IS-3 (tank)

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IS-3
IS-3 with a typical dome-shaped tower

IS-3 with a typical dome-shaped tower
General properties
crew 4th
length 9.85 m
width 3.15 m
height 2.45 m
Dimensions 46.5 t
Armor and armament
Armor steel
Main armament 122 mm cannon D-25T L / 43
  • 28 rounds of ammunition
Secondary armament MG:
agility
drive V12 diesel engine W-11-IS-3 (W-11-ISS)
520 PS (382 kW)
suspension Torsion bar suspension
Top speed 40 km / h
Power / weight 11.2 hp / t
Range 340 km

The IS-3 (from I ossif S talin; German Josef Stalin or Object 703 ) was a heavy Soviet battle tank of the IS series , which was designed towards the end of the Second World War as a further development of the IS-2 .

development

IS-3M in a tank museum near Brussels

Chief designer MF Balschi created a new turret with stronger armor and a round, bullet-repellent dome shape. This remained the distinguishing feature of Soviet tanks with the T-80 and its descendants until the mid- 1990s . The IS-3 also attracted attention due to its unusual hull shape. The upper half of the front armor consisted of two armor plates welded together at an angle instead of one plate extending over the entire width of the hull as in most other tanks of the time. This gave the tub at the bow the characteristic shape of an inverted V, so that projectiles that hit it were no longer deflected towards the tower, but towards the sides. This bow shape has  not been repeated in any other design since then - apart from other heavy Soviet tanks such as the IS-7 or the T-10 .

The first IS-3 were produced in May 1945 in the Chelyabinsk Kirov factory. The early models were not yet fully developed and had some power transmission and chassis deficiencies that were not addressed until a revision of the IS-3 in 1946. The tank was modernized several times. In 1948–52 structural weaknesses in the tubs were eliminated. In 1960 the tanks were converted to the IS-3M. The tank received a new engine with the designation W-54K-IS, which was derived from the W-54 of the T-54 and also made 520 hp (382 kW). The driver received the TWN-2 night vision device. The radio R-113 was scaffolded and the structure of the hull was again reinforced. The IS-3M weighs 49 tons.

A total of 2300 IS-3s were manufactured from 1945 to 1946.

description

IS-3, T-34/85 and PT-76 during the Hungarian uprising in Budapest in 1956
The front of an IS-3 wreck in Budapest in 1956. The weld seams of the 120 mm thick front plates are clearly visible.

The IS-3 is a classic battle tank with a turret in the front and a rear-mounted engine. The proven drive of the previous models was retained. The driver sits in the middle of the tub and has a hatch on the tub roof. The commander sits on the left behind the gunner in the turret, the loader on the right of the cannon.

drive

The IS-3 has a torsion bar sprung support roller drive with six rollers and three support rollers on each side. As with most Soviet battle tanks, the drive wheels are at the stern, the idler wheels at the bow of the hull. The internal fuel supply of 425 l diesel is supplemented by 360 l in external, side-mounted additional tanks. The water-cooled 60 ° V-engine with 38.9 l displacement is installed lengthways.

Armament

The main weapon of the IS-3 is the 122 mm D25T tank cannon known from the IS-2. It fires divided ammunition. A heavy anti-aircraft machine gun DSchK with a caliber of 12.7 × 108 mm is available to the commander as secondary armament . A modified Panzer MG DTM in caliber 7.62 × 54 mm is installed coaxially to the right of the cannon in the turret. The rear turret MG of the previous models was dispensed with.

Armor

The armor of the IS-3 is made of rolled armor steel and is 250 mm thick on the barrel cover of the cannon, the bow plates are 120 mm thick. The turret front armor of the IS-3M has been reduced to 110 mm.

Technical specifications
IS-3 IS-3M
Construction year 1945 1960
development Design office of the Chelyabinsk Kirov factory
Manufacturer Chelyabinsk Kirovwerk Repair shops
Combat weight (t) 46.5 49
Length over everything with pipe to the front (m) 9.85
Tub (noun) 6.90
Width (m) 3.15 3.39
Height (m) 2.45
Ground clearance (mm) 495 450
Ground pressure (kg / cm²) 0.82 0.87
pitch 32 °
Bank 30 °
Exceedability (m) 2.5
Climbing ability (noun) 1.00
Fording ability 1.40
Engine type W-11 ISS W-54K-IS
power 520 hp (382 kW)
Fuel supply (l) 425 l + 360 410
Power to weight ratio (hp / t) 11.2 10.6
Top speed (km / h) 40
Range (km) 340 450
Armor (turret front / bow plate, mm) 250/120 110/120
crew 4th
cannon D-25T / 28 rounds
Fla-MG DSchK / 250 rounds
Coaxial MG DTM / 756 rounds

Calls

IS-3 during the parade in Berlin in September 1945

The IS-3 arrived too late on the European theater of war to be used in the Battle of Berlin ; probably a tank regiment equipped with IS-3 took part in an Allied victory parade in Berlin. In the summer of 1945, the IS-3 were assigned to the Far Eastern Military District and attended the Manchurian operation of the Red Army (8 August to 2 September 1945) against the Japanese Kwantung Army in part.

In 1956 IS-3 were involved in the fighting in Budapest during the Hungarian uprising .

The Egyptian army used some IS-3M tanks in the 1967 Six Day War . There they were assigned to the tank battalions of the infantry divisions.

See also

literature

  • Mikhail Baryatinsky: The IS tanks. IS-1, IS-2, IS-3 . In: Russian Armor . tape 1 . Ian Allan, Hersham 2006, ISBN 0-7110-3162-2 (English).
  • Fred Koch: Russian tanks and armored vehicles. 1946 - to the present . Schiffer, Atglen, PA 1999, ISBN 0-7643-0914-5 (English).
  • AW Karpenko: Soviet-Russian tanks. 1905-2003 . Ed .: Rudi Meier. Elbe-Dnjepr, Klitzschen 2004, ISBN 3-933395-44-5 , p. 422, 423 (Russian: Обозрение отечественной бронетанковой техники (1905–1995 гг.) . Translated by Rudi Meier, source for the technical data).

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ IS-3. (No longer available online.) Ledpepper.com, archived from the original on July 9, 2015 ; accessed on July 8, 2015 .

Web links

Commons : IS-3  - Collection of Images