Soviet anti-tank artillery played a crucial role in the Great Patriotic War, accounting for about 70% of all destroyed German tanks. The anti-tank warriors fighting "to the last", often at the cost of their own lives, repelled the attacks of the Panzerwaffe.
The structure and material part of anti-tank subunits in the course of hostilities was continuously improved. Until the fall of 1940, anti-tank guns were part of rifle, mountain rifle, motorized rifle, motorized and cavalry battalions, regiments and divisions. Anti-tank batteries, platoons and divisions were thus interspersed into the organizational structure of the formations, being their integral part. The rifle battalion of the rifle regiment of the pre-war state had a platoon of 45 mm guns (two guns). The rifle regiment and the motorized rifle regiment had a battery of 45 mm cannons (six guns). In the first case, the means of traction were horses, in the second - specialized tracked armored tractors "Komsomolets". The rifle division and the motorized division included a separate anti-tank division of eighteen 45-mm guns. For the first time, the anti-tank division was introduced to the state of the Soviet rifle division in 1938.
However, the maneuver of anti-tank guns was possible at that time only within the division, and not on the scale of the corps or army. The command had very limited capabilities to strengthen the anti-tank defense in tank-hazardous areas.
Shortly before the war, the formation of anti-tank artillery brigades of the RGK began. According to the state, each brigade was supposed to have forty-eight 76-mm guns, forty-eight 85-mm anti-aircraft guns, twenty-four 107-mm guns, sixteen 37-mm anti-aircraft guns. The staff of the brigade was 5322 people. By the beginning of the war, the formation of the brigades was not completed. Organizational difficulties and the general unfavorable course of hostilities did not allow the first anti-tank brigades to fully realize their potential. However, already in the first battles, the brigades demonstrated the broad capabilities of an independent anti-tank formation.
With the outbreak of World War II, the anti-tank capabilities of the Soviet troops were severely tested. Firstly, most often rifle divisions had to fight, occupying a defense front exceeding the statutory standards. Secondly, the Soviet troops had to face the German "tank wedge" tactics. It consisted in the fact that the tank regiment of the Wehrmacht's tank division was striking in a very narrow sector of defense. At the same time, the density of attacking tanks was 50-60 vehicles per kilometer of the front. Such a number of tanks in a narrow sector of the front inevitably saturated the anti-tank defense.
Large losses of anti-tank guns at the beginning of the war led to a decrease in the number of anti-tank guns in a rifle division. The rifle division of the state in July 1941 had only eighteen 45-mm anti-tank guns instead of fifty-four in the pre-war state. For the July state, a platoon of 45 mm guns from a rifle battalion and a separate anti-tank division were completely excluded. The latter was reinstated in the state of the rifle division in December 1941. The shortage of anti-tank guns was to some extent made up for by the recently adopted anti-tank guns. In December 1941, an anti-tank rifle platoon was introduced at the regimental level in the rifle division. In total, the division in the state had 89 PTR.
In the field of organizing artillery, the general trend at the end of 1941 was an increase in the number of independent anti-tank units. On January 1, 1942, the active army and the reserve of the Supreme Command Headquarters had: one artillery brigade (on the Leningrad front), 57 anti-tank artillery regiments and two separate anti-tank artillery battalions. Following the results of the autumn battles, five anti-tank artillery regiments received the rank of guards. Two of them received a guard for the battles near Volokolamsk - they supported the 316th rifle division of I. V. Panfilov.
The year 1942 was a period of increasing the number and consolidation of independent anti-tank units. On April 3, 1942, the State Defense Committee issued a decree on the formation of a fighter brigade. According to the staff, the brigade had 1,795 people, twelve 45-mm cannons, sixteen 76-mm cannons, four 37-mm anti-aircraft guns, 144 anti-tank guns. By the next decree of June 8, 1942, the twelve formed fighter brigades were combined into fighter divisions, three brigades each.
A milestone for the anti-tank artillery of the Red Army was the order of the NKO of the USSR No. 0528 signed by J. V. Stalin, according to which: the status of anti-tank subunits was raised, the personnel were given a double salary, a cash bonus was established for each destroyed tank, the entire command and personnel anti-tank artillery units were placed on special account and were to be used only in the indicated units.
The sleeve insignia in the form of a black rhombus with a red edging with crossed gun barrels became a distinctive sign of the anti-tank crew. The rise in the status of anti-tank officers was accompanied by the formation of new anti-tank fighter regiments in the summer of 1942. Thirty light (twenty 76-mm guns) and twenty anti-tank artillery regiments (twenty 45-mm guns) were formed.
The regiments were formed in a short time and immediately thrown into battle in the threatened sectors of the front.
In September 1942, ten more anti-tank fighter regiments were formed with twenty 45-mm guns each. Also in September 1942, an additional battery of four 76 mm guns was introduced into the most distinguished regiments. In November 1942, part of the anti-tank regiments was combined into fighter divisions. By January 1, 1943, the Red Army's anti-tank artillery included 2 fighter divisions, 15 fighter brigades, 2 heavy anti-tank fighter regiments, 168 anti-tank fighter regiments, and 1 anti-tank fighter battalion.
The advanced anti-tank defense system of the Red Army received the name Pakfront from the Germans. CANCER is the German abbreviation for anti-tank gun - Panzerabwehrkannone. Instead of a linear arrangement of guns along the defended front at the beginning of the war, they were united in groups under a single command. This made it possible to concentrate the fire of several guns on one target. The basis of the anti-tank defense was the anti-tank areas. Each anti-tank area consisted of separate anti-tank strongpoints (PTOPs), which were in fire communication with each other. “To be in fire communication with each other” - means the ability to conduct fire on the same target by neighboring PTOPs. PTOP was saturated with all types of fire weapons. The basis of the PTOP fire system was 45-mm guns, 76-mm regimental guns, partly cannon batteries of divisional artillery and anti-tank artillery units.
The finest hour of the anti-tank artillery was the battle on the Kursk Bulge in the summer of 1943. At that time, 76-mm divisional guns were the main means of anti-tank units and formations. "Sorokapyatki" made up about a third of the total number of anti-tank guns on the Kursk Bulge. A long pause in hostilities at the front made it possible to improve the condition of units and formations due to the supply of equipment from industry and the resupply of anti-tank regiments with personnel.
The last stage in the evolution of the Red Army's anti-tank artillery was the enlargement of its units and the appearance of self-propelled guns as part of the anti-tank artillery. By the beginning of 1944, all fighter divisions and separate fighter brigades of the combined-arms type were reorganized into anti-tank brigades. As of January 1, 1944, the anti-tank artillery included 50 anti-tank brigades and 141 anti-tank destroyer regiments. By order of the NKO No. 0032 of August 2, 1944, one SU-85 regiment (21 self-propelled guns) was added to the fifteen anti-tank brigades. In reality, only eight brigades received self-propelled guns.
Particular attention was paid to the training of personnel of anti-tank brigades, targeted combat training of artillerymen was organized to combat new German tanks and assault guns. In the anti-tank units, special instructions appeared: "Memo to the artilleryman - the destroyer of enemy tanks" or "Memo on the fight against Tiger tanks." And in the armies, special rear ranges were equipped, where artillerymen trained in firing at mock-up tanks, including moving ones.
Simultaneously with the improvement of the skill of the artillerymen, tactics were improved. With the quantitative saturation of the troops with anti-tank weapons, the "fire bag" method began to be used more and more often. The guns were placed in "anti-tank nests" of 6-8 guns in a radius of 50-60 meters and were well camouflaged. The nests were located on the ground to achieve long-range flanking with the ability to concentrate fire. Passing tanks moving in the first echelon, fire opened suddenly, at the flank, at medium and short distances.
In the offensive, anti-tank guns were promptly pulled up after the advancing subunits in order to support them with fire if necessary.
The history of anti-tank artillery in our country began in August 1930, when, within the framework of military-technical cooperation with Germany, a secret agreement was signed, according to which the Germans pledged to help the USSR organize the gross production of 6 artillery systems. For the implementation of the contract in Germany, a front company "BYUTAST" was created (limited liability company "Bureau for technical work and research").
Among other weapons proposed by the USSR was the 37 mm anti-tank gun. The development of this weapon, bypassing the restrictions imposed by the Versailles Treaty, was completed at the Rheinmetall Borzig firm in 1928. The first samples of the gun, named So 28 (Tankabwehrkanone, that is, anti-tank gun - the word Panzer came into use later), entered trials in 1930, and in 1932 supplies to the troops began. The Tak 28 gun had a 45-caliber barrel with a horizontal wedge gate, which provided a fairly high rate of fire - up to 20 rounds / min. The carriage with sliding tubular beds provided a large horizontal guidance angle - 60 °, but the chassis with wooden wheels was designed only for horse traction.
At the beginning of the 30s, this gun penetrated the armor of any tank, perhaps it was the best in its class, far ahead of developments in other countries.
After modernization, having received wheels with pneumatic tires that allow towing by a car, an improved gun carriage and an improved sight, it was put into service under the designation 3, 7 cm Pak 35/36 (Panzerabwehrkanone 35/36).
Remaining until 1942 the main anti-tank gun of the Wehrmacht.
The German gun was put into production at the plant near Moscow. Kalinin (No. 8), where she received the factory index 1-K. The enterprise mastered the production of a new weapon with great difficulty, the guns were made semi-handicraft, with manual fitting of parts. In 1931, the plant presented 255 guns to the customer, but did not hand over a single one due to the poor build quality. In 1932, 404 guns were delivered, in 1933 - another 105.
Despite the problems with the quality of the guns produced, the 1-K was a fairly advanced anti-tank gun for the 1930 year. Its ballistics made it possible to hit all tanks of that time, at a distance of 300 m, an armor-piercing projectile normally penetrated 30-mm armor. The gun was very compact, its light weight allowed the crew to easily move it around the battlefield. The disadvantages of the gun, which led to its rapid withdrawal from production, were the weak fragmentation effect of the 37-mm projectile and the lack of suspension. In addition, the released guns were notable for their low build quality. The adoption of this weapon was considered as a temporary measure, since the leadership of the Red Army wanted to have a more universal gun that combined the functions of an anti-tank and battalion gun, and the 1-K, due to its small caliber and weak fragmentation projectile, was poorly suited for this role.
The 1-K was the first specialized anti-tank gun of the Red Army and played a large role in the development of this type of weapon. Very soon, it began to be replaced by a 45-mm anti-tank gun, becoming almost invisible against its background. At the end of the 30s, 1-K began to be withdrawn from the troops and transferred to storage, remaining in operation only as training.
At the beginning of the war, all the guns in the warehouses were thrown into battle, since in 1941 there was a shortage of artillery to equip a large number of newly formed formations and make up for huge losses.
Of course, by 1941, the armor penetration characteristics of the 37-mm 1-K anti-tank gun could no longer be considered satisfactory; it could confidently hit only light tanks and armored personnel carriers. Against medium tanks, this gun could only be effective when firing at the side from close (less than 300 m) distances. Moreover, Soviet armor-piercing shells were significantly inferior in armor penetration to German shells of a similar caliber. On the other hand, this gun could use captured 37-mm ammunition, in this case, its armor penetration significantly increased, even exceeding the same characteristics of a 45-mm gun.
It was not possible to establish any details of the combat use of these guns, probably almost all of them were lost in 1941.
The very great historical significance of 1-K is that it became the ancestor of a series of the most numerous Soviet 45-mm anti-tank guns and Soviet anti-tank artillery in general.
During the "liberation campaign" in western Ukraine, several hundred Polish 37-mm anti-tank guns and a significant amount of ammunition for them were captured.
Initially, they were sent to warehouses, and at the end of 1941 they were transferred to the troops, since due to the large losses of the first months of the war, there was a large shortage of artillery, especially anti-tank artillery. In 1941, the GAU published a "Brief Description, Operating Instructions" for this gun.
The 37 mm anti-tank gun, developed by the Bofors company, was a very successful weapon, capable of successfully fighting armored vehicles protected by bulletproof armor.
The gun had a fairly high muzzle velocity and rate of fire, small dimensions and weight (which made it easier to conceal the gun on the ground and roll it onto the battlefield by the crew), and was also adapted for rapid transportation by mechanical traction. Compared to the German 37-mm Pak 35/36 anti-tank gun, the Polish gun had better armor penetration, which is explained by the higher initial velocity of the projectile.
In the second half of the 30s, there was a tendency to increase the thickness of tank armor, in addition, the Soviet military wanted to get an anti-tank gun capable of providing fire support to infantry. This required an increase in caliber.
The new 45 mm anti-tank gun was created by superimposing the 45 mm barrel on the carriage of the 37 mm anti-tank gun mod. 1931 year. The carriage was also improved - wheel travel suspension was introduced. The semi-automatic shutter basically repeated the 1-K scheme and allowed 15-20 rounds / min.
The 45-mm projectile weighed 1.43 kg and was more than 2 times heavier than the 37-mm. At a distance of 500 m, the armor-piercing projectile, normally penetrated 43-mm armor. At the time of adoption, the 45-mm anti-tank gun mod. 1937 of the year pierced the armor of any then existing tank.
A 45-mm fragmentation grenade when bursting gave about 100 fragments, retaining lethal force when flying 15 m along the front and 5-7 m deep. …
Thus, the 45-mm anti-tank gun had good anti-personnel capabilities.
From 1937 to 1943, 37354 guns were fired. Shortly before the start of the war, the 45-mm cannon was discontinued, since our military leadership believed that the new German tanks would have a thickness of frontal armor that was impenetrable for these guns. Shortly after the start of the war, the gun was put into series again.
45-mm cannons of the 1937 model were assigned to the anti-tank platoons of the Red Army rifle battalions (2 guns) and anti-tank divisions of rifle divisions (12 guns). They were also in service with separate anti-tank regiments, which included 4-5 four-gun batteries.
For its time in terms of armor penetration "forty-five" was quite adequate. Nevertheless, the insufficient penetration capacity of the 50-mm frontal armor of the Pz Kpfw III Ausf H and Pz Kpfw IV Ausf F1 tanks is beyond doubt. This was often due to the low quality of armor-piercing shells. Many batches of shells had a technological defect. If the heat treatment regime was violated in production, the shells turned out to be too hard and, as a result, split against the tank's armor, but in August 1941 the problem was solved - technical changes were made to the production process (localizers were introduced).
To improve armor penetration, a sub-caliber 45-mm projectile with a tungsten core was adopted, which pierced 66-mm armor at a distance of 500 m along the normal, and when firing at a dagger range of 100 m - armor of 88 mm.
With the advent of APCR shells, late modifications of the Pz Kpfw IV tanks, the thickness of the frontal armor of which did not exceed 80 mm, became "tough".
At first, the new shells were on a special account and were issued by the piece. For unjustified expenditure of sub-caliber shells, the gun commander and gunner could be brought to trial.
In the hands of experienced and tactically skillful commanders and trained crews, the 45 mm anti-tank gun posed a serious threat to enemy armored vehicles. Its positive qualities were high mobility and ease of camouflage. However, for a better defeat of armored targets, a more powerful weapon was urgently required, which became the 45-mm cannon mod. 1942 M-42, developed and put into service in 1942.
The 45-mm M-42 anti-tank gun was obtained by upgrading the 45-mm cannon of the 1937 model at Plant No. 172 in Motovilikha. The modernization consisted in lengthening the barrel (from 46 to 68 calibers), increasing the propellant charge (the mass of gunpowder in the case increased from 360 to 390 grams) and a number of technological measures to simplify mass production. The thickness of the armor of the shield cover was increased from 4.5 mm to 7 mm for better protection of the crew from armor-piercing rifle bullets.
As a result of the modernization, the muzzle velocity of the projectile increased by almost 15% - from 760 to 870 m / s. At a distance of 500 meters along the normal, an armor-piercing projectile penetrated 61mm, and an APCR projectile pierced -81mm armor. According to the memoirs of anti-tank veterans, the M-42 had a very high firing accuracy and a relatively small recoil when fired. This made it possible to fire at a high rate of fire without correcting the aiming.
Serial production of 45-mm guns mod. 1942 was launched in January 1943 and was carried out only at plant number 172. During the most intense periods, the plant produced 700 of these guns per month. In total, 10,843 guns mod. 1942 year. Their production continued after the war. New guns, as they were released, went to re-equip anti-tank artillery regiments and brigades with 45-mm anti-tank guns mod. 1937 of the year.
As it soon became clear, the armor penetration of the M-42 to fight against German heavy tanks with powerful anti-cannon armor Pz. Kpfw. V "Panther" and Pz. Kpfw. VI "Tiger" was not enough. More successful was the firing of sub-caliber projectiles at the sides, stern and undercarriage. Nevertheless, thanks to the well-established mass production, mobility, ease of camouflage and cheapness, the gun remained in service until the very end of the war.
In the late 30s, the issue of creating anti-tank guns capable of hitting tanks with anti-cannon armor became acute. Calculations showed the futility of the 45 mm caliber in terms of a sharp increase in armor penetration. Various research organizations considered calibers 55 and 60 mm, but in the end it was decided to stop at the caliber 57 mm. Weapons of this caliber were used in the tsarist army and navy (Nordenfeld and Hotchkiss cannons). For this caliber, a new projectile was developed - a standard case from a 76-mm divisional gun with a re-compression of the muzzle of the case to a caliber of 57 mm was adopted as its case.
In 1940, the design team headed by Vasily Gavrilovich Grabin began to design a new anti-tank gun that met the tactical and technical requirements of the Main Artillery Directorate (GAU). The main feature of the new gun was the use of a 73 caliber long barrel. At a distance of 1000 m, the gun pierced 90 mm armor with an armor-piercing projectile.
The prototype of the gun was manufactured in October 1940 and passed factory tests. And in March 1941, the gun was put into service under the official name "57-mm anti-tank gun mod. 1941 g. " In total, from June to December 1941, about 250 guns were delivered.
57-mm cannons from experimental batches took part in the hostilities. Some of them were installed on the Komsomolets light tracked tractor - this was the first Soviet anti-tank self-propelled gun, which, due to the imperfection of the chassis, turned out to be not very successful.
The new anti-tank gun easily penetrated the armor of all then existing German tanks. However, due to the position of the GAU, the release of the gun was discontinued, and the entire production reserve and equipment were mothballed.
In 1943, with the appearance of heavy tanks from the Germans, the production of the gun was restored. The gun of the 1943 model had a number of differences from the guns of the 1941 release, aimed primarily at improving the manufacturability of the gun. Nevertheless, the restoration of mass production was difficult - technological problems arose with the manufacture of barrels. Mass production of a gun under the designation "57-mm anti-tank gun mod. 1943 " ZIS-2 was organized by October - November 1943, after the commissioning of new production facilities, provided with equipment supplied under Lend-Lease.
Since the resumption of production, until the end of the war, the troops received more than 9000 guns.
With the restoration of production of the ZIS-2 in 1943, the guns entered the anti-tank artillery regiments (iptap), 20 guns per regiment.
From December 1944, the ZIS-2 was introduced into the states of the guards rifle divisions - into the regimental anti-tank batteries and into the anti-tank destroyer battalion (12 guns). In June 1945, ordinary rifle divisions were transferred to a similar state.
The capabilities of the ZIS-2 made it possible to confidently hit the 80-mm frontal armor of the most common German medium tanks Pz. IV and assault self-propelled guns StuG III at typical combat distances, as well as the side armor of the Pz. VI "Tiger" tank; at distances less than 500 m, the Tiger's frontal armor was also hit.
In terms of the total cost and manufacturability of production, combat and service and operational characteristics, the ZIS-2 became the best Soviet anti-tank gun of the war.
