Koshkin read the test documents that Stalin had annotated, and a drop of cold sweat broke out on his face. Pen | fun | pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 ｉｎｆｏ

Stalin was quite satisfied with the design of the T-34 tank, as well as the results of the tests, and he was very impressed by the extremely high mobility and excellent performance.

It's just that in this conference room full of generals, in front of Stalin, Koshkin always felt a little nervous. The rough hands were trembling constantly, and the eyes were quite trance-like, and they couldn't control anything.

Stalin also noticed Koshkin's expression, and in order to calm him down, Stalin praised Koshkin's design at the beginning, "Comrade Koshkin, the T-34 is an excellent tank, which is world-leading in terms of defense, firepower, and maneuverability. We will set up more production lines and produce them in large quantities, so as to equip the Red Army as quickly as possible and in large quantities. ”

Those present, with the exception of Kulik, looked at Koshkin with admiration. As the father-in-law of Koshkin's opponent Kotin, Voroshilov by this time actually became a serious supporter of the T-34 tank. Much of this was influenced by Manturov, who was strengthened by the last test.

"Comrade Stalin," Koshkin said in a nervous tone, trembling his mouth, "Actually, this tank has a lot of room for improvement. For example, the original two-man turret was enlarged and replaced with an 85mm M1939 anti-aircraft gun as the main gun, so that it ...... can increase firepower; The armor should be a little thicker, increasing the defense. The original two-player turret also needs to be replaced with a three-player turret, so that the combat efficiency will be better.

These improvements were all proposed by Comrade Manturov, and after studying them with my assistant Comrade Morozov, we unanimously agreed that these changes were feasible and desirable. We will refine the design in a short period of time and produce an improved prototype for testing, aiming to put it into production in the shortest possible time. ”

"Very well," said Stalin, smiling with satisfaction, "if it is successfully developed and mass-produced, it will play a very important role in the defense construction of the Soviet Union and the combat strength of the Red Army."

Just now, Comrade Koshkin also said that the plan for improvement was put forward by Comrade Manturov. In that case, then the construction of the tank production line was entrusted to Comrade Manturov with full responsibility.

Well, Comrade Manturov, where do you think the production line for a new tank should be set up? ”

"Comrade Stalin, comrades of the People's Commissar of Defense, comrades of the Red Army of the Soviet Union," Manturov said, "I think that new tank production lines should be set up in Stalingrad in the Volga Valley, in Novosibirsk in Western Siberia, and in the Svidlovsk Oblast in the Urals. ”

"Why these places?" The approximate reason, Stalin immediately guessed, but still wanted to hear Manturov's specific opinion.

"Stalingrad has the most advanced equipment and the largest production of the Stalingrad tractor plant in the whole Soviet Union. The production process of tractors is similar to that of tanks, and if a tank production line were to be added there, it would not be difficult for workers to get started.

As for Novosibirsk, there was also the largest agricultural machinery plant in the whole Soviet Union. Tractors, harvesters, and other agricultural equipment are produced there, and the overall production scale is larger than that of the Stalingrad Tractor Plant, and the equipment in the factory has been improved by the experts of the Novosibirsk State Technical University, and its production level is no less than that of the Stalingrad Tractor Factory, which is suitable for the establishment of tank production lines.

In addition, Novosibirsk now has a project of a military-industrial complex, which is expected to be completed this summer. We can also set up a new production line for T-34 tanks in the military-industrial complex, after all, this is also a military project.

The most important thing is that Novosibirsk has an abundant supply of raw materials, there are metallurgical enterprises with the best production quality and the largest number of production in the country, which can provide high-quality and sufficient metal raw materials for tank production, and the establishment of tank production lines in Novosibirsk is very suitable.

As for the Svidlovsk region, there, like the Novosibirsk region, there is a fairly rich supply of raw materials, and geographically, it has a better advantage, being close to the western regions, and at the same time not being threatened by air strikes from the West.

However, there is no ready-made tractor factory in this state that is suitable for setting up a new production line. Although there is no tractor plant, we can try to build a tank production line on the basis of the Nizhny Tajik Dzerzhinsky train plant, and we can bring in talents from other places and train local workers and engineers in the future. ”

"Very well," Stalin was quite satisfied with Manturov's proposal. "The idea of setting up a new production line on the basis of the existing plant was quite desirable. There are ready-made factories that can be used to set up tank production lines with a slight expansion or use, and the existing workers at the factories also have experience in mechanical production and are easy to train.

In this way, we will be able to save a lot of time on building factories and training personnel, and we will be able to put the T-34 into mass production as soon as possible and arm the Red Army as soon as possible. ”

In fact, there are not many discrepancies between Manturov's plan and the development of history. Historically, after the T-34 tank was approved for production, the Stalingrad Tractor Plant soon set up a tank production line. The Dzerzhinsky plant in Nizhny Tajikistan, the predecessor of the Ural Production Complex, also developed into the world's largest main battle tank manufacturing plant - the Ural Production Complex after the outbreak of the Great Patriotic War in 1941.

Unlike history, Manturov's plan included his native Novosibirsk in the ranks of tank production centers. According to the situation at that time, Novosibirsk was more suitable for the production of tanks than Stalingrad and Nizhny Tajikistan, because there was an abundant supply of raw materials, and the quality of the materials was high, and the technical level of personnel and equipment was higher than elsewhere.

"In order to make it easier for Comrade Manturov to accomplish the construction task, at the meeting of the Politburo just now, a resolution proposed by Comrade Kaganovich to promote Comrade Manturov to the post of People's Commissar of Construction has been adopted." On a whim, Stalin announced the appointment of the Politburo at this military conference.

Before that, Manturov had not received any notice of his promotion to People's Commissar, because the appointment had been decided at a Politburo meeting an hour earlier, and even Ginsburg was unaware of such a thing.

This appointment was too sudden for Manturov. Ginsburg, the People's Commissar of Construction, has done a good job and has a lot of experience. He has served as the Deputy People's Commissar of Heavy Industry, has experience in heavy industry construction, and is also a professor at the Department of Civil Engineering of the National Technical University.

Even if it does, where will Ginsburg go? He is already a People's Commissar, and he has made a certain contribution to the country, and he has not made any mistakes, so it is impossible to be demoted. And the other People's Commissars are not vacant, and Ginsburg is not eligible for higher positions, and after leaving office, what position will he be placed in?

This personnel transfer is as simple as "making it easier for Manturov to complete the task"?