In the history of the Red Army, the thirties remained a period of active construction and development in all spheres. Particular attention during this period was paid to the creation of mechanized / armored vehicles. All the measures taken made it possible by the end of the decade to create a massive and well-equipped branch of the military, which is of decisive importance in a future war. However, not everything went smoothly, and by the summer of 1941 it was not possible to sort out all the problems.
Construction period
The beginning of the construction of the armored forces of the Red Army can be considered 1928, when the serial production of the MS-1 / T-18 tanks began. The finished equipment was handed over to the mechanized troops, where they were brought together into one regiment. Already in 1930-32. new units and formations appeared, and the number of tanks went to hundreds.
In the same period, the serial construction of new types of armored vehicles began, incl. own Soviet development. In parallel, the design of samples for the future was carried out. The industry mastered the directions of light, medium and heavy tanks, continued the development of armored vehicles and looked for new solutions. A real evolution of designs was observed, in which several generations of technology replaced each other in a few years.
The issues of organizational and staff structure were actively resolved. So, based on the experience of recent conflicts, mechanized divisions, brigades and corps were created and reorganized. The last changes of this kind took place already in 1941, after the start of the Great Patriotic War.
Light and small
Almost the main direction in the thirties was the development of light tanks for various purposes. Over time, their value for the troops declined, but by 1941 the Red Army still possessed a significant amount of such equipment. At the same time, not all light tanks and tankettes were ready for combat use.
According to known data, by the beginning of the summer of 1941, more than 2,500 T-27 tankettes remained in the Red Army, with over 1,400 units. were under repair or in need of it. Another mass vehicle was the T-37A amphibious tank - approx. 2,300 units, less than 1,500 combat-ready. There were fewer floating T-38s - 1130 units, of which approx. 400 under repair or pending.
By the beginning of the war, amphibious tanks and wedges were used only in secondary roles. A significant part of such equipment could not be operated due to breakdowns, while others managed to develop most of the resource. In addition, the combat capabilities no longer met the requirements of the time.
The basis of the fleet of light tanks was made up of more efficient vehicles of the T-26 family, the production of which was completed only at the end of 1940. By the beginning of the war, more than 10 thousand of these tanks served in the Red Army. 1,260 tanks were two-turret tanks, recognized as morally obsolete. 1360 cars were subject to repair. It should be noted that there are more than 1,100 chemical and 55 remote-controlled tanks based on the T-26, as well as 16 combat-ready ACS SU-5.
Light tanks BT constituted a significant part of the park of armored vehicles. By the summer of 1941, the Red Army had more than 7, 5 thousand BT tanks of five modifications. The most massive (more than 4, 4 thousand) were relatively new BT-7; the release of their improved modifications continued. Fewer than 1,400 Fast Tanks were undergoing repairs or awaiting them. It should be borne in mind that by the beginning of the forties, BTs of early modifications began to be displayed in training units.
Literally on the eve of the war, the light amphibious tank T-40 went into production. By early summer, the industry had delivered 132 of these machines. A few weeks in June, before the start of the war, another app. 30 unitsOf the existing fleet at that time, only one tank needed repair.
Middle class
The first domestic medium tank in the series was the T-28, which was produced from 1933. Until 1940, a little more than 500 vehicles were assembled. Some of the equipment was written off based on the results of the battles; other damaged vehicles were being repaired. Modernization was also carried out. By June 1, 1941, the Red Army had 481 tanks of this type, of which 189 were not ready for use. In the short term, the army planned to abandon the T-28 due to its final obsolescence.
The most successful armored vehicle of the Great Patriotic War, the T-34, belongs to the class of medium tanks. The production of such equipment began in 1940 at two factories. By the beginning of 1941, only 115 tanks had been assembled, but then the production rate increased. In the first half of 1941, 1,100 tanks were manufactured. By June 22, the Red Army managed to receive 1,066 units, new deliveries took place in the near future.
Heavy machinery
In 1933, the first Russian heavy tank, the T-35, entered service with the Red Army. The production of such armored vehicles continued until 1939, but did not differ at a high rate. The annual maximum was 15 tanks (1936), while in other periods, no more than a dozen were produced. In total, the army received 59 serial T-35s. By June 1941, the units had 55 heavy tanks, of which 11 were being repaired.
Several projects were developed to replace the T-35, and a new heavy tank KV-1 reached the series. The production of such equipment began in February 1940, and in April the army received the first vehicles. Until the end of the year, 139 units were built. KV-1. By the beginning of the summer of 1941, approx. 380 tanks; the bulk of the equipment managed to enter the troops.
Simultaneously with the basic KV-1, the KV-2 with different weapons went into production. In 1940, LKZ built 104 of these heavy tanks. In the first half of 1941, another 100 cars were handed over, after which their production ceased. The last batches were handed over to the customer after the start of the war.
On June 1, 1941, there were 370 KV-1 tanks and 134 KV-2 units in combat units. In June, before the start of the war, approx. 40 cars of both models.
Wheeled armored vehicles
The most important component of the armored forces were armored vehicles of various types. So, by the beginning of June 1941, the Red Army had almost 1900 light armored cars. Basically, these were BA-20 - more than 1400 units, incl. 969 equipped with radio equipment. Other light armored vehicles of several models were built in smaller series.
The oldest of the medium armored cars was the BA-27. At the beginning of the war, there were 183 such machines in the Red Army, most of which had exhausted almost their entire resource. 65 armored cars were not ready. Newer medium BA-3s were in the amount of 149 units, 133 were ready for operation and combat use. In 1935-38. improved BA-6 armored cars were produced. In June 1941, there were 240 such machines, incl. 55 radio. There were more than 200 units in combat readiness.
The most massive medium armored car was the BA-10 and its modification BA-10M. In total, more than 3, 3 thousand of these machines were produced, of which almost 3 thousand were before the start of the war - until June 22, approx. 2, 7 thousand units 2475 units were in good condition. - 1141 radio and 1334 linear armored cars.
Also, the Red Army had armored vehicles of other types, less numerous. For example, in 1940-41. only 16 BA-11 heavy armored cars were built. The last two cars were handed over after the beginning of the Great Patriotic War.
Quantity and quality
As of the beginning of the summer of 1941, the Red Army armored forces were one of the largest forces in the world in terms of the number of combat vehicles. However, they had a lot of significant problems and difficulties of various kinds. Some of them were solved to the best of their ability, while others turned out to be too difficult for a quick solution.
First of all, the specific distribution of armored vehicles by class is noticeable; the share of cars of different years of production also attracts attention. Even in the pre-war period, the T-26, T-28 and T-35 tanks, early modifications of the BT, as well as some armored vehicles were called obsolete. However, all of these vehicles still constituted a significant proportion of the total fleet. This was especially evident with the T-26 tanks - the most massive at that time.
Not all of the available vehicles were combat-ready. A noticeable percentage of equipment, different depending on models and modifications, was under repair or was waiting for it. In addition, the armored vehicles of the old models managed to deplete most of the resource, which reduced the potential of the combat-ready fleet.
It should be borne in mind that tank units were deployed throughout the country and covered a number of strategic areas. The concentration of all troops in one direction was not possible for organizational and military-political reasons.
In general, by the summer of 1941, the Red Army units had about 25-27 thousand tanks of all classes. Several thousand vehicles were not operational for technical reasons. The main contribution to the future victory was made by tanks of new models - T-34 and KV. However, by the beginning of the war there were only approx. 1,500 of these armored vehicles. They accounted for only 7% of the combat-ready tank fleet. However, production continued, and the share of modern technology was constantly growing.
The era of development
In the thirties, Soviet tank building has come a long way. It began with copying foreign equipment and releasing it in a small series, and then mastered the development of its own designs and the mass assembly of thousands of tanks. Thanks to this, in just a decade, the few and limitedly developed mechanized troops of the Red Army turned into large and powerful armored forces.
The development of armored vehicles was carried out not only in our country, but also in a potential enemy. New challenges and requirements arose, due to which the existing technology quickly became obsolete. The USSR tried to respond to such circumstances to the best of its ability. However, the possibilities were not limitless, and by the beginning of the war, the state of the armored fleet was far from ideal. However, without the previous years of hard work, everything would have been much worse.
