T 70 mass. The most massive of the lungs. Strengths and weaknesses of the equipment

In the fall of 1942, specialists from the Gorky Automobile Plant developed a deeply modernized version light tank, which received a new designation T-70M, and began preparations for its production.

Fact: "Initially, when designing, the tank received the designation T-70B."

The modernized tank was distinguished by a thoroughly modified chassis, increased width (from 260 to 300 mm) and step of the tracks, the width of the road wheels, an increased diameter of the suspension torsion bars and gear rims of the drive wheels, as well as a modified final drive. In addition, the support rollers, stop rollers and final drives were reinforced, the number of tracks in the caterpillar was reduced from 91 to 80, and the gun ammunition load was reduced to 70 rounds.

The place of the driver-mechanic was located in the bow of the hull at the left side, and the place of the tank commander was in a rotating turret shifted to the left side. In the middle part of the hull along the starboard side on a common frame, two engines coupled in series were installed, which made up a single power unit. The transmission and drive wheels were in front.

The body of the T-70M tank was welded from rolled armor plates, which had a thickness of 6, 10, 15, 25, 35 and 45 mm. In especially critical places, the welds were reinforced with riveting. The frontal and stern sheets of the armored hull had rational angles of inclination. A welded faceted turret made of armor plates 35 mm thick was mounted on a ball bearing in the middle part of the hull. The welded joints of the tower were reinforced with armor squares. The frontal part of the tower had a cast swinging mask with loopholes for the installation of a gun, a machine gun and a telescopic sight. An entrance hatch for the tank commander was made in the roof of the turret. A periscope mirror observation device was installed in the armored hatch cover, which provided the commander with an all-round view. Also in the lid there was a hatch for a flag alarm.

As armament, a 45-mm tank gun of the 1938 model was installed and to the left of it a coaxial DT machine gun. The gun was shifted to the right of the longitudinal axis of the turret, which provided greater convenience for the commander. The gear turret traverse mechanism was mounted to the left of the commander, and the twin-mount screw hoist to the right. The gun had a trigger foot mechanism, which was carried out by pressing the right pedal, and the machine gun - on the left. The ammunition load consisted of 90 shots with armor-piercing and fragmentation shells for the cannon and 945 rounds for the DT machine gun.

As power plant tank T-70M, the GAZ-203 engine was chosen, which consisted of two four-stroke six-cylinder carburetor engines GAZ-202 with a total power of 140 hp. The crankshafts of the engines were connected by means of a coupling with elastic bushings. flywheel housing front engine was connected by a rod to the starboard side, which prevented lateral vibrations. For each engine, the battery ignition system, lubrication system and fuel system were independent. The tank was equipped with two fuel tanks with a total capacity of 440 liters, which were located on the left side of the aft compartment of the hull in a compartment isolated by armored partitions.

The transmission consisted of a two-disc semi-centrifugal dry-friction main clutch, a four-speed automotive-type gearbox, a bevel gear final drive, two side clutches with band brakes, and two simple single-row final drives. The main clutch and gearbox were assembled from parts borrowed from the ZIS-5 truck.

The propeller on each side included: drive wheels with a removable lantern gear ring, five single-sided rubber-coated road wheels and three all-metal support rollers, a guide wheel with a crank track tensioning mechanism and a small-link caterpillar of 91 tracks with a pitch of 98 mm. The design of the guide wheel and track roller were unified. The width of the cast track track was 260 mm. Suspension - individual torsion bar.

From 1942 to 1943, 8231 T-70M tanks were manufactured, of which 6847 were assembled by the Gorky Automobile Plant.

The T-70 tank was developed at the Design Bureau of the Gorky Automobile Plant under the leadership of N.A. Astrov at the end of 1941. Serial production was organized in 1942-1943. at the Gorky Automobile Plant, plants No. 37 (Sverdlovsk) and No. 38 (Kirov). A total of 8226 tanks of modifications T-70 and T-70M were produced. Machines participated in the Stalingrad and Battles of Kursk, as well as in other operations of the Great Patriotic War.

Tank T-70
Combat weight - 9.2-10 tons; crew - 2 people; weapons: cannon - 45 mm, machine gun - 7.62 mm; armor - bulletproof; power unit power - 140 hp (103 kW); maximum speed- 45 km/h

The T-70 tank was designed to replace the T-60 tank in the army and differed from it mainly in size, more powerful weapons, enhanced armor protection and higher power density. The scheme of the general layout of the machine was fundamentally the same as that of the T-60 tank. The tank had five compartments: control - in front of the hull, combat - in the middle part, transmission - in front of the hull on the right along the way, engine - in the middle part along the starboard side of the hull and aft. The crew of two was housed in the hull and turret. The driver was in the bow of the hull at the left side. In a rotating turret, shifted to the port side from the longitudinal axis of the hull, the tank commander was located. In the middle part of the hull along the starboard side on a common frame, two engines coupled in series were installed, which made up a single power unit. Such a constructive solution was first implemented in the domestic tank building. The transmission and drive wheels were front-mounted.

A 45-mm tank gun mod. 1938 and a 7.62 mm DT machine gun coaxial with it, which was located to the left of the gun. For the convenience of the tank commander, the gun was shifted to the right of the longitudinal axis of the turret. The length of the gun barrel was 46 calibers, the height of the line of fire was 1540 mm. The machine gun was mounted in a ball mount and, if necessary, could be removed and used outside the tank. The aiming angles of the twin installation along the vertical ranged from - 6 to + 20 °. When firing, sights were used: a telescopic TMFP (a TOP sight was installed on some tanks) and a mechanical one as a backup. The direct fire range was 3600 m, the maximum was 4800 m. The rate of fire was 12 rds / min. The gear turret traverse mechanism was mounted to the left of the commander, and the twin mount's screw hoist was mounted to the right. The trigger mechanism of the gun was connected by a cable to the right foot pedal, and the machine gun to the left. The tank's ammunition included 90 shots with armor-piercing and fragmentation shells for the cannon (of which 20 shots were in the magazine) and 945 rounds for the DT machine gun (15 disks). Additionally, in the fighting compartment of the vehicle fit: one 7.62-mm PPSh submachine gun with 213 rounds of ammunition (3 disks) and 10 F-1 hand grenades. On the machines of the first releases, the ammunition load for the gun consisted of 70 rounds. The initial speed of an armor-piercing projectile weighing 1.42 kg was 760 m/s, a fragmentation projectile weighing 2.13 kg was 335 m/s. After firing an armor-piercing projectile, the spent cartridge case was ejected automatically. When firing a fragmentation projectile, due to the shorter recoil length of the gun, the shutter was opened and the cartridge case was removed manually. Created in the spring of 1942, a new armor-piercing sub-caliber projectile for a 45-mm cannon pierced an armor plate 50 mm thick at a distance of 500 m.

Armor scheme for the T-70 light tank

Armor protection - bulletproof, made of rolled armor plates with a thickness of 6, 10, 15, 25, 35 and 45 mm. Frontal and aft hull sheets and turret sheets had rational angles of inclination. In the upper frontal sheet of the hull there was a driver's hatch, in the armored cover of which a rotary periscope viewing device was installed (on the machines of the first releases, a viewing slot with a triplex was made in the hatch cover). To facilitate the opening of the hatch cover, a balancing mechanism was used. In addition, at the bottom right (along the course of the tank) in the front sheet there was a hatch for access to the transmission units, which was closed with a bolted armor cover. In the lower front sheet there was a hatch for the engine crank, which was closed with an armor cover. Each side of the hull consisted of two sheets welded together. The weld seam was reinforced with riveting. In the lower part of each side, five cutouts were made for the installation of balancer brackets, as well as holes for attaching the rear roller balancer stop and for three support roller brackets. In addition, on the starboard side there was a hatch for installing a starting heater lamp, and an armored air intake box for the power plant was welded along its upper part.

The roof of the hull consisted of a turret sheet supported by a longitudinal beam and a bulkhead of the aft compartment; a removable sheet above the engine compartment and air intake armor, mounted on hinges and serving at the same time for access to the engines; a removable horizontal sheet above the water radiator of the cooling system, in which there were: a hatch for filling the cooling system with water and shutters for the exit of cooling air, as well as two removable sheets above the fuel tank compartment, one of which had two hatches for filling fuel tanks. The bottom of the hull was made of three armor plates and, to ensure rigidity, had box-section transverse beams through which suspension torsion bars passed. It housed: an emergency manhole located under the driver's seat, two small hatches for draining oil from engines, two hatches for draining fuel and two hatches for accessing the water radiator mounting studs.

The welded faceted turret, made of armor plates 35 mm thick, was mounted on a ball bearing in the middle part of the hull and had the shape of a truncated pyramid. The welded joints of the tower were reinforced with armor squares. The frontal part of the tower had a cast swinging mask with loopholes for mounting a gun, machine gun and sight. An entrance hatch for the tank commander was made in the roof of the turret. A periscopic viewing mirror device was installed in the armored hatch cover, which provided the commander with a circular view. The impenetrable space around the tank ranged from 7.5 to 16.5 m. For flag signaling, there was a special hatch in the hatch cover, which was closed with an armored flap. Providing a circular view by installing a rotary viewing device was an innovation for the lungs domestic tanks. In the sides of the tower there were holes for firing from personal weapons, which were closed with armor plugs.

Two hand-held tetrachlorine fire extinguishers were used as fire fighting equipment in the tank.

The power unit GAZ-203 (70-6000) consisted of two four-stroke six-cylinder carburetor engines GAZ-202 (GAZ 70-6004 - front and GAZ 70-6005 - rear) with a total power of 140 hp. (103 kW) with "M" type carburetors. The crankshafts of the engines were connected by a coupling with elastic bushings. The flywheel crankcase of the front engine was connected by a link to the starboard side to prevent lateral vibrations of the power unit. The battery ignition system, lubrication system and fuel (except tanks) system for each engine were independent. The oil-water radiator had two sections for separate engine maintenance. The engine cooling system compared to the cooling system of the T-60 tank was significantly improved, the water pump was made common to the two engines. In the air system, an oil-inertial type air cleaner was used. For accelerated start-up of engines in winter, a heater heater was used, powered by a portable blowtorch. The heater boiler and oil-water radiator were included in the cooling system. The engines were started from two ST-40 electric starters connected in parallel with a power of 1.3 hp. (0.96 kW) each or with a manual winding mechanism. On command tanks(with a radio station) instead of ST-40 starters, two ST-06 starters with a power of 2 hp were installed. (1.5 kW). The engines ran on aviation gasoline KB-70 or B-70. Two fuel tanks with a total capacity of 440 liters were placed on the left side of the aft compartment of the hull in a compartment isolated by armored partitions. On the right side of the aft compartment there was a fan and a radiator for the engine cooling system. Two cylindrical silencers were placed on the starboard side behind the armor cover for the air intake.

The mechanical transmission consisted of a two-disc semi-centrifugal main clutch of dry friction (Ferodo steel); a four-speed simple automotive-type gearbox that provided four forward gears and one reverse gear; main gear with bevel gear; two multi-disk dry side clutches (steel on steel) with band brakes with Ferodo linings and two simple single-row final drives. The main clutch and gearbox were assembled from parts borrowed from the ZIS-5 truck.

In the suspension system, a reinforced individual torsion bar suspension and travel limiters for the balancers of the fifth road wheels were used. The role of the travel limiters of the first and third road wheels was played by the supporting rollers. The composition of the caterpillar mover included two drive wheels with removable gear rims of the lantern gear with caterpillars, ten single-sided support wheels with external shock absorption and six all-metal support rollers, two guide wheels with crank track tensioners and two small-link caterpillars with OMSH. The design of the guide wheel and track roller was unified. The width of the cast track track was 260 mm. To prevent the fingers from moving towards the hull when the machine was moving, special fists were riveted to the crankcases of the final drives from above and to the bottom of the hull from below.

The electrical equipment of the machine was made according to a single-wire circuit. The voltage of the on-board network was 12 V (on the tanks of the first releases - 6 V). Two 3STE-112 rechargeable batteries connected in series with a voltage of 6 V and a capacity of 112 Ah and a GAZ-27A generator with a power of 225 W with a relay-regulator RPA-14 or a G-64 generator with a power of 250 W with a relay- regulator RRA-44 or RRA-4574. Starting from August 1942, generators GT-500S or DSF-500T with a power of 380/500 W with relay-regulators RRK-37-500T or RRK-GT-500S began to be installed on command tanks, and on linear tanks- G-41 generator with RRA-364 relay-regulator. Commander tanks were equipped with a 9R or 12RT radio station located in the turret and an internal intercom TPU-2F. Line tanks were equipped with a light signaling device for internal communication between the commander and the driver and an internal intercom TPU-2.

During production, the mass of the tank increased from 9.2 to 9.8 tons, and the cruising range on the highway decreased from 360 to 320 km.

From September 1942, Plant No. 38 and GAZ switched to the production of T-70M tanks with an improved chassis. Gun ammunition was reduced to 70 rounds. As a result of the work on the modernization of the chassis, the width and pitch of the tracks were increased (up to 300 mm and 111 mm, respectively), the width of the road wheels (from 104 to 130 mm), as well as the diameter of the suspension torsion bars (from 34 to 36 mm) and gear rims driving wheels. By increasing the track pitch, their number in one track was reduced from 91 to 80 pieces. In addition, the supporting rollers, stopping brakes were strengthened (the width of the brake band and drum was increased from 90 to 124 mm) and final drives. The mass of the tank increased to 10 tons, and the cruising range on the highway decreased to 250 km.

. According to the combination of characteristics, it is the Soviet T-70 tank that is the best of the light category. Sometimes the T-50 is given the palm, but taking into account that their release was limited to only 7 dozen (design complexity), compare with the T-70, more than 8000 pieces, the second most massive result is second only to. Who cares here =>> , back to the end of 41 years.
Already at the end of October 1941, N.A. Astrov in the Design and Experimental Department (KEO) of GAZ began to develop a new light tank armed with a 45-mm cannon. In its design, it was supposed to use the T-60 components and assemblies to the maximum extent, read assembling as much as possible using automotive components and components. It was quite obvious that without a significant increase in the power of the engine plant, the further development of light tanks was practically impossible. But in 1941, increasing the power of a mass-produced engine by forcing it seemed a difficult task, except for the long term.

Alabino T-70 opening tank biathlon photo 2013

It was supposed to solve the problem more realistically by creating two autonomous drives from two engines with a gearbox, each for its own track. For confident rectilinear movement, it was only necessary to connect the engines to each other through friction clutches. But then there were no comprehensive tests, and the hidden flaw of such a scheme was revealed later.
after four failed attempts install two NA engines Astrov proposed a series direct connection of the engines in single file, transmitting the power developed by the rear engine through the coupling to the crankshaft shank of the front working engine. And such a “spark”, consisting of two GAZ-M1 engines, was created at plant No. 37 on the eve of the war.

Tank T-70 power unit GAZ-203 consisted of two GAZ-202 engines (GAZ-70-6004 front and GAZ-70-6005 rear)

Now, in November, the first version of the paired unit of two GAZ-11 engines was made in metal and put on the stand. It soon became clear that important role plays the rigidity of the rubber "barrels" in the elastic coupling connecting the engines. Not trusting the instruments, the selection of stiffness (elasticity) was carried out by the chief designer himself - Lipgart, assessing the stiffness of rubber by pressing his fingernails into it. Rubber bands that were too soft allowed hard impacts in the inter-engine connection, and rubber bands that were too hard led to an overload of the main bearings of the engines. We were looking for the middle. Found that the relative position of the crankshafts does not play any role.

Brief description of the design of the T-70 light tank

The reliability of the 4-speed gearbox turned out to be insufficient, it was necessary to replace it with the ZIS-5 gearbox, making a new output shaft and changing the gear lever. This box had four gears forward and one reverse. Both the cooling system fan and its drive have been improved - a gear drive has been introduced instead of a V-belt.
At the same time, a frame was developed on which the complete power unit was mounted, which was installed in the tank hull on rubber cushions. The GAZ-203 power unit consisted of two GAZ-202 engines (GAZ-70-6004 front and GAZ-70-6005 rear) with a total power of 140 hp. The main friction clutch is a two-disk, semi-centrifugal type.

Padded seventy, street fighting for Stalingrad 1942

From the power unit search for new constructive solutions spread to the entire transmission, and then to the chassis. The number of track rollers of the undercarriage of the tank was increased to five per side.
The hull configuration has changed significantly. The upper frontal sheet with a thickness of 35 mm was set at an angle of 60 degrees. The lower frontal sheet was 45 mm thick. In the top sheet there was a driver's hatch with an armored (folding up) lid equipped with a viewing device (with a slot closed with triplex on the machines of the first release). In the lower part on the right, as on the T-60, a hatch was made for access to the main gear of the transmission.

A column of T-70 light tanks on the outskirts of Krasnoye Selo

In a single faceted turret with an armor thickness of 35 mm (for comparison, the T-34 is 10 mm thicker) a 45-mm tank gun mod. 1932-1938 with vertical wedge gate. A 7.62 mm DT machine gun was paired with the cannon. Vertical aiming angles - from -6° to +20". Direct fire range was 3600 m, maximum - 4800 m. it was located on the left, and the lifting mechanism - on the right of the commander.Sights - telescopic or periscopic (partially), as well as mechanical.In the roof of the tower there was an entrance hatch for the commander.In the armored cap was mounted a periscopic observation device for all-round viewing.
The large length and mass of the power unit, reinforced components and assemblies of other systems, as well as more powerful armor protection led to an increase in the combat weight (compared to the T-60) of tanks of the first releases to 9.2 tons (later - up to 9.8 tons) .

Unitary 45-mm rounds for the 20-K tank gun
From left to right, 1. UBR-243P with a BR-240P sub-caliber armor-piercing projectile
2. UBR-243SP with a solid armor-piercing projectile BR-240SP
3. UBZR-243 with armor-piercing incendiary projectile BZR-240
4. UO-243 with fragmentation grenade O-243
5. USCH-243 with buckshot Sch-240

Thus, the substantially modernized T-70, conceived in October 1941, came close in terms of parameters to the T-50 tank. In January 1942, the first prototype was ready. The leading engineer of the machine was V.A. Dedkov. After eliminating the identified shortcomings, a new sample was put into production at the GAZ and No. 38 plants (Kirov).
Since September 1942, the production of an improved T-70M with a reinforced undercarriage (the width of the rollers and tracks, etc.) began, as well as with an increased thickness of the frontal armor (up to 45 mm, that is, the frontal armor became like that of a thirty-four). The combat weight was 10 tons. With a power plant power of 140 hp. its maximum speed reached 45 km / h. Replaced with 12 volt onboard system, originally used 6 volts.

The best light tanks of the second world war T-70 photo and T-70M were assembled until the middle of 1943. The entire workshop was left 8.3 thousand such machines.
For the development of the design of the T-70 and its subsequent improvement in 1943, N.A. Astrov, A.A. Lipgart, V.A. Dedkov and other designers of GAZ were awarded the Stalin Prize II degree.

T-70 with landing on the armor on the Stalingrad front

The T-90 tank, which was created under the leadership of N.A. Astrov from September-October 1942, could be considered as a mobile means of conducting aimed machine-gun fire on ground and air (anti-aircraft) targets, operating in close cooperation with other light tanks.

light tank t 90 photo

On the tank, made on the basis of the T-70M, they installed a turret open from above and shifted to the port side, armed with coaxial 12.7-mm DShKT machine guns. The absence of an armored roof in the octagonal turret, made of 35 mm rolled armor, ensured free observation of air targets and firing at them. From above, it could be closed with a tarpaulin awning.
Machine gun aiming angles ranged from -6° to +85°. A collimator sight was used for anti-aircraft fire and a telescopic sight for ground targets. Sighting range was 3500 m, maximum - up to 7000 m.
The most advanced light tank T-80 of the family .
In the second half of 1942 - the first half of 1943, work to improve the T-70M was carried out in several directions. So, there were designs of a cast, and then a double welded tower, which made it possible to free the tank commander from the functions of a gunner. The number of crew increased to 3 people. The increase in the volume of the tower required the introduction of additional viewing devices. To the left of the gun was the gunner, to the right - the commander-loader. On the roof of the tower above the commander's seat there was a fixed commander's turret with an entrance hatch, closed by a lid, equipped with an all-round periscope viewing device. A hatch was made above the gunner's place, which was also closed with a hinged lid. In front of him were a periscope viewing device and a collimator sight with folding armor. The gunner's sights remained the same as on the T-70.
In addition, the collimator sight was used to fire at air targets or at the upper floors of buildings.
The welded tower was made multifaceted, with increased angles of inclination of the front sheets with a thickness of 45 mm. Handrails were welded to the sides of the tower.
Elevation angles of the 45 mm gun mod. 1938 ranged from -8e to +65°. A DT machine gun was paired with a cannon. The direct fire range reached 3600 m, the maximum - 6000 m. The gun ammunition consisted of 94 shots.
The tank used a power unit of increased power. Forced 6-cylinder GAZ-80 engines developed a power of 85 hp. every. The start was carried out either with the help of two electric starters, or a manual crank. The armor protection of the hull was strengthened by replacing the armor plates of the sides with a thickness of 15 mm with 25 mm sheets. As a result, the combat weight increased to 11.6 tons.
The tank was accepted for production as the T-80 at Mytishchi Factory #40. After the release of 81 cars, their production was discontinued.

Bridgehead at Peskovatka. Tank T-70 and Sd.Kfz.250. 3rd Motorized Division photo August 1942

The best light tank of the second world war T-70 photo on the battlefields .

Combat use of light tanks of the T-70 family. The bulk of the vehicles ended up in the southwestern direction, where they suffered heavy losses. And what tank formations did not carry them that year. Estimates of combat activities vary to the exact opposite. Someone complains about weak armor, someone about weak weapons. Although the 45-mm tank gun 20K arr. 1932 of the year was quite enough for 1942, she could successfully fight all types of Wehrmacht tanks at a distance of up to 500 m. More advanced ones and the Panther began to be produced in 43, when meeting with which the chances of the seventies were equal to zero. But these heavyweights were not enough even in the 43rd. The tank regiment of the Red Army of that time consisted of 23 T-34 And 16 T-70 or 70M.

Tank T-70 with troops on board, in the background and destroyed Pz.KpfwIV

For some reason, German tanks of the latest modifications are always compared, and certainly head-on, a kind of tank battle. In fact, knocking out tanks was almost always assigned to anti-tank artillery. And for a direct comparison, not everything is so sad for the T-70, about the PzKpfw I with machine-gun armament and a weight of 5 tons with a penny, we will modestly keep silent (bulletproof armor, and even then it did not always fulfill its functions). Next comes our classmate, a 9-ton PzKpfw II with an automatic 20 mm cannon, almost the same as on our T-60 (in the 42nd, production was curtailed just because of weak weapons). Then comes the more serious medium PzKpfw III, almost 20 tons, on which a decent gun appeared far from immediately. Pz.Kpfw. IV is already a serious car, only truly mass production was launched just in 43, and before that they were crying. And for some reason, the tank sorakopyaty is treated as disdainfully as the anti-tank forty-five, forgetting that the Germans have the main anti-tank gun World War II was the Pak 35/36 in 37mm.

Tank T-70M of the guards crew of the summer I. Astapushenko takes a position December 1942

It's all about skill, examples: a tank under the command of Lieutenant B. Pavlovich, knocked out three German medium tanks and ... Panther, somehow they did it. Another out of the ordinary case. Ours are advancing, they are squeezing the Fritz. they gather forces, organize a counter-attack. Ours fight back, and the Germans begin to retreat. A. Dmitrienko saw the retreating german tank, joined him in the dead zone, wanted to fuck already from the cannon. But he saw an open tower hatch (which is typical, the Germans often left the hatch in the tower open), he jumps on a German tank and throws a grenade into the hatch. The crew was destroyed, the tank, after minor repairs, is used as a trophy in battles. The crew, consisting of a driver, Art. sergeant Rostovtsev and tank commander Lt. A. Dorokhin, destroyed two PzKpfw III. And there are a lot of such examples, there are also cases of ramming, “The crew of senior sergeant Krivko and art. lieutenant Zakharchenko when repulsing the attack of the 100th flamethrower tank battalion special purpose, having rammed 2 German Pz.II and captured the chief of staff and the battalion commander.

Southwestern Front December '42 light tank T-70M

And here is the course of the battle on July 9, 1943 for the village of Izotovo. Two T-70 tanks meet up with three Tigers advancing. the lead German vehicle knocks out one T-70. The second, under the command of Trubin, actively maneuvering, enters the rear of the Tiger and close range puts an armor-piercing projectile into his side, lights up, continuing the maneuver, the T-70 has already begun to get close to the next Tiger. Wanting to avoid the fate of the lead vehicle, the remaining two began to retreat. As proof, the wrecked "Tiger" was delivered to Moscow and was exhibited in Gorky Park at an exhibition of captured weapons.

Interesting facts, if the T-34 tank was damaged, about 60 percent could not be restored (detonation of ammunition), for the light T-70 tank, this figure is lower, 40 percent. Due to its low noise and mobility, it was used in reconnaissance, although the lack of a radio station in the tank reduced its effectiveness. In the 43rd year, it was decided to stop production, from the middle of the year the car ceases to be produced. The plant switches to the production of SU-76 and SU-76M, built on the basis of the T-70 chassis. Interestingly, the number of manufactured self-propelled guns of all types (light, medium and heavy) during the war years amounted to 22.5 thousand units, 12.6 thousand of them SU-76 and SU-76M.

Soviet light tank T-70

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

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

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

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

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

On the extended base of the T-70 created self-propelled units SU-76 and ZSU-37.

Soviet tank T-44

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