Chapter 111: Discussion Again

At that time, Kotin was much more well-known than Morozov, and his relationship with Voroshilov was even better than that of Morozov. The T-28 tank he designed was the first medium tank in the Soviet Union and considered the most advanced in the world, and achieved good results in the Battle www.biquge.info of Nomenheim.

But according to Manturov's later memories, Morozov would become an even greater designer. The T-34 tank designed by him played a very important role in World War II and was considered one of the most advanced tanks in the world at the beginning of World War II.

Later, the T-44, T-54, T-55, and T-64 tanks he designed were the main tanks of the Soviet Union, and they were also important symbols of the Soviet armed forces in the early days of the Cold War.

In the future, the T-34 tank, designed by Morozov, will be in greater demand, superior in performance and combat capabilities to the T-28 designed by Kotin.

"Comrade Morozov, how is the development of the A-32 tank (the prototype of the T-34) going?" Although Manturov knew when the T-34 was released, he still asked a question in a pretentious way, so as not to reveal his identity as a traverser.

"At present, the research and development of the A-32 tank has been completed for most of the time, and it has entered the testing stage, and I believe that this will be a medium tank with excellent performance in terms of firepower, protection and maneuverability." Morozov said confidently.

In Manturov's mind, the T-34 would not be available until January 1940, and on December 19, 1939, the A32 began to undergo weapons upgrades and began to evolve into the T-34.

"In my opinion, the design of the A-32 tank was quite successful, and its water chestnut design made it possible to reduce losses from shell fire. If you can change to thicker armor, more powerful guns, and more reliable transmission equipment, I believe this will be a successful tank. Manturov unreservedly appreciated, raising Morozov's confidence.

Manturov glanced at Kotin, and then continued: "But before the upgrade, the most powerful and best armor protection in our Soviet Red Army was the KV tank designed by Comrade Kotin and named after Comrade Voroshilov.

Now, countries around the world have launched, or even completed, the research and development of new medium tanks, and a large number of medium tanks have been equipped in the army.

In response to the development of medium and heavy tanks in various countries around the world, we also need to increase the production of medium and heavy tanks in order to enhance the combat power of our army's armored forces.

But the production of tanks requires a lot of steel, and a certain amount of molybdenum metal is also needed for the production of armor steel. It just so happens that in the Novosibirsk region we have the largest steel mill in the entire USSR, producing the best quality and most cost-effective steel.

And in the eastern part of the Novosibirsk region, there are also rich molybdenum ore resources, as well as metallurgical plants with the best metallurgical technology in the whole Soviet Union, which can provide tank factories with a sufficient amount of low-cost armor steel without guaranteeing quality. Manturov expressed a positive opinion about the KV series, and also spoke about the conditions under which Novosibirsk is suitable for the creation of tanks, but still did not say where he stands.

He had the impression that Germany would develop heavy tanks such as the Tiger and King Tiger, which were more powerful and could easily eliminate the Soviet T-34 medium tank.

But in the face of the IS series of heavy tanks designed by Kotin in the future, the German Tiger will not be the opponent of the IS series. If the Soviets could ramp up the production of heavy tanks and replicate the production line of the Kirov plant in Novosibirsk, it would increase their stakes for victory.

At the same time, the Novosibirsk region is rich in mineral resources, and steelmaking and metallurgical enterprises with epoch-making technologies are also able to provide tank factories with high-quality, sufficient quantities of raw materials for the production of tanks.

Technological improvements at metallurgical enterprises of the Novosibirsk region have effectively reduced the cost of production of raw materials while increasing production and quality. Moving the tank production line there will not only reduce the cost of raw materials, but also increase the income of local steelmaking, metallurgical enterprises, and mining, and increase the financial resources of the state government.

However, whether it is the KV series or the IS series of tanks, there are quite a few problems. Although the firepower is better than the T-34 designed by Koshkin and Morozov, it is a notch different from the T-44-100 and T54 tanks designed by Morozov later.

"The conditions in the Novosibirsk region are quite suitable for the creation of a production line for KV tanks." As Kotin's father-in-law, Voroshilov would not fail to support the scheme for the production of the KV series, after all, this scheme was more beneficial to Kotin, as the general designer of the KV tank. And this tank, in fact, is also named after himself, KV is the abbreviation of Klimente Voroshilov.

People's Commissar of the Ordnance Industry Vanikov nodded, agreeing with Voroshilov's statement. "The Novosibirsk region has the advantage of lower cost of raw materials, greater supply and higher quality, which makes it possible to build a production line for heavy tanks with a greater demand for raw materials.

In this way, it is possible to reduce production costs, ensure production quality, and give full play to the advantages of producing heavy tanks. So, the KV heavy tank designed by Comrade Kotin should be produced there. ”

The others also expressed their agreement, but in the end Manturov showed a different attitude. "As I said earlier, the A-32 tank designed by Comrades Koshkin and Morozov is good, but there is still room for improvement in armor, artillery and transmission.

If the A-32 tank is improved, it is believed that it will be a tank that combines firepower, protection and mobility, and will also be the most advanced tank in the world.

Just now Comrade Morozov also said that the development of the A-32 tank is nearing completion. After testing, let's see how well the tank performs before making a decision. ”

Everyone present was shocked by Manturov's remarks, even Morozov.

"Comrade Morozov, how long do you estimate that the development of the A-32 will take place?" Voroshilov, who presided over the meeting, asked Morozov, who was present on behalf of the Kharkov plant.

"If we follow Comrade Manturov's proposal to upgrade the armor and firepower, and replace it with more reliable transmission equipment, it will probably take more than a month to ensure that it will be completed in January 1940."

"The construction of the tank plant in Novosibirsk will probably be completed in March 1941, so it is better to wait until January next year, when the Kharkov plant completes the research and development of the A-32 tank, and then discuss the issue of production plans." In the end, Manturov still sided with Morozov.

Voroshilov thought about it for a moment and felt that what Manturov said also made sense. "Then this issue will be discussed after the development of the A-32 tank is completed."