Glorifying the victories of Russian weapons of all ages, historians, writers and poets have in mind primarily the valor of the sons of the Fatherland. However, this expression has another, direct and almost literal meaning.
Technical backwardness or superiority became the cause of the collapse or triumph of states in the twentieth century. The Second World War began long before September 1, 1939 , and the field of invisible battles became the culmins of the design bureaus. The obvious inevitability of the global conflict was not hidden, the leaders of the countries spoke about it from high tribunes, and they began to prepare for it ahead of time.
After the Nazi Germany attack on the USSR, the Soviet military doctrine underwent significant changes. Until June 22, 1941, the official strategic ideology, recorded in the charters of the Red Army, stated that the fighting in the upcoming war would be carried out with "little blood" and on "foreign territory." The reality turned out to be different.
The technical base required an urgent change. High-speed and amphibious tanks manufactured in the USSR from the late 30s to 1941 turned out to be practically unsuitable for operations on their own territory, aircraft also did not fully meet the conditions under which air domination was only to be conquered. It was necessary to produce victory weapons in huge quantities, and this was not easy, especially considering the loss in the first year of a significant part of European territory and a large share of industrial potential. It became clear to the country's leadership that a long war was ahead.
Today it is clear to everyone what the weapon of victory was. T-34 and KV tanks, Il-2 attack aircraft, Lavochkin fighters, Katyusha mortars, PPSh assault rifles - all this was produced in huge quantities that history had not yet known. Everything was done for the front. At the same time, one should not forget about the constantly arising need to modernize models of military equipment, without reducing the plan for its release.
An example is the real weapon of victory, called the "black death" by the German invaders - the IL-2 attack aircraft. The uniqueness of its design lies in the supporting armored hull, which has a dual function, it was both a protection and a power frame at the same time. Originally conceived as a two-seater, before the war the Il-2 was produced in a variant that excluded the arrow protecting the rear hemisphere. After the first losses, they again began to equip it with a rear cabin, sometimes in the conditions of field repair shops. In the end, the double version was again put into production.
One more example. From 1940 to 1943, the T-34 medium tank was produced with a 76.2 mm caliber turret gun. It was enough for an effective fight against any enemy armored vehicles. The appearance of heavy tanks among the Germans required an urgent modernization of the “thirty-four”. The result was a real weapon of victory. The cast enlarged turret and long-barreled 85-mm gun, combined with other fundamental advantages of the design scheme, brought the Soviet tank to the category of the best in World War II.
In addition to military vehicles mass-produced in the rear and even in besieged Leningrad, the Soviet Army required a lot of auxiliary, but no less necessary and important equipment. The delivery of ammunition, food, fuel, medicine, that is, everything without which successful military operations cannot be conducted, required transport. Wonderful US6 Studebaker trucks and Willys jeeps, which were the best in the world at that time, were delivered from the USA. Under the license of Douglas, before the war in the USSR, production of Li-2 transport aircraft began. They were also the best, and we built them more than in America, and this was also a weapon of victory.
So the sword was forged, with which Nazism was crushed. Eternal glory to the Soviet rear workers!