The frontal armor thickness of the T34 is only 45 mm, which is indeed a bit weak now that the frontal armor is often 80 or 100 mm.
After using sloped armor, the protection of 45 mm is roughly equivalent to 90 mm, and the effect is still good.
The key is that the quality of the steel is not good enough. Although in theory the sloped armor is difficult to be penetrated by armor-piercing projectiles, the turret contains too many impurities during the casting process, which seriously affects the turret's protective capabilities, causing the T34 to often be penetrated in actual combat.
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The T34 tank also has problems with its firepower. The 76mm tank gun it is equipped with is insufficient in the face of German heavy tanks. In the Battle of Kursk, the T34 tank often had to get within 200 meters of the Panzer IV tank in order to effectively penetrate the four tanks.
The armor of the number.
Not only can it not be penetrated beyond 200 meters, but it can also be shot inaccurately. The accuracy is flawed.
In addition to the above shortcomings, because Russia's electronics industry is not developed enough, most T34s have not been equipped with radios. This results in the T34 lacking formation combat capabilities in actual combat. Tanks can only communicate with each other through semaphores, which is difficult to carry out.
Large formations fight together, but small formations composed of a few tanks often perform brilliantly.
Although it had many shortcomings, the Russians made up for them with quantity. During World War II, the T34 produced more than 50,000 vehicles. For comparison, the total number of tanks produced by Germany during the same period was only 50,000.
Although the number of German tanks is small, anti-tank weapons are still sufficient. The 88mm anti-tank gun is surprisingly effective when facing the T34. The bullet hole that penetrated the turret is as big as the mouth of a bowl. After the explosive part exploded in the turret, the tank
The hand had no chance of surviving.
"Are we going back to the bomb crater just now?" Chakov covered his head and wondered. Just now he clearly heard the metal storm created by the armor-piercing projectile in the turret.
Fortunately, the armor-piercing projectile has lost its armor-piercing ability after penetrating the turret, otherwise Chakov and Vasin would also be torn into pieces.
"No, it's safest to stay here now." Vasin is experienced, and the gunners of the 88mm anti-tank gun will not re-gun a destroyed T34.
At this time, no place on the battlefield was safe. Tank crews protected by heavy armor were even more dangerous. They were targets of concentrated fire by the Germans. The first batch of more than a dozen T34s participating in the attack were all destroyed in just five minutes.
be destroyed.
With this kind of speed loss, the Southern African Expeditionary Force will definitely have to adjust its attack, either by increasing the intensity of the attack, or by waiting for the arrival of thicker armored tanks.
The Russians' nerves were indeed rough, and they did not care about the loss of more than a dozen tanks. With the arrival of more T34s, a new round of offensive began immediately.
"The opportunity has come, be ready -" Vasin gestured to Chakov, hiding behind the destroyed T34, waiting for other T34s to pass by before following him.
Chakov clenched the rifle in his hand, hid behind the tank tracks, bravely stood up and fired at the German position.
"Be careful of German snipers -" Wassin didn't show his head. The range of his Bobsha was too close, and it couldn't exert its power at such a distance.
"Okay -" Chakov pushed the bolt of the gun and loaded the bullet, turned around and gave Vasin a smile, and then was shot in the head by a bullet that flew from nowhere.
"This idiot!" Wasin's expression did not waver at all. He had not been in the army for a long time, only more than a year, but he had experienced too many deaths and had long been numb to this kind of scene.
The heartbreaking scene in the movie when you see your comrades killed in battle rarely happens in reality, at least in the Russian army.
Death is too normal for Russian soldiers. Many people believe that the Russian army has experienced four years of bloody battles and they are all veterans. They must be rich in experience and invincible in actual combat.
In fact this is not the case at all.
The Russian army has indeed fought many big battles, and both sides involved in the battles are at the level of millions at every turn.
It can be said that gaining experience is only useful for commanders of Zhukov's level. The survival time of ordinary Russian soldiers on the battlefield is calculated in hours, and there is no chance to accumulate experience at all.
The 1st Belarusian Front where Vasin belongs was formerly the famous Don Front. Since its formation in the Battle of Volgograd, it has participated in almost all large-scale battles since then, whether it was the Battle of Kursk or the subsequent Battle of the Dnieper River.
During Operation Bagration, the 1st Belarusian Front was the main force in the battle.
Corresponding to the glorious record is the replenishment speed of the 1st Belarusian Front. Among all Russian armies, the replenishment speed of the 1st Belarusian Front has always been in the first order.
The reason for the rapid replenishment is because of heavy losses. In order to restore the offensive capabilities of the troops as soon as possible, they can only replenish while fighting. Therefore, in the three years after the formation of the army, the total strength of the 1st Belarusian Front has been between 900,000 and 1.2 million.
float between.
A quarter can be lost in one battle. From this perspective, Zhukov is indeed a general who has achieved great success.
Speaking of the current First Belarusian Front, veterans like Vasin are quite rare, not to mention only fruitful.
Chakov's death did not scare Vasin. He had been hiding behind the T34's tracks waiting for an opportunity.
The opportunity came soon, and a new batch of T34s arrived on the battlefield, heading towards an unknown fate.
Vasin focused on the nearest T34. Unexpectedly, the T34 did not slow down or turn when it approached Vasin. Instead, it crashed directly into the destroyed T34 without any intention of avoiding it.
Wassin rolled and crawled to the side, and was then pulled up by the accompanying infantrymen behind the tank.
Then Vasin watched in stunned silence as the T34 pushed the destroyed T34 forward.
This is why the T34 has this ability. If it were replaced by the German King Tiger whose engine horsepower was seriously underestimated, it would be difficult to move by itself, let alone pushing other tanks.
"Is the commander really crazy?" As a veteran, Vasin had never seen such a scene.
"The commander is definitely not crazy. Don't you think that the destroyed T34 is the best bunker?" Pettovich, who also had Boba on his chest, laughed loudly and bared his big yellow teeth.
This is so damn right!
A T34 in front was destroyed. I asked the commander of the T34 behind where to go?
Go around?
It will probably still be destroyed, because there is an 88mm anti-tank gun on the opposite side, and all T34s passing by this position are within the range of the 88mm anti-tank gun.
So the best way is to push the destroyed tank away.
If you can push it.
The 88mm anti-tank gun on the opposite side did not expect the T34 to have such a cool operation. The first shell actually hit the destroyed T34. It was purely a conditioned reflex.
If it's still the previous T34, most likely it won't be able to react.
Although the previous T34 had a four-man crew, there were only two people in the turret. The commander also served as the gunner. Because there was no automatic loading system, the ammunition supply relied entirely on manpower. Therefore, although the theoretical rate of fire of the T34 was good, the efficiency in actual combat was very low.
, you can’t fire a few shells in one minute.
The T34/85 has a three-person turret. With the addition of one crew member, the commander can focus on command and the gunner on combat, which significantly improves efficiency.
The 88mm gun missed the target with one shot and lost the opportunity to pre-emptively strike. The T34 responded immediately and directly overturned the 88mm gun with one shot. At this distance, the T34's accuracy can still be guaranteed.
Vasin was very happy and felt that great revenge had been repaid. He held a second of silence in his heart for the tank crew and Chakov who had been killed before, and then pointed his gun at the German troops who were still resisting.
The Germans are indeed very tenacious. When fighting like this, both sides have no way to retreat. Surrenders will be shot on the spot, and retreats will be hanged as deserters. Mustache's orders have no control over the German troops fighting in Russia, and against the Berlin defenders
Still very effective.
After the Battle of Moscow, the German army suffered heavy losses and needed to temporarily withdraw and adjust.
Mustache ignored the repeated requests of the frontline generals and ordered the German troops not to retreat, but to defend on the spot and fight to the end.
The German commander at that time was still very courageous. He made the right choice despite his wrong orders and stabilized the front line.
Now those veteran generals are dying and retiring, and the remaining people can only follow the mustache's path into darkness.
Bobsha is indeed invincible in close combat. The 76-round drum magazine ensures the continuity of powerful firepower. Although the German army is also equipped with a large number of assault rifles, it still suffers in close combat.
With a long burst of fire, Vasin cut four Germans in a fire point into sieves. Pettovich, who also emptied the drum, made a big deal. The Luger pistol belonging to the only German officer became his trophy.
"It's a great trophy. I will take it as a gift to my youngest son." Pettovich was very happy. For military children, toys must smell like gunpowder.
Wassin was not without gains. He took away the medal on the officer's collar and the watch on his wrist.
The combat style of Russian soldiers is no less impressive than that of Umbrella Company's war hyenas, and even the gold teeth in the corpse's mouth must be broken out.
The Germans are actually similar. In this regard, Westerners do not value the dead. When cleaning the battlefield, they will definitely take away all valuable things.
Therefore, almost all the German corpses in the Battle of Budapest were barefoot, not to prevent them from escaping, but because on their corpses, only those shoes were worth something.
Breaking through the first line of defense is not a sure thing. There are the German second and third lines of defense ahead. As the battle gets closer and closer to the city, the situation will become more complicated and the battle will become more brutal.
For Zhukov, the enemy was not only the Berlin defenders, but also the allies who came to attack.
"The Southern Africans are going to airdrop in Berlin. I hope we can ensure the safety of the landing site--" In the headquarters of the First Belarusian Front, Zhukov sneered and put the telegram sent by Patton on the table in front of him.
"Where is the landing site?" Marshal Konev, the commander of the 1st Ukrainian Front, was not surprised. It would be unreasonable if the allies did not come to take credit at this time.
The nature of Europeans is to rob the whole world. After the robbery is over, the loot will be unevenly distributed, and then there will be a fight. After the fight is over, the robbery will continue.
So don't listen to the calls of those so-called peace lovers. On the one hand, they call for peace, and on the other hand, they colonize the world. The internal division of labor is very clear.
"Lower Oder River, direction of Hamburg -" Zhukov lit a cigarette with a lighter. Both the cigarette and the lighter were donated by Southern Africa.
Although Zhukov himself has no favorable impression of southern Africa, Zhukov also admitted that things in southern Africa are indeed useful.
Zhukov is a staunch Great Russianist and has no favorable impression of any country in the world except Russia.
This is normal. Patton's mentality towards the United States and Britain is similar to Zhukov's. Even though they are allies now, they may change their stance at any time, and all of them are potential opponents.
After experiencing the troubles caused by Britain and France, all Russians felt hurt. They believed that they were victims of the world war and deserved the maximum post-war distribution.
At this time, most Russians have forgotten that at the beginning of the war, Russia carved up Poland and launched the Finnish War while Germany was attacking France. As a result, it suffered a defeat in Finland and was expelled from the League of Nations.
"Oh haha, my theater -" Marshal Rokossovsky, the commander of the 2nd Belarusian Front, also sneered. He was probably already thinking about how to welcome the airborne allies.
The Russian plan is to attack Berlin in three ways, with the 1st Belarusian Front commanded by Marshal Zhukov as the main force breaking through the defense lines on both sides of the east and west banks of the Oder River and several nearby areas, and attacking from the east.
The 1st Ukrainian Front under the command of Marshal Konev moved forward to the south of the east bank of the Ness River to the foothills of the Sudeten Mountains, attacking from the south.
The 2nd Belorussian Front commanded by Marshal Rokossovsky advanced to the lower reaches of the Oder River and attacked from the north.
The plan studied by Patton, Montgomery and Eisenhower was for the airborne troops to first complete the airborne landing in Berlin, while the army continued to advance from the direction of the Netherlands and France towards northern Germany, while the navy blocked the road from the direction of Hamburg to respond to the Allied forces completing the airborne landing in Berlin.
.
This conflicted with Russia's plan. As an ally, Patton had to send a telegram to Zhukov first to avoid a misfire.
Otherwise, it would be great fun if the Russian army mistook the Western Allied transport planes for German transport planes when they were airborne.
At that time, if the Russians resorted to a "accidental attack" weapon, the Allies on the Western Front would be speechless.
"Accidental attacks" are not uncommon. British warships can bring down a US military transport plane. The body of the major general on the transport plane has not been found yet. Russia, as a party that is lagging behind in coordinating water supplies, seems to have more reasons for accidental attacks.
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"Tell them to go back, we don't need them." Konev has a bad temper. He, Zhukov, and Rokossovsky are known as the field troika of the Russian Army.
Now that the Troika are all in Berlin, there is naturally no need for the Allies on the Western Front to get involved.
Don’t you like to watch the excitement? Then watch the excitement in the Netherlands. If you dare to come to Berlin, Konev will definitely let the Western Front Allies understand how cruel the battle between the Russians and the Germans is.
"They should be allowed to come -" Rokossovsky noticed that the first batch of Western Allied troops parachuted in Berlin were British troops, which was interesting.
