An assault gun is a combat vehicle for tracking military offensives of infantry and tanks. It was widely used during the Second World War, as it provided good cover from enemy fire attacks, although it also had drawbacks, in particular, difficulties with changing the direction of fire.
Guns of Germany
The world's first assault gun belonged to Germany. The Wehrmacht was going to create a combat vehicle with the following characteristics:
- high fire power;
- small dimensions;
- good booking;
- the possibility of cheap production.
Designers of various companies have made great efforts to complete the assignment of management. It was possible to solve the problem of the automotive company Daimler-Benz. The Wehrmacht's created assault gun worked well in long-range combat, but was practically useless against armored tanks, so it subsequently underwent a number of improvements.
Sturmtiger
Another name for Germany’s self-propelled assault gun is the Sturpunzer VI. It was converted from linear tanks and was used from 1943 until the end of the war. A total of 18 such machines were created, since they were effective only in urban combat conditions, which made them highly specialized. In addition, there were interruptions in the supply of Sturmtigr.
For efficient operation, the car required the coordinated work of five crew members:
- driver;
- radio operator arrow;
- a commander combining his tasks with the function of a gunner;
- two loaders.
Since the shells weighed up to 350 kg, and the kit included 12-14 units of these heavy ammunition, the rest of the crew helped the loaders. The design of the machine assumed a firing range of up to 4.4 km.
Brummber
Before the first development of assault weapons, it was supposed to create a 120-ton machine with a gun of 305 mm and a thickness of the armor layer of 130 mm, which exceeded the value existing at that time by more than 2.5 times. The installation should have the name "Ber", which in translation sounds like a "bear". The project was never implemented, but subsequently, after the creation of the Sturmtiger, they returned to it again.
Still, the released car was far from the original plans. The gun was 150 mm, firing range was only 4.3 km, and the thickness of the armor was not enough to withstand anti-tank artillery. It was necessary to refuse the car named “Broommbert" (translated from German as "grizzly bear").
"Ferdinand"
The assault gun, which is one of the most powerful tank destroyers, was the "Elephant" (translated as "elephant"). But more often its other name is used, namely "Ferdinand". A total of 91 such machines were produced, but this did not stop her from becoming perhaps the most famous. She was not vulnerable to enemy artillery, but the absence of a machine gun made her defenseless against infantry. The firing range, depending on the shells used, ranged from 1.5 to 3 km.
Often, "Ferdinand" was included in the brigade of assault guns, including up to 45 pieces of equipment. In fact, the entire creation of the brigade was to rename the divisions. At the same time, numbers, personnel and other important characteristics were preserved.
The Soviet Union managed to capture 8 combat vehicles of this type, but not one of them was used directly in the battle, since each was in a very damaged condition. The installations were used for research purposes: several of them were shot to verify the reservation of German equipment and the effectiveness of the new Soviet weapons, others were disassembled to study the design, and then disposed of as scrap metal.
With "Ferdinand" associated with the maximum number of myths and misconceptions. Some sources claim that there were several hundred copies, and they were used everywhere. In others, on the contrary, the authors believe that they were used no more than twice in battles on the territory of the USSR, after which they were transferred to Italy to defend themselves from the Anglo-American army.
In addition, there is a misconception that the guns and the SU-152 were the means of fighting this machine, while in reality mines, grenades and field artillery were used for this purpose.
Currently, there are two Ferdinand in the world: one is stored in the Russian armored museum, and the other - at the American training ground.
Ferdinand and Elephant
Despite the fact that both names were official, it is more correct from a historical point of view to call Ferdinand the machine of this kind that appeared first, and Elephant as a modernized one. Improvements occurred in early 1944 and mainly consisted of a machine gun and turret, as well as improved surveillance devices. However, there is still a myth that Ferdinand is an unofficial name.
Stug iii
The Sturmgeschütz III assault gun belonged to medium-sized vehicles and was considered the most effective, as it helped to destroy more than 20,000 enemy tanks. In the Soviet Union it was called "Art-Sturm" and they practiced the seizure of the installation in order to manufacture its combat vehicles on its basis.
The Stug assault gun had 10 modifications with different designs of nodal elements and the degree of reservation, which made it suitable for battles in various conditions. The direct firing range ranged from 620 to 1200 meters, the maximum - 7.7 km.
Guns of Italy
The development of Germany interested in other countries. Italy, realizing that its weapons were outdated, created an analogue of the German assault gun, and then improved its power. So the country increased the combat effectiveness of its army.
Italy's most famous self-propelled artillery belonged to the Semovente series:
- 300 47/32 vehicles created in 1941 on the basis of a light tank with an open roof;
- 467 installations 75/18, manufactured from 1941 to 1944 on the basis of light tanks equipped with a 75 mm gun, having three modifications, differing in engines;
- an unknown quantity of 75/46 with two machine guns and a capacity for 3 crew members;
- 30 guns 90/53, adopted for service in 1943, accommodating a crew of 4 people;
- 90 pieces of equipment 105/25, created in 1943, designed for a crew of 3 people.
The most popular model was 75/18.
Semovente da 75/18
A successful Italian development was a light assault gun. Moreover, it was developed on the basis of an outdated tank and had three modifications with engines of different power, running on diesel or gasoline.
It was successfully used until the surrender of Italy, after which it continued to be produced, but already as an assault weapon of the Wehrmacht. Firing range up to 12.1 km. To date, 2 copies of Semovente have survived, they are stored in military museums in France and Spain.
Guns of the Soviet Union
The top leadership of the USSR also appreciated the effectiveness of the new items and took measures to create a similar assault gun. But the need for the production of tanks was more acute due to the evacuation of their factories, so work on new combat vehicles was postponed. However, in 1942, Soviet designers managed to create two novelties at once as quickly as possible - an average and a heavy assault gun. Subsequently, the release of the first species was suspended, and then completely discontinued. But the development of the second was in full swing, since it was very effective for the destruction of enemy tanks.
Su-152
At the beginning of 1943, the heavy installation of the Soviet Union proved to be an effective fighter of the enemy’s armored weapons. 670 vehicles were built on the basis of a Soviet tank. Release ceased due to discontinuation of the prototype. Nevertheless, a certain number of guns survived until the end of the war and even was in service after the victory. But later, almost all copies were disposed of as scrap metal. In museums in Russia, only three installations of this type have survived.
Direct fire hit the target at a distance of 3.8 km, as much as possible to shoot at 13 km.
There is a misconception that the development of the Su-152 was a reciprocal move to the appearance of the Tiger heavy tank in Germany, but this is not true, since the shells used for the Soviet guns could not defeat this German machine.
ISU-152
The decommissioning of the base for the SU-152 led to the emergence of a new and improved assault gun. The tank, taken as its basis, was an IS (named after Joseph Stalin), and the caliber of the main armament was indicated by the index 152, so the installation was called ISU-152. Its firing range corresponded to the indicators for the SU-152.
The new car received special significance closer to the end of the war, when it was used in almost every battle. Several copies were captured by Germany, and one by Finland. In Russia, the gun was unofficially called St. John's Wort, in Germany - a can opener.
ISU-152 could be used for three purposes:
- like a heavy assault vehicle;
- as an enemy tank destroyer;
- as a self-propelled installation for fire support of the army.
Nevertheless, in each of these roles, the ISU had serious competitors, so it was withdrawn from service over time. Now there are many copies of this combat vehicle stored in various museums.
SU-76
Light installations based on the corresponding T-40 tanks were also produced in the USSR. The most mass production was characteristic of the SU-76, used to destroy light and medium tanks. The assault gun, made in the amount of 14 thousand units, had a reservation against bullets.
There were four options. They differed in the arrangement of engines or the presence or absence of an armored roof.
A simple and versatile machine had both the advantages of being equipped with a good gun, a maximum firing range of more than 13 km, ease of maintenance, reliability, low noise, high passability and a convenient felling device, as well as the disadvantages of the fire hazard of a gas engine, and insufficient reservation. When attacking tanks with an armor thickness of 100 mm, it was practically useless.
SU-85 and SU-100
The most mass-produced vehicle during World War II was the T-34 tank. Based on it, the SU-85 and SU-100 with a higher caliber of shells were created.
SU-85 was the first gun that could really worthy of competing with German technology. Released in mid-1943, it was medium in weight and coped well with the task of destroying enemy medium tanks over a kilometer away and well-armored at a distance of 500 meters. At the same time, the car was maneuverable and developed sufficient speed. Closed wheelhouse and increased thickness of the armor protected the crew from enemy fire.
For 2 years, almost two and a half thousand SU-85s were produced, which constituted the bulk of the artillery of the Soviet Union. The SU-100 replaced her only at the beginning of 1945. She successfully resisted the tanks with the most powerful armor, and she herself was well protected from enemy guns. She showed herself perfectly in the conditions of urban battle. Modernizing, it existed among the armaments of the USSR for several decades after the victory, and in countries such as Algeria, Morocco, Cuba, remained in the XXI century.
Main differences
Since the development of Italian and Soviet designers was carried out after the installation in Germany, all machines classified as assault guns have great similarities. In particular, the layout of the same type, in which the conning tower is located in the bow and the engine in the stern.
Nevertheless, Soviet technology was different from German and Italian. The transmission in it was located in the aft part, from which it followed that the gearbox and other important components were immediately behind the frontal reservation. And in foreign-made cars, the transmission was in front, and its units were closer to the central part.
Developing the construction of military equipment, countries tried to get a car with maximum armor-piercing and their own protection, the most fast and maneuverable. This was achieved by installing guns designed for shells of various calibers, varying engine power and type of fuel used, increasing the thickness of the frontal armor layer. A universal machine that ideally suited the conditions of any battle did not exist, and could not, but the designers did their best to make the machines the best in their class.