Tank Archives

Military history writer specializing in armoured warfare in the 1930s and 1940s.

[Tank Archives @Tank_Archives]

#OTD in 1944 the Heavy Tank T26 prototype was finished. This tank had an electric transmission, which made it heavier than the T26E1 (future Pershing) but also easier to drive. The T26 was used in experiments from November 1944 to July 1945. #tanks #history #WW2 #WWII

[Tank Archives @Tank_Archives]

A SU-100 replacement project on the T-44A chassis was approved #OTD in 1944. Unlike its predecessor, this vehicle had a rear fighting compartment to reduce the overhang of the gun. #tanks #History #WW2 #WWII

[Tank Archives @Tank_Archives]

A second stage of trials for Object 701 prototype #1 began #OTD in 1944. Reliability issues with this iteration of the design meant that prototype #2 was submitted for government trials later that year. #tanks #history #WW2 #WWII

[Tank Archives @Tank_Archives]

Discussions of where to mount the OBM-51 high power 122 mm gun began #OTD in 1943. The gun was originally intended to go into a new turret on the KV-1S chassis, but high power 122 and 152 mm guns were only installed in fixed casemates. #tanks #history #WW2 #WWII

[Tank Archives @Tank_Archives]

The ersatz Panzer IV/70(A) was put into production to make up for shortages of the Panzer IV/70(V). Not enough of these were built either, as Nibelungenwerk was bombed #OTD in 1944 and rates of production cratered. #tanks #history #WW2 #WWII

[Tank Archives @Tank_Archives]

Production of the first 10 SG-122s was due #OTD in 1942, with 10 more expected every two weeks. Unfortunately, production was limited by the number of captured StuG and Pz.Kpfw.III chassis, and so only 21 units were ever produced. #tanks #History #WW2 #WWII

[Tank Archives @Tank_Archives]

The 67th Infantry Regiment (Medium Tanks) was formed #OTD in 1932. F company of this regiment was composed of three Christie tanks. These tanks served the infantry well, although convertible drive tanks never became common in the US Army. #tanks #history

[Tank Archives @Tank_Archives]

A model of factory #8's ZIK-20 was due #OTD in 1942. The idea of putting a 152 mm gun on the KV chassis in a casemate rather than a turret was a good one, but by the time the project was reviewed it was clear that ChKZ's SU-152 was a better implementation. #tanks #history #WW2

[Tank Archives @Tank_Archives]

The EKV (KV-1S tank with an electric transmission) was due for trials #OTD in 1943. This tank did not go into mass production but served as a starting point for the development of the IS-6 tank. #tanks #history #WW2 #WWII

[Tank Archives @Tank_Archives]

The Skink arrived at Lulworth #OTD in 1944 for trials. The Canadian AA tank was reviewed very positively and even ferried over to Europe for a brief battlefield trial before VE Day. #tanks #history #WW2 #WWII

[Tank Archives @Tank_Archives]

#OTD in 1944 mobility trials of the King Tiger tank ended abruptly. After driving just 113 km in Soviet hands (and 557 km in total), catastrophic failure of the left side drive sprocket and front torsion bar disabled the tank for good. #tanks #history #WW2 #WWII

[Tank Archives @Tank_Archives]

#OTD in 1925 the Red Army discussed buying Vickers medium tanks. 15 Medium Tanks Mk.II were only purchased in 1930. They ended up being of little use, eventually sent to be installed as static machine gun emplacements, stripped of their engines and armament. #tanks #history

[Tank Archives @Tank_Archives]

#OTD in 1942 Churchill III tanks went into action at El Alamein. Unlike the botched Dieppe raid earlier that year, they were able to make good use out of their powerful weapons and thick armour against German tanks. #tanks #history #WW2 #WWII

[Tank Archives @Tank_Archives]

The KV-9 prototype tank armed with a 122 mm U-11 howitzer was built in early 1942. It was never mass produced. #OTD in 1942 production of a pilot batch on the lightened KV-1S chassis was authorized, but it was never built. #tanks #history #WW2 #WWII

[Tank Archives @Tank_Archives]

Soviet development of night vision prioritized tank drivers. #OTD in 1942 after an experimental batch of devices for drivers was deployed, an order was given to develop night sights for gunners. This work was not finished by the end of the war. #tanks #history #WW2 #WWII

[Tank Archives @Tank_Archives]

Requirements for the T-43 tank were issued #OTD in 1942. Morozov, the tank's lead designer, fought against the army and the government on this, pushing through his own vision of the tank. He got his way, but the resulting tank proved unsatisfactory. #tanks #history #WW2 #WWII

[Tank Archives @Tank_Archives]

Disarmament talks in the early 1930s could have potentially set a weight limit of 16 tons for all new tanks, and many new designs adhered to this limit. #OTD in 1933 Germany left the conference, kicking off another arms race as the looming weight limit disappeared #tanks #history

[Tank Archives @Tank_Archives]

The ISU-152 prototype finished gunnery trials #OTD in 1943. There were some minor faults with the vehicle, but they were either correctable or already shown to be tolerable on the vehicle's precursor, the SU-152. #tanks #history #WW2 #WWII

[Tank Archives @Tank_Archives]

Prospective SPAAGs arrived at the Kubinka proving grounds #OTD in 1942. Even though the T-90 gave the best results, testers preferred the idea of adapting the T-90 turret to the T-60 chassis to use up leftover hulls. #tanks #history #WW2 #WWII

[Tank Archives @Tank_Archives]

#OTD in 1942 factory #592 was ordered to build the SG-2 SPG. It was a better design than UZTM's U-35, but the defective chassis given to the factory to built their prototype doomed the project and the U-35 was chosen to become the SU-122 instead. #tanks #history #WW2 #WWII