Drawing of the Soviet light tank T-60 on the march near Moska, December, 1941
T-60 is a Soviet light tank of the Great Patriotic War period, which was a continuation of the line of small tanks and their further improvement. In the name, the letter "T" stands for the word "tank", and the number "60" - the type of developed tank in order.
History and background of creation.
At the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, it became clear that the weak armor and armament of small tanks was their most vulnerable point when used in a combat situation and led to catastrophic losses of these vehicles at the initial stage of the war. Therefore, in mid-August 1941, the design bureau of the Moscow plant No. 37 under the general supervision of N.A. Astrov, technical documentation was developed for the creation of a new light tank, which was assigned the T-60 index. Already in early September of the same year, the T-60 light tank was adopted by the Red Army, and, almost immediately, its mass production began at several factories in the country, including Moscow, Stalingrad, Gorky and Kharkov. Serial production of the T-60 tank continued until the beginning of February 1943, it was during this period that he gave way to his follower on the assembly line. In total, during the period of serial production, 5920 T-60 light tanks left the factory walls.
Layout.
The light tank T-60 was arranged in a very typical way for all small and light tanks of that period. Like its small amphibious tank predecessor, the T-60 had five squads. The transmission compartment was located in the bow of the hull and smoothly passed into the control compartment. The engine compartment occupied the middle right part of the hull, and the fighting compartment was located on the left side, which also extended to the turret. In the aft part of the hull housed the aft compartment, which housed the engine radiators and fuel tanks. The aft compartment was separated from the combat partition, which prevented fuel from getting on the tank crew in the event of a hit.
The crew of the T-60 light tank consisted of two people. The crew included a driver and a tank commander. The place of the driver was in the front almost central part of the hull, while the tank commander was in the left middle part of the hull and the turret, which was mounted on the hull on a turret box with an offset from the longitudinal axis to the left. In battle, the tank commander supervised the actions of the driver, observed the terrain through optical instruments, and also fired from an automatic cannon and a machine gun coaxial with it.
For boarding and disembarking from the tank, the commander and the driver used their own hatches, which were located respectively in the roof of the tower and the raised hull cabin. For emergency evacuation from the commander's tank, a lower hatch was arranged in the bottom of the hull.
Armor protection of the hull and turret.
The armor protection of the T-60 light tank was homogeneous rolled with high hardness and was developed according to a differentiated anti-bullet principle. The tank and its crew were protected from rifle bullets and, in some cases, large caliber bullets, as well as shrapnel with little kinetic energy.
The armored hull of the T-60 light tank was developed by engineer A.V. Bogachev based on the hulls of small tanks and was welded from rolled steel armor plates of various thicknesses. So, the frontal part of the hull was formed from armor plates 35 millimeters thick at the top and middle, and 30 millimeters at the bottom. The sides of the hull were formed from plates 15 millimeters thick, and the bottom - 10 millimeters. The thickness of the armor plate that formed the roof of the hull was 13 millimeters. All hull designs had rational angles of inclination to the vertical normal in the range from 14 to 76 degrees, which increased its armor protection. T-60 tanks of a later production period had reinforced armor.
The turret of the light tank T-60 had a conical octagonal shape and was designed by engineer Yu. P. Yudovich. It was made by welding from rolled steel armor plates with a thickness of 25 millimeters, while the armor plates of the sides of the tower had a slope of 25 degrees to the vertical normal. In later periods of production of the T-60 tank, the armor of its turret was increased to 35 millimeters. A hole was made in the frontal part of the tower in the form of a rectangular niche for installing a cannon and a machine gun and an armored mask protecting them with an armor thickness of 20 millimeters. The thickness of the armor of the roof of the tower was 13 millimeters. The tower was installed with an offset from the longitudinal axis of the tank to the left by 285 millimeters.
A column of T-60 light tanks with troops on the march, Leningrad Front, winter 1942
Armament.
As the main armament of the T-60 light tank, the TNSh automatic rifled gun was used, which was also marked as TNSh-1 (tank Nudelman - Shpitalny) with a caliber of 20 millimeters. The gun became a tank modification of the ShVAK automatic rifled gun and was developed at the OKB-16 and OKB-15 aviation weapons design bureaus. It was mounted on trunnions in the tank turret, in addition to the mask, the base of its barrel was additionally protected by an armored casing. The length of the TNSh gun barrel was 82.4 calibers. Ammunition for the automatic gun consisted of 750 unitary rounds. For the purpose of continuous automatic power supply of the gun, shots were loaded into a tape of 58 pieces with 58 detachable links. The tape was packed in a box attached to a bracket at the bottom of the gun. Twelve spare boxes with tapes were placed on racks along the walls of the fighting compartment in the hull. When firing, the shells were thrown out of the tank, and an empty tape was dropped onto the bottom of the hull. The composition of the ammunition included various types of ammunition:
BZT-20 - a unitary shot with an armor-piercing incendiary projectile;
OT-20 - a unitary shot equipped with a fragmentation tracer projectile with an instantaneous fuse;
OZ-20 - a unitary shot equipped with a fragmentation-incendiary projectile with an instantaneous fuse;
a unitary shot with an armor-piercing incendiary sub-caliber projectile;
a unitary shot with an armor-piercing incendiary projectile with a core made of tungsten carbide (used since the middle of 1942).
As coaxial with a gun, a 7.62 mm DT machine gun was installed with an offset to the left side, the ammunition load for which consisted of 945 rounds, equipped with 15 disk magazines.
Chassis, engine and transmission.
The lightweight T-60 was equipped with a GAZ-202 in-line four-stroke six-cylinder liquid-cooled carburetor engine. This engine was a derated and revised version of the GAZ-11 engine. Its developers intentionally reduced its power from 85 to 70 horsepower compared to the base model, assuming that in this way the engine's service life will increase and its reliability will increase. With all this, the T-60 tank could develop top speed when driving on the highway at 42 kilometers per hour.
The T-60 light tank had a mechanical transmission, which included the following main components and assemblies:
the main (main) single-disk clutch, operating on the principle of dry friction "steel according to Ferodo" and mounted on the engine flywheel;
four-speed gearbox, which had a demultiplier (with four gears forward and one reverse);
stepped cardan shaft;
main gear of conical type;
two on-board multi-plate clutches operating on the principle of dry friction "steel on steel" with band-type brakes and Ferodo linings;
two single-row simple final drives.
All drives for controlling the transmission of the T-60 tank were mechanical, and the driver controlled the braking and turning of the vehicle using two levers located on either side of his seat.
The undercarriage of the T-60 light tank was almost completely borrowed from its predecessors and. By its type, the suspension of the tank was an individual torsion bar, which did not have shock absorbers for all four support single-sided rollers of small (550 millimeters) diameter, which had rubber tires for each side. Track rollers were produced either by casting in a spoke design, or by stamping - in a solid one (all this depended on the manufacturer). At the extreme suspension units to the armored hull, travel stops for the suspension balancers were mounted by welding, equipped with rubber buffers that soften shock loads. The lantern-type drive wheels were located in front, they were equipped with removable gear rims. Sloths, equipped with caterpillar tensioners, were mounted at the rear. The upper component of the caterpillar was supported by three small support rollers for each side.
The caterpillar of the T-60 light tank was small-linked, double-ridged, with a track width of 260 millimeters.
Combat use.
It so happened that the light tank T-60, developed and put into serial production in the early days of the Great Patriotic War, immediately fell into its crucible. By the time it appeared on the fronts, the commanders and personnel of tank units had already decided on a strategy for using small and light tanks, which saved vehicles of this type from catastrophic losses.
T-60 tanks were successfully used on all fronts as reconnaissance and command vehicles, tractors, vehicles, and also supported the infantry well in the offensive, especially in those places where natural conditions did not allow the use of heavy armored vehicles. Especially successful was the combat use of tanks of this type on the Leningrad, Volkhov and Karelian fronts in swampy and wooded areas. It is quite famous. In this battle, the tank of Lieutenant Osatyuk D.I. (driver Makarenkov I.M.), supporting the infantry attack on German positions, collided with two German heavy Tiger tanks. Successfully maneuvering on the ground and firing from an automatic cannon, the crew of the T-60 tank lured the German tanks under the flank fire of their camouflaged anti-tank battery, as a result of which both German tanks were destroyed.
Several dozen T-60 tanks were captured by German and Finnish troops in the period of late 1941 - late 1942, and then they were used for a certain time. But there is no information about their successful application in the sources.
As part of the fronts of the Red Army, having taken part in almost all significant battles of the Second World War, T-60 light tanks reached Vienna, Berlin and Harbin, and then were in service for a long time after the war, until they were withdrawn from service in 1951.
Description
The development and design of the tank were carried out in the summer of 1941 at the plant "No. 37" in Moscow. The prerequisite for the start of work on the tank was a directive to the plant management, ordering to urgently master and begin production of modern light tanks "T-50". The plant at that time could not fulfill this order, since a complete reorganization of the plant and its suppliers was necessary, which was impossible to do in the current difficult conditions, and the plant's capacity was barely enough even to produce simpler T-40 tanks. Given the complexity of the situation, one can imagine what a difficult task the plant management faced. Then the chief designer Nikolai Astrov proposed a compromise solution - to develop a new model of a tank with reinforced armor on the basis of the already mastered T-40. The team of the plant coped with this task quickly enough. The tank initially had a heavy-caliber 12.7-mm DShK machine gun as its main armament, but the chairman of the Council of People's Commissars Malyshev, who was presented with a prototype tank, rightly considered that it would be nice to strengthen the armament of the tank. Ultimately, the tank was equipped with a more powerful 20-mm TNSh automatic gun (a variant of the ShVAK aircraft gun adapted for the tank). Reservation frontal projection "T-60" was initially 25mm. The prototype of the tank was almost ready, it remained to carry out the final sea trials, as well as prepare drawings and documentation for the start of mass production. All this was done already in September - October 1941, when the German army was approaching the capital of the USSR. The plant staff was evacuated to Gorky, where the improvements in the design of the T-60 were finally carried out and the ground was prepared for the start of mass production. The experimental model "T-60" under its own power covered the distance from Moscow to Gorky, which could be considered a successful completion of sea trials. The production of "T-60" has finally begun - already on the basis of the Gorky Automobile Plant. At the same time, work continued to improve the tactical and technical characteristics of the tank..jpg)
In terms of combat capabilities, the Soviet light tank "T-60" can be compared with the German tank "Panzer II", which had similar weapons - 20mm automatic guns of the KwK 30, KwK 30/38, KwK 38 brands. The Soviet tank was better armored than the first modifications of the German "twos" and could effectively deal with these tanks (the armor of the upper armor plate of the Pz.II modifications Ausf.A and Ausf.B was only 14.5mm). The armor effect of the T-60 ammunition, however, was small. Later modifications of the German "two", such as the Ausf.F, were heavier than the "T-60", had less maneuverability, and all tanks of the "Pz.II" series lacked rational sloping armor. In general, the T-60 was quite comparable to the German Panzer II tank, and surpassed its opponent in a number of characteristics. Alas, he could not cope with the main tanks of Germany at the beginning of the war - "Panzer III", "T-60". However, confronting enemy armored vehicles was not the main function of this light tank. His task in a real combat situation increasingly became the fight against enemy infantry. Hurricane deadly fire from the 20-mm automatic gun TNSh forced the advancing German infantrymen to lie down in horror, the T-60 could quickly eliminate large concentrations of enemy manpower, for some reason left without the support of tanks and anti-tank guns. Thus, in a number of cases, a tank could become a qualitative reinforcement of rifle subunits, for example, in the event of the liquidation of an isolated enemy infantry unit. "T-60" could also be used as a reconnaissance combat vehicle. Obviously, starting from 1942, the "sixty" was objectively weaker than almost any armored vehicle used by the Nazis on the eastern front, and the Soviet command was well aware that the tank was suitable only for auxiliary tasks. In the event of a collision with enemy equipment, the only thing that the T-60 crew could do was to fire at the viewing slots and observation devices of enemy vehicles, trying to disorientate the crew in order to then retreat from the German vehicle’s fire zone. Despite the modest performance characteristics, the T-60 was actively used by the Red Army at the end of 1941 and throughout 1942. Such major military episodes as the counter-offensive near Moscow, the Kharkov operation, the Battle of Stalingrad - were accompanied by the massive use of "T-60" in battles. German soldiers called these Soviet tanks indestructible locusts. Naturally, the losses of the "T-60" were high, even though the tank's armor was strengthened to 35mm, because the German army already had a sufficient number of guns capable of fighting even more armored Soviet tanks. .jpg)
The use of T-60 tanks continued into 1943. By that time, the production of more advanced T-70s had been launched. Many Soviet units in 1942-1943 used both types of these light tanks at the same time. One of the most recent battles in which the "sixties" distinguished themselves was the breakthrough of the blockade of Leningrad in January 1943. At the initial stage of the operation, only light tanks, such as the T-60, were used, since only they could overcome the Nevsky ice without the preparation of decks by engineering units. In the future, the "sixties" began to give way to more advanced combat vehicles, like the "T-70" and "T-34". Now the T-60 was used exclusively for auxiliary tasks, such as escorting columns on the march, conducting reconnaissance, guarding rear facilities, towing anti-tank guns, etc. Giving overall rating project "T-60", it can be said that in the most difficult conditions of the summer and autumn of 1941, Soviet designers under the leadership of N. Astrov solved a very important task- creation in the shortest possible time of an easy-to-manufacture, technologically advanced and cheap machine. A large number of these tanks, which the Soviet industry was able to quickly give to the front, eventually helped the Red Army to survive in the most difficult first years of the war, when the factories evacuated to the east could not produce newer T-34s, and the losses of armored vehicles at the front were terribly large . Among similar German, Japanese or Italian tanks, that is, in its class, the Astrov project looks quite good, both in terms of armor, which in some cases can withstand even 37-mm guns with a low projectile flight speed, and in terms of armament, not inferior to that installed on similar enemy tanks. The tank had good maintainability and could be produced at factories that could not produce more complex tanks like the T-34. Of course, the "T-60" was not without its shortcomings - for example, the main 20-mm gun often failed, but by 1942 - 1943 this tank actually completed its mission of temporarily saturating the troops with armored vehicles, now it was up to more advanced vehicles . "T-60" still managed to take part in the defeat of the Japanese in 1945. The tank was finally withdrawn from service after the end of the war.
The T-60 tank is the most numerous small tank (according to the pre-war classification) of the war period. The peak of combat work of the T-60 fell on the second year of the war, but single tanks fought until the summer of 1944. The tankers who fought on it often cannot talk about their many victories. There are different assessments of the T-60, both good and bad. But still, it should be noted that this tank was able to fill the need for tanks, which the army suffered for the first time during the war months. The GABTU was aware that the T-60 is a full-fledged light tank, however, as a means of supporting infantry, combating LBT, and field artillery, the tank, although limited, was suitable.
Grounds for the creation of the T-60 tank.
Start Patriotic War brought serious changes in the development of tank building in the USSR. In the very first month of the war, he put an end to many promising programs, as well as the serial production of a number of models of armored personnel carriers and weapons.
In particular, the plant number 31 named. Orzhonikidze, the decision of the Council of People's Commissars provided for the completion of the production of T-40 tanks, as well as light tractors "Komsomolets", by the beginning of August this year. In return, in a two-month line, it was required to master the T-50 tank in the series. The Podolsk plant was supposed to be the supplier of towers and hulls. In addition to it, it was planned to use about 50 more enterprises in Moscow and the region as allied plants for production.
The decision to replace the T-40 tank with the T-50 tank in serial production looks quite reasonable. Amphibious tanks as scouts competed with armored vehicles, which were cheaper both in operation and production and, as a result, more massive.
The T-40 could have been fiercely competitive with the LB-62 armored vehicle. Close in terms of cross-country ability, armor protection with the same turret and weapons, it was at the stage of being put into service. Potentially, it could be more massive than a reconnaissance tank.
However, as a tank, the T-40 was seriously inferior in combat capabilities to the T-50. This machine was supposed to replace the T-26, thus becoming the most massive in the Soviet tank fleet. And as a result, the need for the T-50 was great. Under these conditions, its development in production was a matter of paramount importance. However, in its design, it was difficult even for the manufacturer.
History of creation.
Factory #37 was obviously not ready for the production of a tank of such a class as the T-50, in addition, the production of V-4 diesels at that time was only at the stage of development by the Kharkov factory #75. As a result, the production of the T-50 on a national scale was practically discontinued.
Under these conditions, the thoughtless implementation of the instructions of the Council of People's Commissars led to the cessation of the production of light tanks in general. Fortunately, the state of affairs with the development of the production of new equipment by plant No. 37 was clearly realized by both the plant management and its design bureau under the leadership of N.A. Astrov.
The plant could not refuse to master the production of the T-50. And even more, the design bureau carried out a preliminary design of its floating version. However, in an atmosphere of secrecy, work was carried out to simplify the design of the T-40. As a result, there was confidence in the possibility of producing a car in significant quantities.
The proposal was presented in the form of a letter signed by the plant's military representative and Astrov himself. It justified the impossibility of mastering the production of a new light tank, and a proposal to master the production of a small tank and produce it in large volumes.
The initiative aroused Stalin's interest. To get acquainted with the details, V.A. Malyshev was sent to the plant, who was appointed curator of the project. Having studied the situation at the plant and got acquainted with the project, Malyshev supported the initiative of the plant workers.
The tank, which from the very beginning received the T-60 index (or the index 030 as it appeared in the factory's correspondence), was a non-floating version of the T-40 tank. And in mid-July of the forty-first year, by a GKO decree, plant No. 37 was ordered to organize its serial production.
However, the production of 030 did not solve all the problems. The weak point of the T-40 was the design and technological complexity of the hulls and turrets, which led to
to a lot of marriage. Which actually put the T-40 production program on the brink of failure. In accordance with the plan for the production of ten thousand T-60 tanks, the number of allied enterprises was to increase even more.
In such a situation, the only right decision was to simplify the shape of the T-40 hull. As a result, the KhTZ and GAZ plants, which were supposed to be involved in the production of the T-60 (head index 060), received a machine that was already different from the original one. Whereas plant No. 37 was supposed to keep the production of T-60 (head index 030) unchanged until the end of the year. The decision was dictated both by the fear of a decrease in the production volume, and by the elimination of the backlog of T-40 hulls. Which led to the release of the tank known as the T-30.
As for the designation T-70, in relation to the machines produced by the GAZ and KhTZ plants, it was used quite rarely. In correspondence, it was often called T-60M, "T-60 with a simplified body" or simply T-60.
Worthy of mention is the fact that the 060, like the 030, was put into service even before the prototype tanks were built. This is especially surprising in relation to the 060. If the 030 was essentially a simplified T-40, then the 060 was already much more different from the T-40. The time spent on simplifying the machine took about a week.
The layout of the T-60 (factory index 060) largely repeated that of the T-40 tank, but there were also significant changes. The most significant ones concerned:
- dimensions and layout of the engine compartment. Changes in the dimensions of the engine compartment had to be made due to acute problems that arose in 1940 with the supply of the GAZ-202 engine. To overcome the problem, it was decided to install the ZIS-16 engine (ZIS-5, forced version), for which it was necessary to increase the dimensions of the engine compartment. In the summer of 1941, the problem with the supply of GAZ-202 was overcome, but it became possible to install both the GAZ-202 and, after improvements in the engine compartment, the ZIS-5 in the tank;
- armament. The original plan provided for armament at the level of the T-40 tank, i.e., a machine-gun pair of DShK and DT. However production capacity Plant No. 507, which produced the DShK, could not ensure their production in sufficient quantities for the T-60 tank production program. As an alternative, it was decided to arm the vehicle with a 20 mm tank gun based on the aviation ShVAK. The tank version of the ShVAK-TNSh was developed without the design of radically new parts. The sight remained the same - TMFP, borrowed from the twin DShK and DT.
Production centers of the T-60 tank.
From September 1941 until July 1942, four tank production centers produced approximately six thousand tanks. In December 1941, plant No. 264 in Sarepta joined the T-60 production program, since January 1942, plant No. 37, evacuated to Sverdlovsk, assembled its first tank. At the same time, the manufacture of the machine was started at plant No. 38 in Kirov.
According to production plans, plant number 37 should deploy the release of T-60 1.08. 1941, after 15 days, GAZ and KhTZ were to join it. This plan failed. Due to the non-delivery of hulls, turrets, weapons, surveillance devices, etc., to the assembly of an experimental tank, GAZ was able to transgress only on 17.08., while the hull was made of non-armored steel, and the turret was supplied with weapons from the T-40.
The expansion of the production of T-60 tanks at GAZ cost the price of curtailing programs for the production of other products. In particular, this affected vehicles. In October, production was actually stopped cars GAZ-61, because they required a scarce engine. The production of GAZ AAA and GAZ AA trucks has been reduced to a minimum. The production of automobiles was finally organized by GAZ to produce PPSh and mortars.
The situation at KhPZ was even more difficult. The first drawings of the T-60 were received only in the last days of July, but the full documentation was not received by August 15, the day when the production of the machine was supposed to begin. As well as GAZ, KhTZ faced with non-supply of components from subcontractors.
In addition to objective reasons that complicated the development and production of the T-60, there were also subjective ones. The management of the plant was so fascinated by the idea of producing the KhTZ-16 armored tractor of their own design that even in the second half of September 1941 they dreamed of parallel production of an armored tractor and a tank.
Kharkovites were able to release their first T-60 only on 09/16/41, with a month delay in the start of production. After 10 days, evacuation work began at the plant, by the twentieth of the Germans came close to the city. The plant was supposed to be evacuated to Stalingrad, but it was not possible to completely withdraw the equipment.
The production of the T-60 already at the Stalingrad plant was only able to be deployed in December of the forty-first year, when the plant reported on the production of the first 45 vehicles, although they planned to hand over the first 50 tanks in November. 
Plant No. 38 in Kirov was the last to join the production of T-60 tanks. In October 1941, the Kolomna Machine-Building Plant began to move to the base of the Kirov Machine-Building Plant. The latter was supposed to participate in the T-60 production program as an allied plant, producing T-60 turrets. After the final relocation and expansion, the production of both plants was merged and renamed as Plant No. 38. The plant delivered its first cars in February 1942.
Description of the design of the tank.
The general layout of the T-60 is similar to that of the T-40 tank:
- the control compartment of the T-60 tank - in front of the vehicle;
- combat - the middle part of the body;
- transmission - in front of the armored hull on the right side along the way;
- engine compartment - in along the middle part of the starboard side
- tanks - in the stern.
The T-60 was controlled by a crew of 2 tankers, which was located in the front (mechanical water), as well as the turret and turret space (commander). In the middle part of the armored hull along its right side was the GAZ-202 engine. Its driving wheels are the front of the hull.
T-60 tank hull made from rolled homogeneous armor plate (20, 15, 13.10.6 mm). Starting from 1942, part of the combat vehicles acquired shielded hulls and turrets (20-35 mm), and in February, production mastered the production of armored hulls from 20-35 mm sheet. The sheets of the forehead of the armored corps were connected at a large slope. The sides of the hull were made of 2 sheets connected by welding. The top of the hull consisted of a turret sheet, a removable rear sheet, a sheet above the MTO.
The bottom of the tank consisted of 3 sheets. It contained: an emergency hatch - under the driver's seat, oil and fuel drain hatches.
The mechanical driver was located in the middle of a small armored tube, closed by a folding frontal shield. Above his head is an entrance hatch. Observation - by means of the device "triplex".
Tower of welded construction, octagonal truncated to the top. 25 mm thick, later - at the end of February - 35 mm. Part of the T-60 had turrets shielded with 10-mm armor plates, and part of the GAZ production vehicles and head. No. 38 were equipped with conical turrets, similar to those of the T-40. The sides of the tower are equipped with revolving ports and observation devices. The frontal part of the turret is closed in front by a welded mask with loopholes for the sight, TNSh, DT.
A hatch is equipped in the roof of the tower, in which a signal hole is cut. Some of the machines had an air vent under the armor cover in the same place.
The T-60 tank was equipped with a 4-stroke, 6-cylinder gasoline engine GAZ-202. The engine was started by an electric starter or by a crank in case of failure.
The motor was powered by aviation gasoline B-70 or KB-70. Both gas tanks with a joint capacity of 320 liters in the aft compartment on the left side and were shielded by armored walls. To the right of the tanks is a radiator and an engine cooling fan.
Tank armament in the tower and consisted of a 20-mm TNSh and a twin 7.62-mm diesel engine. Gun barrel - 82.4 caliber. For ease of operation, the gun is shifted to the right side of the longitudinal axis. DT was installed in a ball installation and, if necessary, was easily removed. Weapon HVL from -7 to +25°.
For aiming the guns, a TMFP telescopic sight was used, as well as a direct-fire sight of a mechanical type. The firing range of the sight from the T-60 is 2500 m, the rate of fire of the TNSh is up to 750 rpm. The TNSh ammunition included - BZT, OZT, OZ shots.
Ammunition included:
- 754 20 mm unitary shots (158 shots in 13 boxes);
- 945 propellers for diesel fuel (stuffed in 15 disks.
The transmission consisted of:
- main gear;
- Car-type gearbox - four gears forward and one reverse;
- 2x single-row final drives;
- onboard clutches equipped with band brakes;
Chassis- torsion. Small-link caterpillar 260 mm wide and with a track pitch of one hundred millimeters.
Early T-60 tanks were equipped with light-signal communication between the crew, but it was abandoned very later. To fight fire - 2 tetrachloric manual fire extinguisher.
TTX tanks T-60.
| T-60 |
reinforced armor |
|
| Length, mm | 4100 | 4100 |
| Width, mm | 2290 | 2290 |
| Height, mm. | 1750 | 1750 |
| Track, mm. | 1660 | 1660 |
| Track width, mm. | 260 | 260 |
| Combat weight, m | 5800 | 6200 |
| Crew, pers. | 2 | 2 |
| Booking, body. mm/deg. | ||
| VLD | 15/65 | 15/65 |
| PLD | 20/70 | 35/70 |
| NLD | 10/15 | 10/15 |
| boards | 15/90 | 15/90 |
| ON | 13/76 | 15/76 |
| NKL | 13/30 | 25/30 |
| Roof | 13/0 | 15/0 |
| Bottom | 6-10/0 | 6-10/0 |
| Reservation, tower. mm/deg. | ||
| Forehead | 20/90 | 35/90 |
| boards | 15/25 | 25/25 |
| Stern | 25/25 | 25/25 |
| Armament |
1x20-mm TNSh ob.1941 | |
The difficult situation that prevailed in the initial period of the war in the tank industry in connection with its relocation to the east, slowed down the pace of production of new types of tanks, and which the defending troops needed. Light tanks, however, were produced. Now they began to be used not only for reconnaissance, communications and security, but also for escorting rifle units in battle. During the battles it became clear. that the armor and armament of light tanks are insufficient.
Soviet light tank T-60. Soviet light tanks of the Great Patriotic War.
Design: the new machine was entrusted to the design team of the Moscow plant No. 37, headed by N.A. Astrov, who had experience in creating a light amphibious tank T-40. Before the start of the war, the plant produced 181 T-40 tanks, but soon an order came to start production of the T-50 tank. This machine was developed using the advanced ideas of Soviet tank building. For its manufacture, a radical reorganization of the plant was required. It was clear to the chief designer that any attempt to fulfill the order would only lead to a waste of effort, time and money. In this difficult environment, N.A. Astrov assumed full responsibility for the decision to initiate the development of a new tank model, which could be produced in large quantities by the plant. In just a few days, the designers developed drawings of the new machine. The layout, engine and many components of the T-40 undercarriage were saved.
But the reservation of the car was strengthened. The frontal part of the tank was formed from several sheets 25 and 15 mm thick. The frontal sheet had an angle of inclination greater than that of the famous T-34. The armament was left the same - one 12.7 mm DShK heavy machine gun and one 7.62 mm DT tank machine gun.
Soviet light tank T-60. Soviet light tanks of the Great Patriotic War.
The factory workers built a prototype of the new tank very quickly. This became possible thanks to the right design solution and the mastered production technology. The initiative machine of plant No. 37 was liked by the chairman of the Council of People's Commissars V.A. Malyshev. He proposed to replace the DShK machine gun with a rapid-fire automatic 20-mm gun. Very soon, measures were taken to adapt the ShVAK aircraft gun for installation in a tank. At first it was called ShVAK-T (SHVAK-tankoaaya), but soon the official name TNSh-20 appeared.
The second prototype of the tank with the TNSh-20 gun was demonstrated to the Supreme Commander-in-Chief I.V. Stalin. After getting acquainted with the new machine, its capabilities, it was decided to conduct tests. Immediately after their successful completion new tank, which received the T-60 index, was launched and mass production.
Soviet light tank T-60. Soviet light tanks of the Great Patriotic War.
Serial production of the T-60 proceeded at a rapid pace. For some time, they were produced by the plant in parallel with the T-40 (by the way, on which the TNSh-20 gun was installed). During mass production, changes were made, the most important of which was an increase in the thickness of the front plates to 35 mm. On November 7, 1941, several tanks parade through Red Square.
Video: Soviet light tank T-60
During the heavy summer fighting, the Red Army lost a large number of tanks, but the simple and technologically advanced T-60 was the vehicle that could help in this difficult situation. Further serial production was personally monitored by the Supreme Commander. New vehicles could make up for losses and provide a minimum supply of army tanks.
Soviet light tank T-60. Soviet light tanks of the Great Patriotic War.
The use of automotive units in the design of the T-60 reduced the cost of production, increased the reliability and maintainability of the tank. The problem of supplying troops with spare parts was also simplified.
Plant N-37 was prepared for evacuation to the Urals. It was decided to organize the production of the T-60 at the Gorky Automobile Plant. Chief designer N.A. Astrov personally overtook the tank from Moscow to Gorky, while carrying out sea trials. Chief Engineer KB GAZ A.A. Lipgart and N.A. Astrov adjusted the design of the tank, taking into account the peculiarities of its production at GAZ. At the beginning of 1942, the assembled tanks were sent to the front.
DESIGN T-60
The hull was welded from rolled armor plates with a thickness of 10 to 35 mm, connected by welding and riveting. The sheets were installed at more rational angles of inclination. The top sheets of the hull, above the engine and under the turret are removable. The front sheet has a hatch with a cover for access to the main gear with side clutches and assemblies power plant. The driver's cabin is equipped with a viewing device, front and top hatches with covers. The inclined aft sheet had a hatch on the left with a cover for access to the main gear and engine control mechanism.
In the right hatch, under the grid, a cooling system radiator and blinds are installed. The tower is multifaceted, welded, shifted to the left from the longitudinal axis of the tank. In its roof there was a hatch for landing the commander of the machine. A TNSh-20 cannon and a coaxial DT machine gun were installed in the turret embrasure, thanks to which the tank was able to fight enemy light tanks. Sights - optical and mechanical. All tanks were equipped with a TPU-2 intercom. For external communication, the tank had a radio station, viewing devices were mounted on the sides of the tower, there were holes with plugs used when firing from personal weapons.
Video: Soviet light tank T-60
The GAZ-202 engine is a carburetor in-line 6-cylinder with a power of 85 hp. It was located to the right of the axis of the machine. Due to problems with the production of this engine, other models of GAZ engines with a power of 70.50 and even 40 hp were also installed on the tank. Although the dynamic characteristics of the tank changed significantly from this, it made it possible to continue launching the tank without stopping production.
Video: Soviet light tank T-60
The undercarriage consisted of four support single-row spoked rollers on board (after modernization, the rollers were replaced with stamped ones) and a steering wheel. The upper branch of the caterpillar is supported by three rollers. All rollers are rubber-coated. Front drive wheels, toothed rims - removable, caterpillar - fine-linked. The suspension of the tank is individual, torsion bar. because of various models engine, varying thickness of armor and the manufacture of other parts, the total mass of the tank was from 5.8 to 6.4 tons. The tank crew consisted of two people - a driver and a commander, who also performed the functions of an operator of small arms.
Soviet light tank T-60. Soviet light tanks of the Great Patriotic War.
The use in the car of a number of components from serial cars produced by the domestic industry, and the used running gear of the T-40 tank made it possible to quickly establish the production of T-60 tanks and produce them in in large numbers. Cars began to be assembled at car factories
countries and from September 1941 to the autumn of 1942 produced 6045 tanks, cheap and simple in production, distinguished by good maneuverability and good maneuverability D. 0 For the creation of the T-60 tank, chief designer N.A. Astrov was awarded the USSR State Prize
MODIFICATIONS T-60
On the basis of the T-60, the BM-8-24 multiple launch rocket system was created and mass-produced. She had 12 guides for launching 24 rockets with a caliber of 82 mm.
Ma some units has been mounted anti-aircraft gun with two 12.7 mm machine guns.
At the end of 1941, the design bureau of O.K. Antonov also developed an original project called "KT" (tank wings). The idea of the project was that for the transfer of tanks by air during the airborne operation, a wing box and a glider control system in flight were attached to the tanks.
Soviet light tank T-60. Soviet light tanks of the Great Patriotic War.
Video: Soviet light tank T-60
The glider-tank was supposed to be delivered to the front line by a towing aircraft to the place from where, silently planning, it flew over the front line. The glider was controlled by a driver. After landing, the wings and tail unit were dismantled. In the autumn of 1942, an air train consisting of a TB-3 towing aircraft (commander P.A. Eremeev) and a KT glider (pilot S.N. Anokhin) successfully took off. The large mass and low streamlining of the KT did not allow it to gain sufficient height.
Soviet light tank T-60. Soviet light tanks of the Great Patriotic War.
When trying to increase the speed, the temperature of the water in the engine cooling system of the TB-3 aircraft began to rise. With a speed of 140 km / h and a height of only 40 m, the air train was forced to unhook the glider in the area of the Bykovo airfield. Thanks to the skill of test pilot S.N. Anokhin, who was sitting behind the levers of the "winged" T-60, the glider successfully landed. After landing, he started the tank engine and, without dropping his wings, moved to the side command post airfield. Seeing an unusual device, the head of the airfield flights, on combat alert, raised the calculation of the anti-aircraft battery. When Anokhin got out of the tank, he was detained by the Red Army. The incident was resolved only with the arrival of the emergency rescue team of the Flight Test Institute. Tests have shown that in order to lift such a glider to the required height, a more powerful aircraft, such as the Pe-8, is needed. However, all these bombers performed their main task, and the project had to be abandoned.
COMBAT USE OF THE T-60 TANK
The T-60 was baptized by fire in the autumn of 1941 near Moscow. These small machines honestly and to the end fulfilled their duty to protect the capital. In severe winter conditions, their good performance and mobility were of great help in the counteroffensive of the Soviet troops. For the first time, tank engines were equipped with a preheater. The growth in the production of T-60s in 1942 made it possible to begin the formation of tank units. The tank corps, which had 100 tanks according to the state, was supposed to have 40 T-60 tanks. From the middle of 1942, the number of vehicles in the corps was increased to 150 tanks with a ratio of 30 KB tanks, 60 T-34 tanks and 60 T-60 tanks.
By the summer of 1942, the T-60 was objectively weaker than most of the tanks opposing it. Its armor turned out to be weak against the enemy's new long-barreled guns of 50 and 75 mm caliber. They were dangerous even for heavy KB tanks, so the attitude of the crews towards the tank was not very good, it was often called -BM-2- (mass grave for two), but some tankers considered the T-60 to be their favorite vehicle. They often
assigned them sonorous names -Eagle-. -Terrible", and small maneuverable vehicles were worthy of their names. It was a very suitable tank for fighting enemy infantry.
Video: Soviet light tank T-60
Low noise, high mobility and heavy fire from an automatic cannon and machine gun made it a formidable enemy of German infantrymen. The next episode is out. During the battle, German T-3 tanks cut off the "sixty" of the company commander. The 20 mm gun was unable to penetrate the armor of the German T-3. The lieutenant, the commander of the vehicle, maneuvering, brought the Germans, carried away by the pursuit, under the fire of their batteries. Continuing to fight, he received information on the radio that the tankers of his company had driven the German infantrymen into a deep ditch and those, stubbornly resisting, did not let our infantry in, and the steep walls of the ditch made it impossible to go down. There was no time for reflection: having dug in, the enemy could call for reinforcements, and then it would be more difficult to knock him out of there. The lieutenant gives the command "forward", and the driver knew his job. At full throttle, the light "sixty" pushed off the cliff, collapsed to the bottom of the pit and rushed, point-blank shooting from the cannon and machine gun of the confused enemy soldiers. Approached rifle units completed the rout ...
Video: Soviet light tank T-60
There are cases when one or two tanks thwarted the attacks of enemy infantry up to a battalion. If required. T-60s entered into unequal duels with enemy heavy tanks. The crew, applying all their skills, showing coherence and courage, using the maneuvering qualities of the "sixties", lured enemy tanks under the fire of anti-tank guns or rifles. The instructions for the crews of that time indicated that when meeting with a stronger enemy, one should constantly fire from a cannon and a machine gun at the observation devices of an enemy tank and maneuver at the highest speed. This made the German tankers panic because of the sounds of shells ricocheting off the armor, broken observation devices, thereby forcing them to fire inaccurately.
Video: Soviet light tank T-60
T-60s were delivered to besieged Leningrad on river boats, they were camouflaged, completely flooded with coal or sand, in order to attract the attention of fascist aviation. T-60 tanks were also used in amphibious assaults. A difficult situation in the summer of 1942 developed in the Novorossiysk region. The landed amphibious assault needed the support of people, equipment and ammunition. Among other units, a separate tank battalion in the amount of 36 T-60 tanks was landed from specially equipped motorboats. which greatly facilitated the position of the paratroopers who fought in the encirclement. But these tanks made the most significant contribution to the cause of victory in the Battle of Stalingrad and in lifting the blockade of Leningrad. They successfully operated in a wooded wetland.
Soviet light tank T-60. Soviet light tanks of the Great Patriotic War.
In 1943, the T-60 began to serve as command vehicles in the units that fought on the SU-76M, in reconnaissance, and also as tractors for anti-tank guns. A certain number of vehicles participated in the defeat of the Kwantung Army on Far East. The Nazis called the T-60 "indestructible locusts! They recognized their worthy place among Soviet tanks. Some were transferred to allied Romania, where a self-propelled unit was developed on their basis open type TASAM. She was armed with the Soviet 76.2 mm ZIS-3 gun. The Germans used captured tanks as tractors.
Video: Soviet light tank T-60
Soviet light tank T-60. Soviet light tanks of the Great Patriotic War.
After the war, all the surviving T-60s were written off very quickly, and only one vehicle has survived to this day, which is located in the Museum of Armored Vehicles in Kubinka near Moscow.
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Light tank T 60 photo , replaced only that adopted on April 16, 1941, the T-50, which was mastered by our production with great difficulty. Why did this happen. On June 25, 1941, a decree was issued, plant No. 37 should stop assembling T-40 tanks and immediately start manufacturing T-50. However, the capabilities of the plant were absolutely unsuitable for the production of a combat vehicle of such a degree of complexity, let me remind you that only imported bearings were used for production. The nomenclature and standard size of most T-50 parts did not correspond to similar elements of light tanks (“light” in name, but “small” in essence) manufactured at plant No. 37. It was absolutely futile to increase production areas, strengthen the supporting structures of workshops, re-equip the machine park, and reconstruct the enterprise in Moscow in military conditions.
Small amphibious tank T-38 and light T-40 photo from the stern
ON THE. Astrov (the chief designer of the T-40, by the way, the famous "Shilka" was also made with his participation, as well as the "Buk" is the same), began to urgently design light tank T 60 photo using the main components and assemblies of the serial T-40. Having abandoned the buoyancy of the T-40, it was supposed to significantly strengthen the armament and armor.
- In two weeks (!) the project of a new light tank was completed. At the same time, in the experimental workshop under the supervision of master G.F. Antonov collected the first sample.
- It was equipped with a 20 mm TNSh automatic cannon paired with a DT machine gun. The cannon for him, converted from the aviation ShVAK, was already put into service in September.
- With a weight of 68 kilograms, almost the same as that of a maxim machine gun with a machine tool. Ammunition 13 boxes (754 rounds), belt feed, rate of fire up to 750 rounds. The armor-piercing sub-caliber projectile of the gun had a high muzzle velocity of 815 m/s. It allowed light tank T 60 photo at short distances, successfully fight with Wehrmacht tanks of early releases when firing at the side, pierced up to 35 mm. Armored personnel carriers and light self-propelled guns were available to defeat at a distance of up to 1 km.
- The layout was basically similar to that of the T-40. In the upper frontal sheet in the area of the driver's seat, a cabin was made. In the middle front plate on the right, for access to the main gear of the transmission, there was a rectangular hatch with a bolted cover. In the lower frontal sheet there was a hole for the engine crank, closed by an armored cap. The octagonal turret was shifted to the port side. Armor thickness - 25 mm, angle of inclination - 255 to the vertical. To install the gun in the front wall of the tower, a rectangular niche was made, which was closed with an armored shield attached to the gun mask.
- The crew of the light T-60 included a commander and a driver.
Photo T 60 Soviet light tank of the Red Army
Light tank T 60 photo
, the body was made of rolled armor using electric welding. The frontal sheets were given a rational angle of inclination. The thickness of homogeneous armor was 15-20 mm, while the combat weight of the vehicles of the first series was 5.8 tons. From October 1941, the armor protection was increased to 25-35 mm, and its combat weight increased to 6.48 tons.
It used the GAZ-11 model 202 engine. The main engine start was carried out by the crank. The use of an electric starter was allowed either in combat or if the engine was well warmed up. For this, a pre-heater was used, which worked with a gasoline blowtorch. It should be emphasized that the heater on the domestic tank was used for the first time. In the future, all light tanks and self-propelled guns designed by N.A. Astrov were supplied with such heaters.
Photo T 60, on the right - a variant of the tank with enhanced armor protection
The main clutch and 4-speed gearbox were of a new design - GAZ-51 type. The transmission included: a cardan shaft, a bevel main gear, two onboard multi-plate clutches with belt brakes and two single-row final drives. Chassis - type T-40. Partially used cast rubber-coated track rollers with spokes.
The crew of the T-40 tank, pay attention to the version with a machine gun (DShK), today there is not a single copy left either in museums or in private collections
Unlike the T-40, the driver's seat was equipped with an armored cabin with a folding shield in the front sheet. For the landing of the driver and commander-gunner in the roof of the cabin and in the roof of the tower there were hatches with armored covers.
T40S land machine-gun (with DShK) modification of the T-40 light amphibious tank, about 190 units were produced, already in the process of producing vehicles, the buoyancy of the tank was abandoned
According to N.A. Astrov, " Light tank T 60 photo "was to successfully replace the T-40. But, since the decree of June 25, 1941 remained in force, N.A. Astrov, together with the senior military representative at the plant, V.P. Okunev, decided to apply (a letter with two signatures) directly to The Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks to I.V. Stalin, bypassing departmental and government authorities. In a letter they set out all the circumstances that justified the expediency of producing at the plant No. 37 instead of T-50. The letter was delivered to the Kremlin reception and immediately handed over to Stalin.
A column of Soviet light tanks T-60 with a landing force ford the river photo winter 1941
Upon learning of this, the Deputy Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR and at the same time the People's Commissar of Medium Machine Building V.A. Malyshev (he was in charge of the entire tank industry) the very next day arrived at plant No. 37 (Nikolai Alexandrovich personally told the author of these lines about this). Having become acquainted with prototype T-60, Malyshev came to the conclusion that Astrov's position on this issue was fully justified. At the same time, he warned: "Just look - either the chest is in crosses, or the head is in the bushes." And in the government decree of August 16, 1941 on the military-economic plan for the 4th quarter and on increasing the production of tanks, a new brand appeared instead of the T-50 - "T-60". On the second copy of the decision was a visa N.A. Astrov.
Photo light tank T-60 with troops on board, a sapper with a mine detector VIM-210 defused German anti-tank mines T Mi 35 with a fuse T Mi Z 35
The production of 10 thousand T-60 tanks was planned to be carried out in Moscow (factory No. 37), Kharkov (KhTZ) and Gorky (GAZ). However, the beginning of the evacuation forced to reconsider this plan. Moscow Plant No. 37 in the summer and autumn of 1941 was the only supplier to the front of light tanks T-40, and then T-30. In the same place, in the experimental workshop, an initial batch of T-60 was made. But there was no time to master serial production in Moscow. There was a need to create and develop new production facilities in the eastern regions of the country.
The Gorky Automobile Plant was the most ready to start serial production as soon as possible, so an order was issued to send one of the manufactured new cars to GAZ as a reference sample. Since it was practically impossible to order a railway platform under the conditions of mass evacuation, Astrov himself decided, sitting at the levers, together with a driver from the experimental workshop, to overtake the tank from Moscow to Gorky on its own, without an escort car, without issuing passes and without security, in turn changing with the driver. Less than a day later they were standing at the gates of the car factory. There were no breakdowns along the way. Travel time was approximately 14-16 hours.
A German soldier inspects an abandoned Soviet T-60 light tank and unloads ammunition, a cannon ammunition box is visible on the turret
In October 1941, it was decided to evacuate Plant No. 37 to Sverdlovsk. There, by merging several industries (KIM, Podolsky named after Ordzhonikidze, etc.), they formed a new enterprise - plant No. 37 in the Urals, where N.A. was appointed chief designer. Astrov. On the eve of departure to Sverdlovsk, N.A. Astrov unexpectedly received an order from the director of GAZ N.K. Loskutov to return to the Gorky plant, where in November 1941 he was appointed deputy chief designer of the plant A.A. Lipgart for tank production. Where he soon began to create light T-70, which later became the best easy tank of World War II.
The T-60 light tank tows a 45-mm cannon; in the first months of the war, during the period of shortage of tank forces, the sixties were often used for an unusual infantry support function
Plant No. 37 in the Urals, having produced more than one thousand light tanks T 60 photo , in July 1942 stopped their production. In connection with the German summer offensive and the approach of the front to Stalingrad, STZ (Stalingrad Tractor Plant) dropped out of the number of T-34 suppliers to the front. To compensate for the reduction in production, the Uralmash plant in Sverdlovsk was oriented towards the production of medium tanks. For the manufacture of component parts and assemblies of the T-34 and their delivery to Uralmash, it was decided to use plant No. 37, stopping the construction of the T-60 there, abolishing the plant number and returning it to its former name. Thus, Metalist, together with the plant. Voevodin (also located in Sverdlovsk) was reassigned to Uralmash as branches.
photo T-60, meeting of the Red Army with the inhabitants of the occupied village, Stalingrad Front
Production of T-60 tanks in the period 1941-1942. carried out by the GAZ plants, No. 37 (Sverdlovsk), No. 264 and No. 38 in the city of Kirov, together they produced more than 6,000 units.
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