Stalin picked up his pipe, washed his cigarette, highlighted a burst of fog and sighed: "Comrade Manturov, I agree with you. Pen? Interesting? Pavilion wWw. ｂiquge。 It is true that light tanks cannot be the main force of the Red Army, and the T-34 tanks, Kliment Voroshilov tanks and the latest IS tanks should be the main force of our operations.

Light tanks are fast and highly mobile, making it easier to carry out reconnaissance missions, and the tanks are equipped with artillery or cannons that can also provide support for infantry.

But what I don't understand is that since both tanks and artillery are already capable of supporting infantry, then why mass production of ZIS-41 half-track self-propelled guns?

If trucks are already capable of transporting supplies and soldiers, why mass produce half-track transporters? ”

Before Manturov came to meet the Supreme Leader, he had long thought that Stalin would ask such a question, and he had been prepared for it. "Comrade Stalin, I think so.

As far as I know, the roads in the western regions of the Soviet Union are mainly dirt roads, and they become muddy during the wet spring season.

In such a situation, the truck could easily get stuck in the mud, and the Red Army fighters again needed to push the truck out, wasting both time and energy.

If an enemy is nearby, trucks can be easily targeted, and the supplies on the trucks will be destroyed by the enemy even if they do not fall into the hands of the enemy.

In order to cope with this situation on the roads of our country, the Stalin Automobile Plant developed the zis-22 half-track transporter several years ago, and in July of this year it completed its upgrade, which was designated ZIS-22M.

This half-track vehicle has good off-road performance, can pass in extremely bad road conditions, will not fall into the mud like a truck, is suitable for any road in our country, and can deliver supplies to any troops.

Then why produce half-track self-propelled guns? Because the existing self-propelled guns have the problem of high production costs and slow production speed.

The half-track self-propelled gun has the advantages of low production cost and short production time, and can also be mounted on the 122mm caliber M-30 howitzer for infantry support, and can also be equipped with a 57mm caliber ZIS-2 anti-tank gun, which can hit enemy tanks, or equipped with anti-aircraft guns and anti-aircraft machine guns to enhance anti-aircraft firepower.

From here we can see that the ZIS-41 half-track self-propelled gun has the characteristics of being more versatile.

Of course, compared with armored full-track self-propelled guns, half-track self-propelled guns have inferior protection capabilities, and their cross-country ability is not as good as half-track self-propelled guns, and the power of the guns that can be carried is limited, because the recoil of artillery with stronger firepower is also stronger, and the ZIS-41 half-track self-propelled gun may not be able to withstand such a large recoil.

Therefore, it is still necessary to produce some full-tracked self-propelled guns equipped with 152 mm M-10T howitzers, 122 mm M-30 howitzers or 100 mm D-10 anti-tank guns to enhance the fire support capabilities of the Soviet Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, as well as the mobility of artillery. ”

At that time, the Soviet self-propelled artillery had only one SU-26 self-propelled gun, which was converted from the T-26 tank chassis and equipped with a 76 mm caliber infantry gun, which was inferior to the German No. 3 assault gun in terms of artillery power and protection.

The well-known ISU-152, ISU-122, SU-122, SU-100 and SU-76 self-propelled guns only appeared in the period of 1942-1943, when the USSR simply did not have decent self-propelled guns.

"Your proposal is good, I have also received a lot of reports of poor road conditions in Ukraine, Belarus and the western regions of Russia, and I have been a headache about this problem, if we produce some half-track transporters that can adapt to any road conditions, I believe that we can reduce the impact of poor road conditions on our army's logistics supply.

In addition, the artillery of the Soviet Workers' and Peasants' Red Army now needs to be moved by artillery tractors, and its mobility is not good.

If some large-caliber guns can be placed on tracked vehicles, the mobility of artillery units can be effectively improved. Wherever the troops go, the artillery can follow, and they can provide timely support to the infantry, which is really a good suggestion.

Well, now that you have prepared these plans, you are responsible for the development of half-tracks and self-propelled guns. ”

"Understood, I accept the task."

"That's good." Stalin opened his notebook and wrote on it "Comrade Manturov is responsible for supervising the implementation and preparation of decisions on the production of transports and self-propelled guns; All the factories concerned were subject to the supervision and management of Comrade Manturov. ”

"From now on, in the name of the National Defense Committee, you can give instructions to the relevant departments, and if there are any problems, you can refer them to the National Defense Committee for everyone to discuss together." Stalin continued: "If nothing else, then go back and prepare for these tasks. ”

"Comrade Stalin, have you received intelligence about the frequent movements of German troops in Belarus and Ukraine?" Manturov remembered something more important.

"Yes, do you have any thoughts on the situation?"

From his briefcase, Manturov took out a pencil map of the Soviet Union and handed it to the Supreme Leader. "This is my prediction of the next move of the German army."

"Why is there such a prediction?"

Manturov told Stalin everything he had said to Yakov in the morning, and Stalin kept his pen in his hand and wrote down the key points in his notebook all the time.

Stalin's expression was very solemn, and it seemed that he also realized the gravity of the situation. "When do you think they're going to take action?"

"I'm not sure about that." "After winter, the dirt roads in Ukraine and Belarus will become muddy, and the road conditions are worse for the German army, which has a large need for logistics and supplies, and moves faster, which is one of the factors that is not conducive to their offensive after winter," Manturov analyzed.

If they were to act before the end of winter, their tanks and vehicles would have to warm up for a long time before they could be put into battle, because the Germans' tanks and vehicles were not designed to operate in cold regions, so this factor was not conducive to their actions before the end of winter.

However, the Germans are targeting warmer parts of Ukraine this time, where the winter climate is not too cold and the impact on German vehicles and tanks is relatively small, so they should be inclined to act before the end of winter, either today or at the end of February.

In any case, we need to be prepared, just in case. If they succeed in this operation, our losses will be extremely heavy and we must not take them lightly. ”