Feline at gunpoint
It is noteworthy that by the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, there was no independent trophy service in the Soviet army. Only in August 1941, a single trophy body appeared, which was led by the evacuation department of the Red Army's rear services headquarters, which, in turn, was formed on the basis of the economic department of the General Staff. On the fronts, there were evacuation departments in the logistics departments and commissioners for collecting trophies. And so on, along the army's organizational structure, up to the regiment, where there were separate commissioners for captured property, whose duties also included the collection and accounting of scrap metal. For the first time, the enemy left rich trophies to the Red Army during the retreat near Moscow, when from November 16 to December 10, 1941, 1,434 tanks and many other less valuable equipment were thrown on the battlefields.
An important part of the work of the trophy teams was the selection of the most valuable and previously unknown samples of Hitler's weapons, which were then necessarily studied in the rear units. In the supplement to armored vehicles, the Scientific Testing Automobile Armored Proving Ground No. 108 (NIABT) in Kubinka near Moscow was engaged in the study and testing. With the outbreak of hostilities near the capital, the Polygon was redeployed to Kazan - the resolution of the State Defense Committee on this matter dates back to 1941-14-10. In addition to evacuation, the staff of the NIABT was seriously reduced - from 325 people to 228, while the independent department of armor and weapons was eliminated. This was caused, among other things, by the weak material base of the farm of the Agricultural Institute in Kazan, where the Polygon was now located. There was no artillery range, which actually put an end to the tests of armor and weapons, including captured ones. There was a chronic shortage of living and laboratory facilities. Therefore, at the first opportunity, it was required either to radically improve the conditions at the new NIABT base, or to return it back to Kubinka. We stopped at the latter, and at the end of January 1942, 25 people were sent from Kazan to restore the material base. Now the division in Kubinka was officially called the NIABT branch.
Among the entire range of works of the Polygon, one can single out theoretical and practical studies of the German tanks LT vz. 38, T-III, Sturmgeschütz III and T-IV, as a result of which the military engineer of the 3rd rank Radichuk I. A. issued memos to the artilleryman with instructions on where and how to shoot. Subsequently, at least ten reference books and memos on the destruction of various German armored vehicles were issued by the Polygon staff. I must say that all this work went in parallel with the testing of domestic equipment and the development of new ways to combat German tanks. So, at the very beginning of the war in July 1941, the NIABT proposed a design for a mortar for throwing RPG-40 grenades. The mortar, adapted for use with a rifle of the 1891 model, allowed throwing grenades at 60-70 meters. This novelty was developed by the artillery engineer B. A. Ivanov, who, a couple of months later, conducted a series of tests of several more anti-tank weapons, namely, bundles of five RGD-33; a device for undermining the bottom of a tank with a thin pack, carried by a dog; new hand-held anti-tank grenades. Based on the results of the tests, available illustrated albums and memos were released.
The Tiger tank was the first among the truly interesting trophy exhibits to enter Kubinka. The historian of tank building Yuri Pasholok in the material "Heavy Trophy" claims that these were vehicles with tower numbers 100 and 121 from the 502nd heavy tank battalion, which were "captured" back in January 1943 near Leningrad. The NIABT testers received the tanks only by April. It was decided to shoot one tank in the period from 25 to 30 April for research purposes from various calibers, and the second one was to be used to study the power of the cannon. We will not describe the history of the second car, since this is beyond the scope of the purposes of this material. Target from the family of "heavy felines" began to shoot from the light T-70, and immediately with sub-caliber shells. It was possible to penetrate the 45-mm cannon 20-K only in the 80-mm side from a distance of 200 meters. The 45-mm anti-tank gun of the 1942 model of the year was able to penetrate the top sheet of the side only from 350 meters, and only with a sub-caliber one. An ordinary blank did not penetrate the board up to 100 meters. Naturally, the testers, in order of calibers for firing the tank, went on increasing, and the next steel was the 57-mm ZIS-2, paired with the British 6-pounder anti-tank gun QF 6-pounder 7 cwt. The guns pierced the side from 800-1000 meters, and the domestic gun did not hit the forehead even from 500 meters. The testers did not come closer, obviously, reasonably considering that at such a distance from the tank, the gun crew had very little chance of surviving. Yuri Pasholok assumes that at a distance of 300 meters, the ZIS-2 should have pierced the Tiger's forehead (of course, with a successful combination of circumstances). This version is supported by the results of similar British tests, when a 6-pounder cannon hit a tank in just such conditions. Next in rank is the US 75-mm M3 cannon of the M4A2 tank, which, depending on the projectile, hit the Tiger's side at a range of 400 to 650 meters. They did not shoot at the front of the tank, apparently, they decided not to waste the shells in vain.
But with the 76-mm F-34 cannon, there was a failure - not a single projectile was able to penetrate the armor of a German tank from a single angle closer than 200 meters. The 76 mm 3-K anti-aircraft gun turned out to be, as expected, more effective, but did not surpass the previously tested American gun in terms of armor penetration. We can say that the test of the 85-mm gun 52-K became a landmark - the shell hit the side of the tank already from 1000 meters. It is this gun, as you know, will be installed on medium and heavy domestic tanks in the future. With the increase in the caliber of the fired guns, the experimental "Tiger", of course, became worse and worse. And this despite the fact that from the 107-mm M-60 cannon, the 122-mm M-30 howitzer and the 152-mm ML-20 cannon-howitzer, the testers were not able to hit the target at all! But the 122-mm A-19 cannon hit, and the very first round went through the frontal plate, ripping a piece of armor from the stern. The second pierced the forehead of the tower and tore it off the shoulder strap. After that, the A-19 received a residence permit as a tank and self-propelled gun.
The plight of Hitler's tank
The next challenge for NIABT specialists was the new German tank "Panther". In the summer of 1943, they organized a business trip of the Polygon personnel to the Kursk Bulge area to study the wrecked "cats" during the defensive battles on the Voronezh Front. For eight days at the end of July 1943, 31 tanks were studied, which had fallen in the area of the breakthrough of the front by the Nazis along the Belgorod-Oboyan highway, 30 km wide and 35 km deep. The uniqueness of the prepared report on the results of the work is that for the first time statistical data were obtained that allow us to speak confidently enough about the defeatability and nature of the Panther's defense. So, out of 31 tanks 22 were hit by artillery, only 3 tanks hit mines, one tank was hit by an aerial bomb, one Panther got stuck in a trench, 4 tanks just broke. Failure for technical reasons amounted to a rather big 13% - this is worth remembering when, once again, they start talking about the unsatisfactory quality of domestic T-34s. At the time of launching the Panther into production, the Germans did not conduct hostilities on their own territory, they did not have a disaster with the evacuation of tank factories, and all the same, 13% of the tanks died on a specific section of the front due to technical and constructive defects. But let's return to those 22 tanks that the Germans lost due to the fire effect of Soviet artillery. The most unpleasant thing that the NIABT specialists saw was 10 hits in the frontal sheet, of which none were through - only ricochets. 16 shells flew into the tower to the Germans, and all hit the armor through and through. It is especially worth noting 32 fatal hits for the "Panther" on the sides, stern and tank gun - obviously, Soviet tank fighters successfully adapted to the new Hitlerite vehicle and hit the "cat" with flanking fire.
Naturally, NIABT engineers could not help but test the captured tank for resistance to shells in an improvised training ground. The victim was "Panther" with tail number 441 - obviously the most "alive" among the rest. He worked on the T-34-76 tank from a distance of 100 meters. They fired at the upper frontal part (20 rounds) and the lower one (10 rounds). All shells from the top sheet of the frontal armor ricocheted, and there was only one hole in the bottom. Therefore, the 76-mm cannon (as well as the 45-mm sub-caliber projectile) was now recommended to shoot exclusively at the sides of the Panther.
There are interesting points in the test report. First of all, the Panther is rated as a more powerful tank than the T-34, as well as the KV. The Germans had an advantage in frontal armor and artillery weapons. The testers noted that the inspection holes of the driver and radio operator of the Hitlerite tank are closed with covers flush with the frontal sheet, so the shells ricochet from them. All this seriously contrasted with the weakened hatch cover of the driver and the mask of the course machine gun with the frontal sheet of the T-34. Further in the report were materials on the specifics of the use of tanks "Panther". The Germans try to use their tanks in battle, if possible, near paved roads, as well as in connection with an escort from T-III and T-IV. They fire at tanks and other targets from long distances, trying to avoid close contact with Soviet armored vehicles. They attack straightforwardly, understanding the strength of the frontal armor and the weakness of the sides, and try not to maneuver again. In defense, they operate from ambushes, and when retreating, they move back, protecting weak spots from enemy fire. Each tank has a special charge with a detonator, which is ignited through the fuse-cord and is intended to detonate the emergency "Panther".
In early August 1943, the serviceable Panther arrived at Kubinka for full trials, including running tests. The study of the armor and its shelling only confirmed the accuracy of the conclusions at the Kursk Bulge - the Germans seriously differentiated the armor by weakening the sides. Still, in the German table of ranks it was a medium tank, and its invulnerability should have been slightly lower than that of the older Tiger. As in the case of the heavy Tiger, the T-70 was the first to shoot the Panther. Here, his 45-mm cannon was able to hit the vertical armor of the side near the rollers from 500 meters, and the inclined one held a blow even from 70-80 meters. The F-34 with a caliber of 76 mm hit the side from 1 kilometer, and the forehead was not fired from it - there was enough experience in field shooting on the Voronezh front. The first who decided to try the Panther's forehead was the 85-mm D-85 cannon, and nothing good came of this venture. The inclined armor plates played a role, forcing the shells to ricochet. Now they are thinking about replacing the 85-mm cannon on heavy tanks and self-propelled guns. Further tests were more like beating the Hitlerite machine. A 122-mm projectile confidently pierced the Panther in the forehead, and a shot at the side pierced the tank through and through. When they hit a 152-mm shell from the ML-20 howitzer cannon, there was a ricochet on the front sheet, leaving an impressive gap that did not give the crew any chance of survival.
Naturally, Hitler's "menagerie" did not end there. In the history of NIABT from Kubinka, there were still resonant tests of self-propelled guns and several heavy tanks.
