The KW-1 is a Soviet heavy tank from the Second World War. The first prototypes of this vehicle were made in 1939, and the car entered service a year later (1940). Approximately 4,700-5,000 vehicles of this type were produced in the course of production. The combat weight of the tank was up to 42.5 tons. The drive was provided by a single W-2K diesel engine with a power of up to 600 HP. The main armament consisted of a 76.2 mm ZiS-5 gun and three 7.62 mm DT machineguns.
The KW-1 vehicle was developed as a successor to the failed T-35 tank. Compared to its predecessor, it differed on many levels, and above all, the multi-turret system was abandoned in favor of a single turret with main armament. What's more, based on the experience of the civil war in Spain (1936-1939), the armor of the entire car was also very impressive, for the late 1930s. Finally, when it was introduced to the KW-1 line, it clearly exceeded the armor and firepower of virtually every German tank. However, it was not without disadvantages, including poor maneuverability and high failure rate of some mechanical elements - especially the drive train. The KW-1 was used on a large scale during the German-Soviet war of 1941-1945, and its serial production was maintained until 1943 in parallel with the production of the T-34. The variants of the KW-1 include the KW-1s (a vehicle with improved reliability and ergonomics) and the KW-85 (armed with a 85mm D-5T gun).
The Pz.Kpfw VI (Sd.Kfz.181) Tiger is a German heavy tank from World War II, one of the most famous combat vehicles of that time. The command of the German Panzerwaffe had the idea of creating a heavy tank from the beginning of the war, but the first attempts in the form of the centuries-old Neubaufahrzeuge tank turned out to be unsuccessful. In 1939 and 1940 they were conducted ineffectively, but after the clash with the T-34 and KW-1 on the eastern front, work on the new heavy tank sped up. On April 20, 1942, the prototype of the new tank, under the designation VK 4501 (H), underwent field trials in the presence of Adolf Hitler and was put into mass production shortly after. The first production versions were designated Pz.Kpfw VI Ausf.H1 (later Ausf.E). In the course of production, in the years 1942-1945, the tank was systematically modified by, for example, adding Feifell dust filters, different placement of headlights, modernization of optical equipment, changes to the commander's turret, etc. The drive was provided by a Maybach HL230 P45 12-cylinder carburetor engine with a capacity of 700 HP. The Pz.Kpfw VI tank, although it did not have such a contoured front hull as the T-34 or Pantera, was a heavily armored vehicle (frontal armor up to 120mm), armed with a very effective KwK 36 L / 56 88mm gun, which earned the reputation of being the most effective tank of the Second World War. It was a vehicle much better than the Allied M4 or Churchill and the Soviet T-34/76. He could also easily fight the IS-2 or M-26, surpassing them with the effectiveness of the main armament. On the other hand, the Pz.Kpfw VI had some disadvantages - first of all, it was extremely time-consuming to produce and had a very complicated suspension. In the later period of the war, the quality of the Tiger's armor also deteriorated, which resulted from the lack of access to the molybdenum deposits by the German economy. Despite these drawbacks, the Tiger on the battlefields proved to be a very effective weapon. He successfully fought in Tunisia, the Kursk Arch, Normandy and on the Eastern Front. Technical data: length (with a barrel): 8.45m, width: 3.7m, height: 2.93m, engine power: 700KM, weight: 56.9 t, range (on the road): 100km, maximum speed (on the road) ): 38 km / h, armament: 1 88 mm KwK 36 L / 56 gun, 3 7.92 mm MG 34 machine guns.