The T-34 medium tank was developed in 1939 in the Design Bureau of the Kharkiv Locomotive Factory. The project was led by the Soviet designer Mikhail Ilyich Koshkin. In September 1940, he passed away after a serious illness. He was posthumously awarded the Stalin Prize, and on October 4, 1990, by Decree of the President of the USSR Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev, he was posthumously awarded the title Hero of Socialist Labor “for outstanding services in strengthening the defensive power of the Soviet state and a great personal contribution to the creation of the T-34 tank.”
In the first year of the Great Patriotic War, the T-34 medium tank was superior in armament, armor protection and maneuverability to any German tank. However, when the new models of German Tiger and Panther tanks, the self-propelled artillery combat vehicles, were developed, there was an urgent need to modernize the pre-war military equipment. This problem was especially evident during the Battle of Kursk, when the Tank Troops of the Red Army lost more than 6 thousand units.
The T-34-85 medium tank M1943 was developed in the design bureau of the State Ural Tank Factory No. 183 in Nizhny Tagil. The modernization was led by Alexander Alexandrovich Morozov.
The T-34-85 was armed with an 85mm anti-aircraft gun with a high muzzle velocity. This allowed the crew of the combat vehicle to fight almost on equal terms with the new German armored vehicles. The T-34-85 tanks began to be used in combat operations in March 1944.
This combat vehicle earned the reputation of the best tank of the Second World War for the following features: the organic combination of firepower, the 45 mm armor protection, mobility; simplicity and reliability of design, manufacture and repair; its diesel engine.
The total number of manufactured T-34 tanks of all modifications is more than 70 thousand units, of which half are T-34-85 models. They were produced at plants No. 183, No. 112 “Krasnoye Sormovo” in Gorky and No. 174 in Omsk. In 1944–1950, hundreds of the “thirty-fours” were delivered to the armies of Poland, Czechoslovakia, and the German Democratic Republic.
The T-34-85 medium tanks were also used during the Korean War, even from its very beginning. On June 25, 1950, the 109th Tank Regiment of the Korean People’s Army, which was equipped with these combat vehicles, began its advance. The first battle with the American M-24s took place in July 1950.
In the first year of the Great Patriotic War, the T-34 medium tank was superior in armament, armor protection and maneuverability to any German tank. However, when the new models of German Tiger and Panther tanks, the self-propelled artillery combat vehicles, were developed, there was an urgent need to modernize the pre-war military equipment. This problem was especially evident during the Battle of Kursk, when the Tank Troops of the Red Army lost more than 6 thousand units.
The T-34-85 medium tank M1943 was developed in the design bureau of the State Ural Tank Factory No. 183 in Nizhny Tagil. The modernization was led by Alexander Alexandrovich Morozov.
The T-34-85 was armed with an 85mm anti-aircraft gun with a high muzzle velocity. This allowed the crew of the combat vehicle to fight almost on equal terms with the new German armored vehicles. The T-34-85 tanks began to be used in combat operations in March 1944.
This combat vehicle earned the reputation of the best tank of the Second World War for the following features: the organic combination of firepower, the 45 mm armor protection, mobility; simplicity and reliability of design, manufacture and repair; its diesel engine.
The total number of manufactured T-34 tanks of all modifications is more than 70 thousand units, of which half are T-34-85 models. They were produced at plants No. 183, No. 112 “Krasnoye Sormovo” in Gorky and No. 174 in Omsk. In 1944–1950, hundreds of the “thirty-fours” were delivered to the armies of Poland, Czechoslovakia, and the German Democratic Republic.
The T-34-85 medium tanks were also used during the Korean War, even from its very beginning. On June 25, 1950, the 109th Tank Regiment of the Korean People’s Army, which was equipped with these combat vehicles, began its advance. The first battle with the American M-24s took place in July 1950.
