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KV-1 (tank)

KV-1
КВ-1 у диорамы «Прорыв блокады Ленинграда». Вид спереди-справа.JPG
KV-1 on display in Kirovsk.
Type Heavy tank
Place of origin Soviet Union
Service history
In service 1939–45
Used by Soviet Union, Finland
Wars Winter War, World War II
Production history
Designer Zh. Kotin, TsKB-2
Designed 1938–39
Manufacturer Kirov Factory, ChTZ
Produced 1939–43
Number built 5,219
Variants KV-2, KV-8 flamethrower, KV-1S, KV-85, KV-122
Specifications (KV-1 Model 1941)
Weight 45 tonnes
Length 6.75 m (22 ft 2 in)
Width 3.32 m (10 ft 11 in)
Height 2.71 m (8 ft 11 in)
Crew 5

Armour
  • Maximum (front): 90 mm
  • Side: 75 mm
  • Rear: 70 mm
Main
armament
Secondary
armament
2×, 3× or 4× DT machine guns
Engine Model V-2 V12 Diesel engine
600 hp (450 kW)
Power/weight 13 hp/tonne
Suspension Torsion bar
Operational
range
335 km
Speed 35 km/h (22 mph)
Kliment Voroshilov 2
Кв-2 3.jpg
KV-2 in Moscow museum with KV-1 in background
Type Heavy tank/assault gun
Place of origin Soviet Union
Service history
In service 1939–45
Used by Soviet Union
Wars World War II
Production history
Designer Zh. Kotin, TsKB-2
Designed 1938–39
Manufacturer Kirov Factory, ChTZ
Number built 334
Specifications
Weight 52 tonnes
Length 6.95 m (22 ft 10 in)
Width 3.32 m (10 ft 11 in)
Height 3.25 m (10 ft 8 in)
Crew 6

Elevation about 37°

Armour 60–110 mm (2.4–4.3 in)
Main
armament
152 mm M-10T howitzer (20 rounds)
Secondary
armament
DT machine guns (2,079 rounds)
Engine 1 x V2-K-12 cylinder diesel
550 hp
Operational
range
140 km or 87 mi
Speed 28 km/h (17 mph)

The Kliment Voroshilov (KV) tanks were a series of Soviet heavy tanks named after the Soviet defense commissar and politician Kliment Voroshilov and used by the Red Army during World War II. The KV series were known for their heavy armour protection during the early part of the war, especially during the first year of the German invasion of the Soviet Union. In certain situations, even a single KV-1 or KV-2 supported by infantry was capable of halting the enemy's onslaught. German tanks at that time were rarely used in KV encounters as their armament was too poor to deal with the "Russischer Koloss" - "Russian Colossus".

The KV tanks were practically immune to the 3.7 cm KwK 36 and howitzer-like, short barreled 7.5 cm KwK 37 guns mounted, respectively, on the early Panzer III and Panzer IV tanks fielded by the invading German forces. Until more effective guns were developed by the Germans, the KV-1 was invulnerable to almost any German weapon except the 8.8 cm Flak gun. Even then, in a speech to the Panzerkommission on 18 November 1941, Guderian stated that "the sloped armor causes hits from the 8.8 cm Flak gun to ricochet" referring to the KV-1.

Prior to Operation Barbarossa (the German invasion of the USSR), about 500 of the over 22,000 tanks then in Soviet service were of the KV-1 type. When the KV-1 appeared, it outclassed the French Char B1, the only other heavy tank in operational service in the world at that time. Yet, in the end, it turned out that there was little sense in producing the expensive KV tanks, as the T-34 medium tank performed better (or at least equally well) in all practical respects. In fact the only advantage it had over the T-34-76 was its larger and roomier three-man turret. Later in the war, the KV series became a base for the development of the IS (Iosif Stalin) series of tanks.


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