Liberators. Tank crews

April 23 2010 4

Before the war, only fighter pilots could compare in popularity with tankers. A beautiful form, a formidable combat vehicle, a tank, with its speed, power and impenetrable armor, created an aura of masculinity and invincibility. However, the outbreak of the war became a much more serious test for tankers and their equipment than expected.

By the end of autumn 1941, more than half tanks, which were in service with the Red Army, were lost. The tankers lacked combat experience, the vehicles were on fire, the armor could not withstand the blow, and a large number of tanks were simply abandoned without fuel, shells, or due to breakdowns. Only at the end of December 1942, when the industry evacuated to the Urals began to produce new machines, it became possible to change the situation in the tank forces. Tank troops of Germany by this time were replenished with "menagerie" - "tigers" and "panthers", equipped with powerful guns. A T-34 duel with a "panther" or "tiger" in an open area could be suicide for a Soviet tank.

The series describes in detail the training of tankers, various models of tanks that were in service with the USSR and Germany, especially the famous T-34-85, which became the pride of the Soviet Armed Forces. But the main characters of the series are tankmen. Their story is about the course of the battle and about the minutes of rest, about the intricacies of service and about participation in the battle at the Kursk Bulge, in the battles at Prokhorovka and the capture of Berlin. A separate story is devoted to stories Order of Suvorov.