5th place - Centurion
… The blazing sun set between the stone cliffs and silhouettes of tanks flashed again in the thickening darkness - the Syrians renewed their attacks on the Golan Heights. The remnants of the 7th tank brigade of the IDF continued to die, not retreating a single step.
A night battle in a ratio of 1: 9 did not bode well: if during the day the Israelis relied on their only advantage - accurate shooting from long distances, then at night the initiative completely passed to the enemy. Equipped with night vision devices, the T-55 and T-62 of the Syrian Guard uncontrollably rushed forward, supported by motorized infantry fire from armored personnel carriers and BMP-1. Especially the Israelis were frightened by the smooth-bore gun of the newest T-62 tank - its feathered sub-caliber projectile could penetrate the Centurion's turret. Worse, the Israeli tanks did not have infrared sights, trying to maneuver in the dark, many Centurions tore the tracks on sharp stones. His eyes flashing with black warheads, the commander of the 7th Tank Brigade, Janusz Ben-Gal, made the only right decision - to stay put and fire at any moving silhouettes.
By the morning, the 7th brigade ceased to exist - of its 105 "Centurions" 98 were destroyed, but the tankers at the cost of their lives delayed the Syrian offensive until the arrival of the reserve units. 230 Syrian tanks, 200 armored personnel carriers and infantry fighting vehicles remained in the Valley of Tears.
The old British tank "Centurion", developed in 1945, became one of the most active participants in the Cold War. Korea, Vietnam, India, Angola. But the service in the IDF brought him real fame - knowing about the legendary survivability and high protection of these tanks, the parents of the tankers prayed that their sons would be enrolled in units equipped with Shot tanks (the Israeli version of the Centurion). Two hundred tanks of this type are still used in training units, the other part of the vehicles that survived the battle were converted into heavy armored personnel carriers "Puma".
"Shot" ("whip"), unlike British tanks, received a 105 mm gun, a new power plant and hydromechanical transmission from the American M60 tank, the electrical equipment was completely replaced and an automatic fire extinguishing system was installed. As a result, the "Shot" failed only after numerous hits of shells, for example, a third of the destroyed vehicles of the 7th brigade were subsequently recognized as fit for restoration.
4th place - Mark I
None of the current tracked combat vehicles will ever be able to repeat the success of the First Tank, which crawled out of the morning fog into German positions on September 15, 1916. Soldiers and officers all over the front fled in panic at the sight of this rattling "land ship".
To be honest, I was quite surprised at the characteristics of the world's first tank. It turned out that behind the archaic design is a very serious combat vehicle with normal bulletproof armor and high firepower. Other Mark I systems can bring a smile, for example, communication in battle was provided by … pigeon mail. Alas, the pigeons could not bear the conditions inside the tanks and they were replaced by foot messengers who rushed about in the mud under the hurricane fire between the cans crawling forward.
All this big top had tremendous consequences in the coming wars of the twentieth century …
3rd place - Tiger
The small French town of Villers-Bocage is full of glee. Residents meet their liberators, flowers fall on the armor of British tanks.
This idyllic picture is watched gloomily through binoculars by a man in a black tank overalls, without insignia, but with a "dead head" on his cap and CC runes on his collar. The gunner, leaning out of the next hatch, stretches out his hand for the binoculars:
“These Tommies act like they've already won the war.
- They are wrong. - the commander throws shortly, sliding inside the tower.
The 700-horsepower Maybach roared, and Michael Wittmann's tank rushed towards Villers-Bocage, towards its immortality.
The Tiger stops on the outskirts of the town, preparing to open targeted fire. The first shot and one of the Shermans flashes like a match. Second shot. From the next "Sherman" the tower crashes down with a crash. Panic in the village. Crews rush to their tanks, residents seek shelter in the basements of houses. For half a minute "Tiger" makes five more aimed shots and starts to move again.
Across the street froze "Cromwell" - a German monster rammed and turned it over like an empty tin. The 88 mm cannon rumbles again - the Tiger at close range fires at the Cromveli of the elite armored regiment, their fragments ringing against the armor. One of the British tanks manages to elude death, breaking through the fence in reverse and hiding among the buildings. The simplest thing is left - to turn the abandoned armored personnel carriers into mince - the frontal machine gun of the "Tiger" is choking with bursts.
A desperate Sherman emerged from somewhere out of the gateway, the gunner catches a cross on board the Tiger in the crosshair of the sight. Distance 200. Shot. Taken by surprise and growling convulsively, the armored monster desperately tries to maneuver in a narrow street. Faster, faster, he unfolds the tower! The Sherman manages to fire three more shells. With a return shot, the "Tiger" brought down half of the house, covering the roof of the tower with debris and broken bricks …
In 20 minutes of that battle, the best tank ace Michael Wittmann destroyed 21 tanks, 14 armored personnel carriers and 14 Bren SPGs.
Panzerkampfwagen VI "Tiger" Ausf. The H1 was designed as a heavy breakthrough tank, but the German "wunderwaffle" failed the general battle on the Kursk Bulge and was mainly used as a tank destroyer until the end of the war. The main weapon of the Tiger was the 88 mm KwK 36 cannon, created on the basis of a powerful anti-aircraft gun. In combat conditions, the supertank could fire 8 rounds per minute, which was a record figure for tank guns of that time.
The thick-skinned German monster is often described as a slow and clumsy tank, which is not at all true. The Tiger was expensive and complex, but never suffered from limited mobility. It jokingly accelerated to 45 km / h and was equally nimble on rough terrain, thanks to an eight-speed hydromechanical gearbox and sophisticated side clutches, with a double power supply.
2nd place - M1 "Abrams"
Once the Papuans shot down the Abrams tank with a flintlock, captured the crew and cooked the Americans right in the tower. A tasty lunch was enough for everyone - the tower is big … Despite the abundance of similar stories about the mass extermination of Abrams from large-caliber machine guns, RPGs or from a 30-mm BMP-2 cannon piercing the aft armor of a tank, the truth is quite obvious - the Abrams has been fighting continuously for the last 20 years and regularly wins victories over a weaker, but more numerous opponent. Although is it possible to call the Iraqi army of 1991 a weak one - the fourth in the world in terms of the number of tank parks (more than 5,000 units) and which by that time had received a steep combat experience over the 8 years of the Iran-Iraq war?
From the point of view of tabular performance characteristics, "Abrams" is not the best tank in the world in terms of security. As with most other parameters. These tanks suffered heavy losses in local wars from mines and powerful land mines, there are numerous photographic evidence of the defeat of the M1 from anti-tank grenade launchers. Nevertheless, unlike most modern tracked vehicles, the Abrams is an element of a single combat system, repeatedly tested in battle in the harshest climatic conditions and undergoing regular modernization to eliminate identified deficiencies and level promising threats. Experience has been gained in the operational transfer of thousands of "Abrams" across the floor of the globe; a wide range of land, sea and air vehicles has been developed for tanks of this type. In all parts of the world, the infrastructure has been prepared for the rapid deployment and operation of the Abrams.
Due to the increasing losses of M1 tanks in urban areas, the Tank Urban Survival Kit was hastily developed - a "survival kit in urban environments", which includes such seemingly insignificant things as an external telephone for communication of the tank crew with the infantry convenient for al-Qaeda terrorists - pick up the phone and shout to the crew of the tank "Allah Akbar!" a large-caliber machine gun on a gun mask, a remotely controlled CROWS installation, night vision goggles for all crew members.
Disadvantages of the Abrams tank? There are plenty of them. The gas turbine engine is extremely voracious - during the hostilities in Iraq, the armored units of the US Army each time suffered from a lack of fuel. An unfortunate location of the auxiliary power unit in the basket of the tower was noted - in some cases it was easily hit by primitive weapons, which led to a fire in the MTO and the failure of the tank. "Abrams" of the first generation suffered from overheating of the engine, repeated cases of spontaneous ignition of cars are known. The price of each tank in a modern configuration reaches $ 6 million.
Despite numerous problems, the Americans do not plan to abandon the gas turbine engine. The powerful GTE accelerates the steel colossus to 30 km / h in 6 seconds, and the Allison automatic transmission ensures high mobility of the tracked vehicle. The engine and transmission are mounted in a single block weighing 4 tons, and with a crane, they can be replaced in the field in one hour.
The M1 "Abrams" was produced in the amount of 10 thousand copies and entered service with the armed forces of six countries of the world: according to data for 2012, in the US army - 6900 tanks of this type, in the Egyptian army - 1130 tanks, Saudi Arabia - 315 tanks, as well as several hundred vehicles in the armies of Kuwait, Iraq and Australia.
According to Discovery experts, the Abrams is the best of all modern tanks. This is a very dubious statement, given that the world leader in the export of tanks is Uralvagonzavod. The volume of Russian exports under contracts 2007-2014 is 688 main battle tanks worth 1.9 billion dollars. During the same period of time, the United States was able to conclude contracts for the supply of 457 MBTs in the amount of 4.9 billion dollars. In third place is Germany (348 MBT with a total value of 3.5 billion dollars).
T-34
Here he walked. There are three rows of trenches.
A chain of wolf pits with oak bristles.
Here's the trail where he backed up when
His caterpillars were blown up with a mine.
But there was no doctor at hand, And he got up, suffering from a limp, Broken iron dragging
Crouching on the wounded leg.
Here he is, breaking everything like a battering ram, Crawling in circles on my own trail
And collapsed, exhausted from wounds, Having bought the infantry a difficult victory.
By dawn, in soot, in dust, More smoking tanks came
And together they decided into the depths of the earth
Bury his iron remains.
He seemed to ask not to bury
Even in a dream, he saw yesterday's battle, He resisted, he had all the strength
He also threatened with his broken tower.
So that you can see far around, We made a grave hill above it, Having nailed a plywood star onto a pole -
Above the battlefield, the monument is feasible.
When would a monument be told to me
To erect to all those who perished here in the wilderness, I'd be on a hewn granite wall
I put the tank with empty eye sockets;
I would dig it up as it is, In holes, in torn sheets of iron, -
Unfading military honor
In these scars, in the burned wounds.
Climbing high on a pedestal, Let, as a witness, rightfully confirm:
Yes, it was not easy for us to win.
Yes, the enemy was brave.
The greater is our glory.
After Konstantin Simonov's poem, one does not want to return to the pitiful work of Discovery. As they say, there is no offense, just conclusions are drawn. If we take it seriously, there should be at least two ratings - “tactical” and “strategic”. The first test should take into account the technical perfection of the design, its strengths and weaknesses, the effectiveness of the use of the tank in combat conditions. According to the second, "strategic" rating, each structure should be considered as an element of contributing to the success of the army on a geopolitical scale. In terms of technical superiority and combat effectiveness, the Tiger is the best tank of all time. From the point of view of historical retrospective, the best tanks were the T-34, which saved the world from the brown plague.
In our time, the German MBT "Leopard-2" has the most advanced characteristics. But in terms of geopolitical influence, General Abrams is definitely in the lead. Despite well-deserved reproaches, the Abrams have redrawn the map of the world more than once.
