There were two different Soviet tanks with the IS-4 designation. One of these was the Object 245, which was an IS-2 revised with a long-barrel 100-mm (3.94-in) D-10T gun. The other was a new vehicle projected in parallel with the IS-3 (Object 703) by the same LKZ design and development bureau. For this second iteration …
Tag Archives: heavy tank
The Soviet IS Series (Part 1)
The designation Iosif Stalin was used for a series of Soviet heavy tanks developed as a successor to the KV series in World War II, and was created under the leadership of Zh. Kotin and N. Dukhov to provide the Soviet forces with a very heavy tank able to survive the fire of the German …
The German Panzerjäger Tiger (Jagdtiger)
Though technically not a tank as it lacked a rotating turret to carry its main armament, the weapon generally known as the Jagdtiger (hunting tiger) was a super-heavy tank destroyer operated in small numbers by the Germans in World War II. The vehicle was more formally known as the Panzerjäger Tiger Ausführung B as it …
The heavy tank – the British FV 214 Conqueror
Occupying the technical and operational border between the heavy and the super-heavy tank, the FV 214 Conqueror was also known as the Tank, Heavy No. 1, 120 mm Gun, Conqueror, and was a British heavy tank developed in the period after World War II which was only built in modest numbers. The spur for the …
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The super-heavy tank – the British A39 Tortoise
One of the major concerns of the Western Allies fighting Germany in World War II was that they would finally have to invade Germany from the west along a frontier protected by the ‘Westwall’, or ‘Siegfried Line’. This took the form of a line of concrete emplacements armed with artillery and anti-tank guns, and itself …
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The super-heavy tank – the German PzKpfw E-100
Another example of the penchant of the Nazi hierarchy for the desirability of the massive, the Panzerkampfwagen E-100 (Gerät 383) was a super-heavy tank design which was conceived and developed in the second half of World War II. The concept behind this and other massive weapon types of the same period due to the belief …
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The super-heavy tank – the German Panzerkampfwagen VIII Maus
A history of the German Panzerkampfwagen VIII Maus which was a prototype heavy tank designed during WWII – with details of its massive protection as well as limitations because of weight.
The super-heavy tank – the British TOG
A history of the British TOG which was a prototype tank developed during World War II. It was never never put into service as the conditions of war had changed from the 1914-1918 situations.
The super-heavy tank – the US T28 super heavy tank
A history of the US T28 super heavy tank which was a prototype of heavily armoured tank destroyer designed during WWII. This super heavy tank could not use any of the portable bridges then in service and proved unsuitable for service.
The super-heavy tank – the French FCM Char 2C (II)
More details on the history of the Frenchy heavy tank, Char 2C, and the political and military infighting around its development. Includes specification for the Char 2C bis.