Contribution of Soviet Metallurgy to Creation and Serial Production of KV Heavy Tank (1939 – 1941)

Abstract

The KV heavy tank stays among the legends of the Great Patriotic War and one of the most recognizable combat vehicles of those years. The assessment of the tank, its design features and practice of operation, in scientific, popular science literature, and journalism, is still ambiguous: from praise to denial. Historical memory of this combat vehicle is actively living its life not only on pages of the books, but also in the virtual space, in the branches of thematic Internet forums and computer games. The heavy tank of KV series was developed and put into service at the very end of 1939. A new grade of 42S armor steel was created especially for it, which was distinguished by a relatively low content of alloying elements and high adaptability for mass production. The authors seriously studied the stages of armor production and the difficulties in its creation. They show the enormous contribution of metallurgists to the creation of a combat vehicle. As a result of engineering research and the decisive contribution of metallurgy, a formidable machine was obtained, possessing thick armor (75 mm) and quite powerful armament (76.2 mm cannon). At the same time, the tank had a whole range of disadvantages that reduce the effectiveness of its combat use. The general lack of development of the design and archaic technological solutions created serious problems both in the production and in the subsequent operation of this tank. History and tradition of searching the tank allows taking a fresh look at the long glorious traditions of the national engineering school in the field of metallurgy, and its decisive contribution to the Victory in the Great Patriotic War. © The Author(s), 2021.