Most legendary armored car: Austin 50HP
Country: UK
Released: 1915
Length: 4900 mm
Combat weight: 5.3 t
Engine: in-line 4-cylinder
Austin, 50 hp
Maximum speed: 60 km / h
Crew: 4-5 people.
Lenin delivered a fiery speech from an armored car, but from which one - a number of disputes and doubts arise.
Legend has it that after the performance the Austin-Putilovets armored car was carefully preserved as the “steel tribune of the leader”. But the armored car appeared on the pedestal in front of the Leningrad Museum only in 1939. And where was the legendary armored car from 1917 to 1939?.. And second: in March 1917, no "Austin-Putilovtsev" existed yet: according to historical data, the Putilovsky plant put the first armored vehicles on an English chassis only at the end of the summer of the same year … Therefore, Lenin spoke, most likely, from the British Austin 50HP, delivered to Russia before the revolution.
In 1914, there was an obvious shortage of armored vehicles in Russia. A request for the supply of armored vehicles was sent to the UK. The requirements were simple: full armor, two weapon towers. The Austin Motor Company developed and launched the production of light armored vehicles (Austin 1st series) on a Russian order. The armored car was based on a lightweight chassis, had wooden wheels with pneumatic tires, armor thickness of 3, 5-4 mm and two Maxim machine guns as weapons. The crew consisted of four people: commander, driver, two gunners. The first 48 vehicles were shipped to Russia in September. After the very first combat experience, which showed the vulnerability of the armored car, the Austins were modified, partially providing them with 7-mm armor. The main problems were a low-power engine (30 hp), a weak chassis and low cross-country ability of the vehicle. As a result, in March 1915, the 2nd series of "Austins" (60 cars) on the chassis of a 1.5-ton truck with a more powerful Austin 50 hp engine was delivered to Russia. The new car accelerated to 50 km / h on the highway and was not afraid of bumps. Later, a third series was ordered with another set of modifications.
A Russian armored car on an English chassis was designed in 1916, but they did not have time to launch it into series. It was only in the summer of 1917 that the first armored car of the Putilov factory on the Austin chassis saw the light of day. It was distinguished from the British by the location of the towers: they are placed diagonally, which allows both machine guns to fire in any direction. It is worth noting that the name "Putilovets" is a popular name, officially they were called "Russian Austin" or "Austin of the Putilov Plant".
The Russian Austins were in service until 1931.
And only thanks to the legend of Lenin, the real "Russian Austin" has survived to our times in excellent condition.
Heaviest tank: "Mouse", Panzerkampfwagen VIII
Country: Germany
First sample: 1944
Length: 10 200 mm
Combat weight: 188 t
Engine: Daimler-Benz MB 509, 1080 hp (first copy), Daimler-Benz MB 517, 1200 hp (second copy)
Maximum speed: 19 km / h
Crew: 6 people.
Despite the funny name (German Maus - "mouse"), this tank is the heaviest ever built, its combat weight is 188 tons. Work on it began in Germany in 1942 at the personal direction of Hitler, and by 1943 the project was ready; in the winter of the same year, the first prototype of the "Mouse" with a wooden turret and partially installed armor entered for testing. The most famous companies worked on the project: Krupp, Daimler-Benz, Siemens (each was responsible for its own area of work), and Ferdinand Porsche himself became the chief designer. In 1944, the first sample was already fully equipped, the construction of the second began. The titanic combat vehicle 10.2 m long (with a cannon forward) was equipped with a 128 mm KwK44 / 2 L / 61 gun, which had no analogues in terms of effective firing range and armor penetration. True, none of the two built "Maus" took part in the battle: in 1945, during the retreat, the Germans themselves blew up both machines. Nevertheless, their remains were delivered to the USSR, where one "Mouse" was assembled from them. Today it is kept in the armored museum in Kubinka.
The most massive military tractor: MT-LB
Country: USSR
Entered service: 1964
Length: 6399-6509 mm
Combat weight: 9, 7 t (12, 2 with cargo)
Engine: YaMZ-238V, 240 hp
Maximum speed: 61.5 km / h
Crew: 2 people. +11 (landing)
Soviet amphibious armored personnel carrier MT-LB (multi-purpose light armored tractor), adopted in 1964, has become one of the most massive military tractors in the world. It was in service with more than 25 armies of the world, and today the Russian army has several thousand MT-LBs. The only 7.62 mm PKT machine gun installed on the MT-LB was intended primarily for defense: the tractor is not suitable for offensive operations. True, several combat vehicles were created on its basis, including the Bulgarian BMP-23 (1984).
The most famous American tank: M1 Abrams
Country: USA
Entered service: 1980
Length: 9766 mm
Combat weight: 61, 3 t
Engine: Honeywell AGT1500C, 1500 hp
Maximum speed: 66.8 km / h
Crew: 4 people.
For 30 years, the M1 Abrams tank has remained the main combat vehicle of the US Army. It has been developed since the early 1970s to replace the outdated Patton tanks. The tank is made according to the classic scheme and requires a crew of four. Armament - 105 mm M68 cannon or 120 mm M256 cannon, depending on the modification, as well as machine guns. In addition to the United States, the tank is in service with the armies of Australia, Kuwait, Egypt, Iraq and Saudi Arabia.
The very first battle tank: Mark I
Country: UK
Designed: 1915
Length: 9910 mm
Combat weight: 28.4 tons (male), 27.4 tons (female) Engine: 6-cylinder Daimler-Knight, 105 hp
Maximum speed: 6.4 km / h
Crew: 8 people.
The famous British heavy tank Mark I became the first tank in history to be used in combat conditions. Created in 1915-1916, it had a characteristic "diamond-shaped" appearance, and the tracks were open and vulnerable to enemy attacks. Two modifications of the tank were produced: "male" (male) with a machine gun and two 57-mm cannons and "female" (female) with machine guns. Subsequently, the Mark I was occasionally used even in World War II, but its main merit was not military successes (alternating with failures), but proof of the promise of a new direction in the development of weapons.
Most Cinematic Armored Car: M3 Scout Car
Country: USA
Entered service: 1937
Length: 5626 mm
Combat weight: 5.62 t
Engine: in-line 6-cylinder
Hercules JXD, 110 hp
Maximum speed: 89 km / h
Crew: 1 person + 7 (landing)
American films about the war are full of two types of armored vehicles. If the film is about the war in Iraq, it's Hummers. If about the Second World War - White light armored personnel carriers. Almost everyone saw them, but few people thought about what kind of car it was. The first version of the armored personnel carrier (M1) appeared in 1934: an armored hull and four machine guns were installed on the chassis of a one and a half ton all-wheel drive truck. The car showed itself to be average - mainly due to its low power and high mass, and in 1937 White offered the army a modified version of the M3 Scout Car, which became the iconic armored car. The six-cylinder Hercules JXD accelerated the M3 to a speed of 80 km / h on the highway, and the M2 Browning and Browning M1919A4 machine guns in calibers.50 and.30 were sufficient combat force for a light command or reconnaissance vehicle. True, the low maneuverability and the lack of a roof quickly nullified all the advantages of the "Whites". Under Lend-Lease, the M3 Scout Car was delivered to the USSR, where it served until 1947 (in the USA, their replacement began in 1943); by the end of the 1990s, the Whites survived as a combat unit only in the Dominican Republic.
The most famous WWII tank: T-34
Country: USSR
Entered service: 1944
Length: 8100 mm
Combat weight: 32 t
Engine: 12-cylinder compressorless diesel V-2-34, 500 hp
Maximum speed: 55 km / h
Crew: 5 people.
The T-34 became the most recognizable symbol of the Great Patriotic War and the most famous Soviet tank in history. It entered the series in 1940, and its last modification, the T-34-85 (1944), is still in service with some countries of the world. The total number of T-34 tanks produced in the USSR and other states reaches 84,000 - this is the second largest tank in the world. The last Soviet T-34s were assembled in 1958, and the T-54 replaced the famous tank.
The most powerful tank of the second world: Tiger II (Konigstiger)
Country: Germany
Designed: 1943
Length: 10,286 mm
Combat weight: 68.5 t
Engine: V-12 Maybach HL 230 P30, 690 hp
Maximum speed: 41.5 km / h
Crew: 5 people.
Except for the experimental Mouse, the most powerful tank of World War II was the German Royal Tiger, or Tiger II, developed in 1943. A heavy tank with a combat weight of 69.8 tons was armed with an 88 mm KwK 43 L / 71 cannon and was practically invulnerable to return fire and anti-tank weapons. True, low maneuverability and mediocre reliability reduced the advantages of the Tiger II to nothing. Nine of the 489 made "Royal Tigers" have survived to this day.
The most common tank: T-54/55
Country: USSR
Entered service: 1946 (T-54)
Tank length with gun forward: 9000 mm
Combat weight: 36 t
Engine: diesel В-54/55, 520 hp
Maximum speed: 50 km / h
Crew: 4 people.
From 1945 to 1979, more than 100,000 copies of the T-54 medium tank, its modernized version of the T-55 and their variants were produced. He was in service with more than 70 armies of the world and took part in more than 20 armed conflicts on different continents. Even the T-62 tank created on its basis lasted much less on the conveyor and was unable to "outlive" its predecessor. First of all, the success of the T-54/55 was due to its reliability and simplicity of design.
Most non-exportable tank: "Merkava"
Country: Israel
Entered service: 2003
Length: 9040 mm
Combat weight: 65 t
Engine: General Dynamics GD883 (MTU883), 1500 hp
Maximum speed: 64 km / h
Crew: 4 people.
The Merkava is Israel's main battle tank. It has been produced since 1979 and is considered one of the best combat vehicles in the world, but it is only in service with the Israeli army and is not exported. The Merkavas have successfully passed the crucible of war in the Lebanese conflicts; Today, the fourth generation is in service - the Merkava Mk.4, a 65-ton tank with an MG253 120-mm smoothbore cannon. This modification has a rather distant relation to the first generation tank.
