Light tank object 934 "Judge"
In the late 60s - early 70s, the Soviet Union almost completed manning the army with light floating tanks. These were mainly created in the design bureau of the Chelyabinsk plant under the supervision of J.Ya. Kotin’s amphibious tanks PT-76, adopted in 1951, and their modernized version of the PT-76B, created by engineers and designers of the Stalingrad Tractor Plant under the direction of I.V. Gavalova. However, the military leadership understood that the insufficient armor of these tanks did not allow their effective and widespread combat use.
Given the emergence of a new type of light armored vehicles, such as infantry fighting vehicles, the question of the expediency of producing light amphibious tanks arose. The first BMP-1, created at the Chelyabinsk Tractor Plant, began to arrive in the army already in 1966, and it seemed that the need for PT-76 disappeared. However, Marshal of the Soviet Union A.A. Grechko, then Minister of Defense of the USSR, believed that it was impossible to abandon amphibious tanks, you need to create a new car with enhanced armament and armor that meets the latest technical requirements. On his initiative, within the framework of the R & D project (research and development) for the next 8 years, it was decided to develop and create a sample of a new amphibious tank.
The new technical requirements for the new machine were as follows: the combat mass is no more than 15 tons, the protivosnaryadnaya and anti-nuclear protection, the speed on the highway - at least 60 km per hour, by water - at least 12 km per hour. The armament should consist of an X-NUMX-mm D-100 rifled gun (still under development), the Fagot anti-tank missile system 33K9 and a 111-mm machine gun adapted for firing at both air and ground targets. The development of a new project with the submission to the commission in the first half of 12,7 for the year was proposed to the engineers of ChTZ, MMZ and VgTZ (the former Stalingrad Tractor Plant). The first to offer his project was engineer I.V. Gavalov, instead of one project, they were offered two.
The first, the “934 object,” was a machine with a classic tank layout and a mass of 14,7 tons. The second “934B object” was different from the previous one in that the crew should be placed in an armored capsule, which provided the crew with increased both armor and anti-nuclear protection. Estimated weight was no more than 14,2 tons.
In both projects, the installation of 100-mm guns was envisaged, but the installation of the 12,7-mm machine gun was not envisaged, however, documentation was also provided on installing the X-NUMX mm D-85 guns on them. 58 February 12, both projects were submitted to the commission and the project under the designation “1970 object”. In general, with small and not critical comments, only the first option was approved. Later, 934 June 10, the technical advice of the Ministry of Defense Industry "1970 object" together with another project of the engineers of the Chelyabinsk Tractor Plant, under the designation "934 object", were submitted for preliminary review. Initially, the variant with the location of the engine in the front part of the body “object 788” was approved, but at the subsequent meeting of the Scientific and Technological Committee of the CNT, the project of engineer I.V. Gavalova. However, I.V. Gavalov leaves the post of chief designer and is replaced by A.V. Shabalin, who had his own opinion on the development of the draft of the amphibious tank. After long and protracted disputes, in which for nearly two years each department defended its position, new technical requirements were developed, with slight changes in terms of mass and weaponry of the vehicle, as many supporters of the installation on the Stinger 788-mm cannon appeared . However, as a result, at the conclusion of the Research Institute of Defense, it was decided to adopt the option with the 85-mm gun and the 100-mm PKT machine gun paired with it. The first and only sample of a floating tank under the designation “7,62 object” is built only in 934. He successfully passed the tests, but was not accepted for arming the Soviet Army.
The armored body of the car was made of rolled aluminum-based armor, and successfully withstood a direct hit by armor-piercing shells to 23 mm at distances from 500 meters. The weight of the tank was 17, 5 tons. The armament included an 100-mm 2A48 cannon and a PKT machine gun, paired with it. In addition to the combat compartment of the machine, there was a Strela-7,62 man-portable air defense system with missiles for it. The 3В-2-06 diesel 2-cylinder engine provided maximum speed on the 10 highway per hour and a cruising range of up to 70 km. The vehicle's suspension and hull design are designed taking into account the possibility of landing from An-600 or Il-22 airplanes. The crew of three people. Despite the fact that the car was not accepted for service, many design solutions used in it were then used in the project under the designation “76 object”, hereinafter BMP-688. Currently, the “3 object” can be seen in the exhibition complex of the museum in Kubinka.
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