production under the designation T-70, alarming reports began to come from combat units. Despite the enhanced armor protection and armament compared to the T-40 and T-60, new tank was still equipped with a single turret. This had an extremely negative impact on the work of the crew, since the commander of the vehicle was forced during the battle to simultaneously give orders to the driver, fire the cannon, feed the ammunition himself and load it himself.

The solution to this problem was taken up in the spring of 1942, but then the new two-man turret developed by the design bureau engineers under the leadership of Astrov was not accepted for installation on serial T-70s due to numerous identified shortcomings. In particular, Special attention paid closeness in the fighting compartment, as well as the increased mass of the tank, which had a negative impact on the chassis and transmission. The tests of the serial T-70, loaded to a mass of 11 tons, fully confirmed the calculations made - the tank's suspension torsion bars burst, the tracks broke, the transmission units and assemblies failed. Nevertheless, from the end of 1942, an improved modification of the T-70M entered mass production, on which most of the shortcomings were eliminated. In addition to the single tower…

The new turret, which was installed on a prototype tank under the symbol "080". Unlike the previous project, it had a heavily sloping front plate, which was made specifically to achieve maximum firing angles in the vertical plane. This was required not only by the current front-line situation, where light tanks of the unit were used to storm city blocks, but also by individual officers. For example, this was demanded by the commander of the Kalinin Front, Lieutenant General Konev, who wanted light tanks to be able to defend themselves from enemy air attacks.

Improvements were made in as soon as possible, however, innovations were not easy to get. For more convenient placement of a gun with the possibility of anti-aircraft fire and two crew members, it was necessary to widen the diameter of the shoulder strap and make an armor ring-barbette 40-45 mm thick under the inclined sides of the tower. Due to the wider turret shoulder, it became impossible to dismantle the engine without first removing the turret - the armor ring began to enter the removable armor plate above the engine.

The undercarriage was left the same, with five road wheels on board equipped with an individual torsion bar suspension, three support rollers, a front drive wheel and a rear idler wheel. The tank used a standard small-link caterpillar from the T-70, consisting of 80 tracks 300 mm wide.

The electrical wiring in the T-80 tank was single-wire, the armored hull of the vehicle served as the second wire. The sources of electricity (operating voltage 12 V) were a GT-500S generator with a 500 W RRK-GT-500S relay-regulator and two 3-STE-112 batteries connected in series with a total capacity of 112 A/h.

The power plant has changed - instead of the GAZ-203 engine, a forced GAZ-203F was installed, which was a pair of two GAZ-80 engines with a power of 85 hp. every. The tank was equipped with a mechanical transmission, which consisted of a two-disc semi-centrifugal dry friction main clutch, a 4-speed 5-speed gearbox, a cardan shaft, a main bevel gear, two multi-plate dry friction clutches, band brakes with ferrodo linings and two simple single-row final drives .

The armament of the 080 remained the same (45 mm 20K cannon with a barrel length of 46 calibers and a 7.62 mm DT machine gun), except that the twin machine gun and cannon mount received increased firing angles in the vertical plane, which ranged from -8 ° to +65°. Ammunition for the gun was increased to 94 shells (according to other sources - up to 100). Despite the seeming obsolescence, the 20K semi-automatic gun turned out to be very successful and was produced for almost the entire war. It had small dimensions and was suitable for installation on any light type tank produced after 1941. The only big drawback of this gun was the imperfection of the semi-automatic mechanism - when firing a fragmentation projectile, the barrel recoil was somewhat less and the mechanism did not work, so the tank commander had to manually remove the spent cartridge case from the chamber, which reduced the rate of fire from 15 to 7-10 rounds per minute. The practical firing range of the 20K was 3600 meters, the maximum - 6000 meters. were very good and ballistic performance. When firing armor-piercing projectiles (BR-240 or B-240) from a distance of 1000 meters, a 35-mm armor plate set at an angle of 90 ° was penetrated, and a 28-mm armor plate set at an angle of 60 °. After the adoption of the BR-240P sub-caliber projectile, these figures increased to 72 and 59 mm, respectively. More than that at best conditions, when fired from a distance of 100 meters or less, the sub-caliber projectile pierced a 96-mm vertically mounted armor plate. Thus, the 20K gun in close range combat was very strong adversary for all medium and light enemy tanks. the crew was also supplied with one PPSh submachine gun with 3 discs (213 rounds) and 12 hand grenades F-1. In some cases, a pistol for firing flares was added to this weapon.

The tank was equipped with two types of sights: TMF-1 for shooting at ground targets and collimator K-8T for shooting at air targets and upper floors buildings.

The radio equipment consisted of a 12RT radio station and an internal TPU intercom for 3 subscribers.

The hull of the tank, as well as the armor scheme, did not undergo significant changes, except that the thickness of the side armor plates was increased to 25 mm.

Testing of the new tank was completed in December 1942 with only partial success. According to the main indicators, "080" did not differ from the serial T-70, differing only in improved sectors of fire in the vertical plane and a less loaded engine. It was problematic to “squeeze” more out of the tank design, so at the beginning of 1943 it was decided to adopt the “080” under the designation T-80.

The production of the new machine was launched at factory No. 40 in Mytishchi, where from February to October 1943 it was possible to assemble from 75 to 85 units.
In a number of foreign sources, there is a figure of 120 tanks, but most likely this number included modified T-70Ms of the latest series. Further production of the T-80 was stopped due to the greater need of the front in self-propelled guns SU-76M and the rejection of further development lung tanks type.

Little is known about the combat use of T-80 tanks. As soon as these vehicles began to enter service, since November 1943, the organizational and staff structure was revised towards their exclusion from the composition of tank brigades (single states No. 010/500 - 010/506), and on March 4, 1944, the General Staff of the Red Army directive No. Org / 3/2305 on the exclusion of the T-70 from the tank regiments. In other words, the command of the Red Army, given the experience of using light tanks, was going to completely abandon them, replacing the T-70 and T-80 with armored vehicles.

However, in 1944, several tanks of this type came into the possession of several tank units (self-propelled artillery regiments) operating on the territory of Western Ukraine and Hungary and were used as reconnaissance tanks, while the rest of the T-80 remained in the second line. There is also information about the receipt in the replenishment of the 5th Guards Tank Brigade on February 15, 1945, two T-80 tanks that arrived from repair. After the end of the war, the surviving tanks were transferred to training units and were soon sent for scrapping.

Sources:
Svirin M.N. Stalin's steel fist. History of the Soviet tank. 1943-1955". Eksmo, 2007
"The Complete Encyclopedia of World Tanks 1915-2000". compiled by G.L. Kholyavsky. Harvest.Minsk\AST.Moscow. 1998

PERFORMANCE DATA OF THE LIGHT TANK
T-80 model 1943

T-80 (light tank)

Main characteristics

Briefly

in detail

2.3 / 2.3 / 2.0 BR

3 people Crew

74% Visibility

forehead / side / stern Booking

0 / 0 / 15 body

35 / 35 / 0 towers

Mobility

11.6 tons Weight

324 l/s 170 l/s Engine power

28 hp/t 15 hp/t specific

46 km/h forward
6 km/h back42 km/h ahead
5 km/h ago Speed

Armament

94 shells ammo

2.5 / 3.2 sec recharge

8° / 65° UVN

1,071 rounds of ammunition

8.0 / 10.4 sec recharge

63 rounds clip size

600 shots/min rate of fire

Economy

Description

The single turret of the T-70 tank made it extremely difficult to control and fire (the commander had to do his job, as well as the work of the gunner and loader). Based on this, on the basis of the T-70B tank, in 1942 the design bureau of the GAZ plant developed the T-80 light tank with a crew of 3 people. The tank received a boosted engine and a new double turret. A feature of the T-80 was the large elevation angle of the 45-mm gun (up to 65 degrees), which is necessary when fighting in the city and for mounted howitzer firing. T-80 was equipped with anti-aircraft collimator sight K-8T, this sight made it possible to fire at air targets. A new driver's hatch appeared with a more advanced periscope device, which significantly improved visibility.

The T-80 tank was put into production at factory No. 40 in Mytishchi, Moscow Region, in February 1943. Soon their production was discontinued due to the unreliable operation of the propulsion system, weak weapons for 1943 and the great need of the Red Army in self-propelled guns SU-76M. The T-80 tank was the last serial model of domestic light tanks of the Great Patriotic War period. In total, 70-80 cars were built. T-70 and T-80 were transferred to reconnaissance battalions (they included a company of light tanks numbering 7 vehicles, the rest were BA-64 armored vehicles) and, for use as command vehicles, in part self-propelled artillery armed with self-propelled guns SU-76.

Main characteristics

Armor protection and survivability

Frontal armor T-80

Side armor T-80

Stern armor T-80

Internal modules T-80

The T-80 has quite serious armor protection, but with large vulnerabilities, which can penetrate even small-caliber guns (20-37 mm). To the most vulnerabilities forehead include - the driver's hatch, turret shoulder strap, places on the sides of the gun. The most protected areas of the tank are the upper frontal and lower frontal plates, the place under the gun (covered by two sheets of armor), the upper part of the mask. The turret has a narrowed shape with bevels that increase the protection of the turret when fired from the front.

The tank has a transmission in front and an engine on the side - these units provide additional partial protection for the crew. Tank crew: 3 people (2 in the turret and 1 in the hull). The protruding protection of the engine radiator has a weak protection of 15 mm, it is available to hit the front and side. The stern of the tank has good protection, which can save even from small guns. Under the rear hull armor are a large gas tank and radiator - which can trap projectiles, improving crew protection.

Mobility

The mobility and maneuverability of the T-80 is good. Max Speed: 42 km/h. Reverse speed: 5.5 km/h. Specific power in realistic battles (RB-SB): 14.6 l / s per ton (with 11.6 tons of weight at 170 l / s). Specific power in arcade battles (AB): 27.9 l / s per ton (with 11.6 tons of weight at 324 l / s).

Armament

main gun

• Armor-piercing chamber blunt-headed BR-240 - designed to destroy armored targets, as well as aircraft.
• Armor-piercing solid sharp-headed BR-240SP - designed to destroy armored targets, as well as aircraft.
• Armor-piercing sub-caliber BR-240P - designed to destroy armored targets, as well as aircraft.
• High-explosive fragmentation O-243 - designed to destroy mostly unarmored ground targets.

The BR-240 chamber armor-piercing projectile (with explosives inside) has the best armor-piercing effect on tanks. The sub-caliber projectile can be used against especially armored targets at close-medium distances, as well as against aircraft (because it has the best ballistics). A solid projectile has the highest penetration, it can be useful for firing at long distances (1 km), for example, at Japanese or German tanks with 50 mm armor. The high-explosive projectile with low ballistics was historically intended for mounted howitzer firing at unprotected ground targets, therefore it is practically not suitable for firing at aircraft. A land mine can be used to destroy unarmored ZSU and self-propelled guns for a very powerful impact - it does not go through like an armor-piercing one, but is blown up immediately. Thanks to the curved trajectory, a land mine can hit a target behind a hill.

Machine gun armament

Machine gun DT (7.62 mm). Rate of fire: 600 rpm. Disc magazine capacity: 63 rounds. Reload speed: 8 seconds. Bullet speed: 840 m/s. Due to the high elevation angles of 65 degrees, the machine gun can be effectively used against aircraft. DT is also effective against unarmored and lightly armored vehicles. Shooting can point the allies at the enemy and make it difficult for the enemy to see.

Use in combat

The T-80 can play the role of not only a light, but also a medium tank on the offensive, attacking alone or with the support of allied tanks. Armor can save, but you need to remember about the vulnerable areas of the forehead. It is advisable to know the vulnerable zones of the forehead of opponents or bypass the enemies along the flanks, make ambushes - guaranteed to hit them in the side, stern. T-80 can play the role of ZSU. For this, sub-caliber shells with excellent ballistics, or other armor-piercing shells (but not high-explosive ones, which have too curved ballistics), are best suited. You can increase the speed of turning to the enemy with the help of caterpillars.

Advantages and disadvantages

Advantages:

• Most of the hull has good armor
• Good mobility and maneuverability
• Good vertical aiming angles to fight tanks and aircraft
• Good gun with comfortable ballistics
• Excellent cannon fire rate
• Large selection of armor-piercing shells
• A high-explosive fragmentation projectile can be thrown over a hill at a hidden unarmored enemy

Flaws:

• Slow gun aiming and turret traverse speed
• Quite a lot of large vulnerable zones in the armor
• Shell penetration is not always enough
• The high-explosive fragmentation projectile has low ballistics, which makes it extremely difficult to use it against aircraft

Historical reference

T-80 in the exposition of the Patriot Park

When the first T-70 tanks went into battle in the summer of 1942, it became clear that the crew of two was extremely small. It was difficult for the T-70 tank commander to simultaneously observe the battlefield, load the cannon, machine gun and conduct aimed fire. The work of the company commander became even more complicated, since in addition to this work he had to lead the company. It was necessary to expand the tank turret to 2 people. On July 15, 1942, the leadership of the People's Commissariat for Medium Machine Building, representatives of the GAZ plant and the Main Armored Directorate of the Red Army (GABTU KA) decided to improve the design of the tank. The experimental T-70B with a side thickness of 25 mm was taken as a basis. Due to the fact that the diameter of the shoulder strap at the double turret increased from 966 to 1112 mm, the roof of the fighting compartment had to be redone. The new turret became much wider, and all its elements had to be redone, including the movable gun mantlet armor. Got a tower and a developed aft niche. This made it possible to place in it not only a radio station, but also two stacks of 10 shells for a 45-mm cannon. It was decided to make separate hatches for the commander / gunner and for the loader. The tower also received a polyk, which improved the working conditions of the calculation. The commander received a turret equipped with a periscope viewing device. The loader also had a periscope device installed. Instead of a viewing slot, for better view and safety, the driver was also made a periscope device, for this they redesigned the shape of the front hatch.

It was decided to make the elevation angle of the gun up to 65 degrees in the new turret - for protection against aircraft, for storming city blocks, and for howitzer firing along a hinged trajectory. The anti-aircraft collimator K-8T was added to the telescopic sight. For its use, a separate hatch appeared in the roof of the tower, which opened while firing at air targets. The combat weight of the tank reached 11.2 tons, so forcing the GAZ-203 engine became a necessity. The compression ratio was increased, thanks to which the power of each of the engines in the twin increased from 70 to 85 hp. The total power of the power plant, designated as the M-80, was 170 hp. On tests at the NIBT Polygon in Kubinka, the new experimental T-80 tank showed 2 times better rate of fire compared to the T-70. And when driving, the T-80 showed itself no worse. The testers highly appreciated the visibility of the tank. The commission considered significant shortcomings only as a complication of access to the power plant and the lack of interchangeability for a number of parts in the forced engine. Otherwise, the T-80 was clearly superior to the T-70B. The driver's hatch of the experienced T-80 was cast, while that of the reference was stamped. For the convenience of placing troops on the hull of the tank and the sides of the tower, special handrails were welded.

On December 27, 1942, I.V. Stalin signed a decree on the production of the T-80 tank at the Mytishchensky plant No. 40. But after the Battle of Kursk, the leadership of the GABTU KA came to the conclusion that it makes no sense to continue to produce the T-70 and T-80. Their creators, headed by N.A. Astrov deservedly became the owners of the Stalin Prize of the second degree for 1943. According to the decree of August 21, 1943, from September 1, the production of T-80 at plant No. 40 ceased. The plant started production of the SU-15M (SU-76M).

54 T-80s of the "main" series were distributed between two tank regiments located in Tula. Both regiments acted in conjunction with cavalry formations. Since October 8, 1943, the 230th Tank Regiment has operated jointly with the 2nd Guards Cavalry Division. His first combat mission was the crossing of the Dnieper. By the time the 230th TP was introduced into battle, there were 10 T-34s, 18 T-80s and 1 T-70. On October 10, the regiment, interacting with the cavalrymen, stormed Zatonsk. At the same time, the 1st tank company under the command of Senior Lieutenant A.V. Oganesyan, who was armed with 4 T-34s and 3 T-80s. Tanks were used not only to support the cavalry, but also as a means of transporting cavalrymen to the battlefield. On the 10th, the regiment lost 1 T-80 burned out and 2 knocked out. The next day, the tanks of the regiment rescued the cavalry surrounded in Sychevka. On October 12, stubborn battles for Zatonsk were again going on. During their course, they managed to destroy 3 self-propelled guns (most likely Marder), 6 Pz.Kpfw.III and Pz.Kpfw.IV, 2 armored personnel carriers, 1 armored vehicle and 3 trucks. Losses Soviet tankers amounted to 3 burnt T-80s and 2 lined T-34s, 5 people were killed and 10 wounded. Stubborn battles for Zatonsk continued for several days. By November 3, 4 T-34s, 12 T-80s and 1 T-70 remained in the unit.

On November 5, the regiment received the task, in cooperation with the cavalry, to attack Rakovka and create a stronghold there. Acting in conjunction with the cavalry, by November 11, the tankers reached the area of ​​​​the city of Korostyshev, Zhytomyr region. Regiment losses: 1 T-34 burned out and 1 T-80 knocked out. By the 14th, the regiment was in Zhytomyr. The next day, German troops counterattacked, heavy defensive battles. During the battles for Zhytomyr, the regiment lost 5 tanks. Zhytomyr on November 19 was again in the hands of German troops, it was liberated only on December 31. The 54th Tank Regiment operated jointly with the 12th Guards Cavalry Division. In addition to light tanks, the regiment also had 10 T-34 medium tanks. During almost the whole of October, the regiment was engaged in pursuing the retreating enemy. The real battle unfolded for Poyarkin, Kherson region, on October 29, 1943. Here the regiment lost 5 T-34s and 2 T-80s, while destroying 2 self-propelled guns and 2 enemy tanks. By January 1, 1944, the regiment still had 6 T-34s and 25 T-80s. In this composition, the unit participated in the battles of January-February 1944. During this time, 2 T-80s were lost from enemy fire, the rest were out of order for technical reasons. The T-80 was repaired by repair plant No. 8, which ended up in Kyiv in the spring of 1944. In July 1944, the plant repaired and delivered 4 tanks, and in August - 12. In the summer of 1944, the last combat use of these vehicles took place, again they fought as part of tank regiments with cavalry divisions. For example, in the 61st tank regiment there were 4 T-80s, and in the 58th tank regiment - 2. After the Lvov-Sandomierz operation, these tanks were used as training tanks. As of 1946, about two dozen of these vehicles were preserved, which were in the Kharkov Tank School.

Media

Experimental T-80 at the NIBT Proving Ground, December 1942



Back view



Serial T-80

The T-80 was the last Soviet wartime light tank.

History of creation

Starting from the very first moment of adopting a light tank T-70 into service with the Red Army, Soviet military experts pointed out its main weakness - a single tower. But the design of the tank still had reserves that could be used to eliminate this shortcoming. Tank Design Bureau GAZ, headed by N. A. Astrov promised this to the military even when the GAZ-70 prototype was shown and went into work almost immediately after the serial production of the T-70 was established. During the late spring, summer and early autumn of 1942, it was found that the installation of a two-man turret would greatly increase the load on the engine, transmission and chassis of the tank. Tests of the T-70 tank loaded up to 11 tons fully confirmed these fears - they burst during the tests torsion bars pendants broke tracks, transmission units and assemblies failed. Therefore, the main work was carried out to strengthen these structural elements; it successfully ended with the adoption of the T-70M modification by the Red Army. Also by the fall, a two-man turret for the T-70 tank was manufactured and successfully tested, but two obstacles stood in the way of mass production.

The first of these was insufficient power twin propulsion system GAZ-203. It was planned to increase it by forcing up to 170 liters. With. in total by increasing the filling factor cylinders and raise degrees compression. The second obstacle arose from the requirement to provide high elevation angles. guns to hit targets on the upper floors of buildings in urban battles. It could also make it possible to increase the possibilities of fire countermeasures against enemy aircraft. In particular, the commander insisted on this Kalinin Front lieutenant general I. S. Konev. The already developed double turret for the T-70 did not meet this requirement and was redesigned to allow the gun to be fired at a high elevation angle. The second prototype with the new turret received the factory designation 080 or 0-80. For more convenient placement of a gun with the possibility of anti-aircraft fire and two crew members, it was necessary to widen the diameter of the shoulder strap and make an armor ring under the inclined sides of the turret. barbet 40-45 mm thick. Due to the wider shoulder strap of the turret, it became impossible to dismantle the engine without first removing the turret - the armor ring began to enter the removable armor plate above the engine.

Production

Serial production of the T-80 was launched in Mytishchi at plant number 40 in February 1943. Production volumes were small, until the end of production in October 1943, about 80 vehicles were produced. The total number of T-80s produced remains unclear. According to the documents of the Main Armored Directorate of the Red Army, a total of 70 "eighties" were built. However, the reports of the People's Commissariat of the Tank Industry contain somewhat different figures. According to this department, 81 T-80 tanks were produced in 1943, and 85 during the entire war. However, this number may include prototypes, prototypes and pre-production vehicles. Also, some authors include prototypes built by GAZ in the total number of T-80s produced. According to the factory number 40 in 1943, only 66 tanks were manufactured, and 11 of them were handed over twice. Hence the confusion. IN total amount, together with four prototypes of the GAZ plant, 70 cars were built.

The cessation of production of the T-80 was to a certain extent due to several reasons: to a lesser extent, the unreliable operation of the M-80 forced propulsion system (in the sources, its designations also differ - the M-80 or GAZ-203F indices are mentioned); to a greater extent, the reasons were the insufficient firepower and armor protection of the "eighties" as of 1943 (see section "") and the extreme need of the Red Army for self-propelled artillery mounts SU-76M. By the end of 1943 - the beginning 1944 the forced propulsion system was brought to an acceptable level of reliability, but there was no question of resuming the production of the T-80 at all.

Due to the unreliable operation of the propulsion system, weak weapons in 1943 and the great need of the Red Army in self-propelled guns, the SU-76M T-80 was discontinued. At the beginning of 1943, an experimental tank was built on the basis of the T-80 with a high-powered 45-mm VT-43 tank gun, but it was not adopted by the Red Army either. However, according to other sources, the curtailment of the production of these tanks was caused simply by the destruction of the production facilities of the Gorky Automobile Plant as a result of a series of unpunished bombings by the Luftwaffe in 1942.

Design Description

Armored corps and turret

The armored hull of the tank was welded from rolled heterogeneous (surface hardening was used) armored plates with a thickness of 10, 15, 25, 35 and 45 mm. Armor protection differentiated, bulletproof. The frontal and stern armor plates had rational angles of inclination, the sides were vertical. Board T-80 was made of two armor plates connected welding. To strengthen the weld, a vertical stiffening beam was installed inside the hull, riveted to the front and rear side parts. A number of hull armor plates (over-engine and over-radiator plates) were removable for ease of maintenance and replacement of various components and assemblies of the tank. Workplace the driver was in front of the armored hull of the tank with some offset to the left from the central longitudinal plane of the vehicle. The hatch for boarding and disembarking the driver was located on the frontal armor plate and was equipped with a balancing mechanism to facilitate opening. The presence of the driver's hatch weakened the resistance of the upper frontal part to projectile hits. The bottom of the T-80 was welded from three armor plates 10 mm thick, and to ensure rigidity, transverse box-shaped beams were welded to it, in which the torsion bars of the suspension units were located. An emergency manhole was made in front of the bottom under the driver's seat. The hull also had a number of air inlets, hatches, hatches and technological openings for ventilation inhabited areas of the tank, drain fuel And oils, access to the necks of fuel tanks, other components and assemblies of the machine. A number of these holes were protected by armored covers, shutters and casings.

Armament

The main armament of the T-80 was a rifled semi-automatic 45 mm tank gun mod. 1938(20-Km or 20Km) The gun was mounted on trunnions in the plane of longitudinal symmetry towers. The 20-K gun had a barrel length of 46 calibers, the height of the line of fire was 1630 mm, the direct fire range reached 3.6 km, the maximum possible - 6 km. The gun was paired with a 7.62 mm machine gun DT, which could be easily removed from the twin installation and used outside the tank. The twin installation had a range of elevation angles from -8 ° to + 65 ° and circular horizontal fire. The rotary mechanism of the gear-type turret, with a manual drive, was located to the left of the tank commander, and the lifting mechanism of the gun (screw type, also with a manual drive) was located on the right. The descent of the machine gun is mechanical, the gun was equipped with an electric trigger.

The coaxial DT machine gun had an ammunition load of 1008 rounds (16 disks), also the crew was supplied with one submachine gun PPSh with 3 discs (213 rounds) and 12 hand grenades F-1. In some cases, these weapons were added pistol for firing flares.

Engine

The T-80 was equipped with a GAZ-203F power unit (later designation M-80) of twin four-stroke inline six-cylinder carburetor engines liquid cooling GAZ-80. As a result, the maximum total power of the GAZ-203F unit reached 170 hp. With. (125 kW) at 3400 rpm. Both engines were equipped with K-43 carburetors. The crankshafts of the engines were connected by a coupling with elastic bushings. In order to avoid longitudinal vibrations of the entire unit, the flywheel crankcase of the front GAZ-80 was connected by a rod to the starboard side of the tank. Ignition, lubrication and fuel supply systems had their own for each "half" of the GAZ-203F. In the cooling system of the power unit, the water pump was common, but the water-oil radiator was two-section, each section was responsible for servicing its own GAZ-80. The GAZ-203F installation was equipped with an oil-inertial type air cleaner.

Like its predecessor T-70, the T-80 was equipped with an engine preheater for its operation in winter conditions. Between the side of the tank and the engine, a cylindrical boiler, in which due to thermosiphon circulation antifreeze heating was carried out. The boiler was heated by an external gasoline blowtorch. The heater boiler and oil-water radiator were an integral part of the cooling system of the entire power unit of the tank.

The engine was started by two ST-06 starters connected in parallel (power 2 hp or 1.5 kW). Also, the tank could be started with a hand crank or towed by another tank.

Transmission

The T-80 tank was equipped with a mechanical transmission, which included:

• double disc semi-centrifugal main clutch dry friction " become By ferodo »;
• four-stage Transmission(4 gears forward and 1 reverse), truck parts used ZIS-5 ;
• cardan shaft;
• bevel main gear;
• two steel-on-steel dry-friction multi-disc side clutches with band brakes with Ferodo linings;
• two simple single-row onboard gearbox.

All transmission control drives are mechanical, the driver controlled the turning and braking of the tank with two levers on both sides of his workplace.

Chassis

The chassis of the T-80 tank was almost completely inherited from its predecessor, the T-70M. Suspension machines - individual torsion without shock absorbers for each of 5 single-sided solid stamped road wheels of small diameter (550 mm) with rubber tires on each side. Opposite the suspension units closest to the stern, suspension balancer travel stops with rubber buffers were welded to the armored hull to mitigate shocks; for the first and third suspension units from the forehead of the vehicle, the support rollers played the role of limiters. Pinion gear drive wheels with removable gear rims were located in front, and sloths unified with track rollers with a caterpillar tension mechanism were in the back. Upper branch caterpillars supported by three small support rollers on each side. Fenders were riveted to the tank hull to prevent the caterpillar from jamming when the tank was moving with a significant roll to one of the sides. The caterpillar is small-linked from 80 tracks, the width of the two-ridge track is 300 mm.

electrical equipment

The wiring in the T-80 tank was single-wire, the second by wire served as the armored hull of the car. The sources of electricity (operating voltage 12 V) were generator GT-500S relay-regulator RRK-GT-500S with a power of 500 W and two series-connected rechargeable batteries brand 3-STE-112 with a total capacity of 112 Ah. Electricity consumers included:

Sights and observation devices

The twin installation of the 20-K gun and the DT machine gun was equipped with at gunpoint TMF-1 for firing at ground targets and collimator K-8T for firing at air targets and the upper floors of buildings. The workplaces of the driver, gunner and commander of the T-80 also had one periscope viewing device to monitor the environment outside the tank. However, for a vehicle with a commander's cupola, visibility could have been even better - the lack of viewing devices still affected.

Means of communication

On T-80 tanks in the tower were installed radio station 12RT and intercom TPU for 3 subscribers.

The 12RT radio station was a set of transmitter , receiver And mindformers(single anchor motor generators) to power them, connected to the on-board electrical network with a voltage of 12 V. From a technical point of view, it was a duplex tube shortwave radio station with a transmitter output power of 20 W, operating for transmission in the range frequencies 4 to 5.625 MHz (respectively wavelength waves from 53.3 to 75 m), and for reception - from 3.75 to 6 MHz (wavelengths from 50 to 80 m). The different range of the transmitter and receiver was explained by the fact that the 4-5.625 MHz range was intended for two-way tank-to-tank communication, and the extended receiver range was used for one-way communication "headquarters-tank". At the parking lot, the communication range is telephone(voice, amplitude modulation carrier) mode in the absence of interference reached 15-25 km, in motion it slightly decreased. A greater communication range could be obtained in telegraph mode, when information was transmitted by telegraph key Morse code or some other discrete coding system.

The TPU tank intercom made it possible to negotiate between members of the tank crew even in a very noisy environment and connect a headset headset (headphones and laryngophones) to the radio station for external communication.

Modifications

Serial

light tank The T-80 was officially produced in the only serial modification without any significant design changes during production. Serial combat and special vehicles ( self-propelled artillery mount , ZSU , armored personnel carrier , BREM , tractors etc.) on the basis of the T-80 light tank was also not produced.

Experienced

The lack of armament (first of all, the low armor penetration of the 20-K gun by the standards of the end of 1942) of the T-80 tank actively stimulated work on its rearmament with a more powerful artillery system. As a solution to the problem, it was proposed to use the 45-mm long-barreled gun VT-42 jointly developed by plant No. 40 and OKB No. 172 with ballistics 45 mm anti-tank gun mod. 1942 (M-42). This gun has already been successfully tested in the T-70 tank, however, in connection with the planned transition to the production of the T-80, it was not installed in serial "seventies". However, the BT-42 did not have the capability to fire at the high elevation angles required for the T-80, so its design had to be significantly redesigned. At the beginning of 1943, these works were completed, and the version of the 45-mm long-barreled gun VT-43 was successfully tested in the T-80 tank. Except for the higher initial speed projectile (950 m/s) and a larger maximum elevation angle (+78°), all other characteristics of the tank remained unchanged. The gun was adopted to arm the T-80 tanks, but due to the cessation of their production, all work on it was completed.

Organizational structure

The T-80 light tank was intended to replace the T-70 light tank in the troops and was to be used as part of separate tank brigades, tank regiments and armor battalions. However, due to the objective weakness of the T-70, from November 1943, the organizational structure was revised towards their exclusion from the tank brigades (single states No. 010/500 - 010/506), and with March 4 1944 The General Staff of the Red Army issued directive No. Org / 3/2305 on the exclusion of the T-70 from the tank regiments. T-80s began to arrive at the front already in the course of this reorganization, so it is not yet possible to determine their exact place and number in the organizational structure. The surviving T-70s and new T-80s were transferred to reconnaissance armored battalions (they included company light tanks numbering 7 vehicles, the rest - armored cars BA-64) and, for use as command vehicles, in terms of self-propelled artillery, armed with self-propelled guns SU-76, which had the same type with the T-70M and T-80 units and assemblies of the undercarriage.

Combat use

As of 2007, no details have yet been found in the archives and memoirs. combat use light tanks T-80. The literature sometimes mentions complaints from the troops about the overload and insufficient reliability of the tank's power plant, but this may be the result of reports on military tests of the mid-1943 production vehicle, where these shortcomings were indeed noted. From front-line reports it is known about the use in 1944 several T-80s in self-propelled artillery regiments. There is also information about the receipt in the replenishment of the 5th Guards Tank Brigade on February 15, 1945, two T-80 tanks that arrived from repair. In addition, on September 7, 1943, 27 T-80s were shipped to the 230th Tank Regiment in Tula (of which 20 were radio-equipped). Another 27 vehicles were shipped there for the 54th detachment of the 12th Guards. cd. Nothing is known about the use of the T-80 in the armies of other states besides the USSR.

Project evaluation

"Vosmidesyatka", created in the extreme conditions of wartime, was the last in a series of Soviet mass-produced light tanks of the Great Patriotic War. According to the pre-war views of the Soviet leadership, light tanks should have made up a significant proportion of the material part of the tank forces of the Red Army, had a low production cost compared to medium and heavy vehicles, and also, in the event of a large-scale war, be produced in large quantities at non-specialized enterprises. A pre-war vehicle was supposed to be such a light tank. T-50. However, for a number of reasons (evacuation of the manufacturer, lack of diesel engines etc.) the release of the T-50 amounted to about 70 tanks. In addition, for plant No. 37, whose mobilization task was to master the production of the T-50, the task set turned out to be impossible. Nevertheless, a tank with characteristics close to the T-50 was objectively needed by the Red Army. The design bureau of plant No. 37 (later GAZ), headed by N. A. Astrov, starting from a small amphibious tank that was well established in production T-40 and consistently improving the idea of ​​a light tank with the widespread use of cheap automotive units, managed by the end of 1942 to create such a machine, which was the T-80. The previous stages in this hard work were light tanks. T-60 And T-70. However, the lighter-weight "eighty" was not a full-fledged substitute for the T-50, inferior to the latter in a number of indicators: specific power, visibility, armor protection (especially onboard), power reserve. On the other hand, the manufacturability and cheapness of the "eighty" compared to other Soviet tanks(the legacy of the predecessor of the T-70) made it possible to fulfill the wishes of the top management about the potential possibility of mass production of such tanks in non-specialized enterprises, the ergonomics of the machine (a significant weakness of the "seventies") could already be considered acceptable. However, for reasons not directly related to the design of the tank, this potential was not realized in practice.

An important circumstance that influenced the fate of both the T-80 and domestic light tanks in general was the changed situation at the front. Appearing on the battlefield in large numbers T-34 demanded from the Germans a qualitative strengthening of their anti-tank artillery. During 1942 Wehrmacht received a large number of 50 mm and 75 mm anti-tank guns, tanks and ACS armed with long-barreled 75 mm guns. If against 50-mm shells the frontal armor of the T-80 in some cases could still somehow help, then the 75-mm long-barreled guns had no problems in defeating the T-80 at any distances and angles of battle (the given thicknesses of homogeneous hull sheets for 50 -mm armor-piercing projectile: bottom sheet - 60 mm, ram sheet - 52 mm, top sheet - 67 mm). The side armor of the latter did not save from fire according to the normal, even outdated 37 mm guns Pak 35/36, although, compared to the T-70M, the thickening of the side armor up to 25 mm improved its projectile resistance at clear angles of fire. As a result, when breaking through the defense prepared in anti-tank terms, the T-80 units were doomed to high losses. The power of 45-mm shells was clearly insufficient both to fight enemy anti-tank guns and German armored vehicles (the frontal armor of even medium modernized PzKpfw III And PzKpfw IV could only be pierced by a sub-caliber projectile from extremely short distances). Therefore, the attack of the armored forces of the enemy by T-80 units had to be carried out mainly from ambushes, with fire from short distances to the side and stern. This required high skill and skill from Soviet tankers. Battle of Kursk clearly showed the validity of these theses in relation to the T-70; The T-80 in this regard was practically equivalent to the "seventies", which was one of the reasons for the cessation of production of light tanks in the USSR.