The T-26 was a slow-moving infantry tank, designed to keep pace with soldiers on the ground. Revolutionary design "We had nothing comparable" - Friedrich von Mellenthin (1956)īefore 1939, the most numerous Soviet tanks were the T-26 light tank and the BT series of fast tanks. It was influential in the development of the late twentieth-century concept of the main battle tank. By the war's end in 1945, the versatile and cost-effective T-34 had replaced many light and heavy tanks in service, and accounted for the majority of Soviet tank production. The design and construction of the tank were continuously refined during the war to improve effectiveness and decrease costs, allowing steadily greater numbers of tanks to be fielded. In late 1943, the improved T-34-85 was introduced, with a more powerful gun. At its introduction, it was the tank with the best balance of firepower, mobility, and protection in existence, although initially its battlefield effectiveness suffered from the unsatisfactory ergonomic layout of its crew compartment, lack of radios and poor tactical employment. The T-34 was developed from the BT series of Fast Tanks, and was intended to replace both the BT tank and the T-26 infantry tank in service. The T-34 was still in service with twenty-seven countries as late as 1996. It was the most-produced tank of the war, and the second most-produced tank of all time, after its successor, the T-54/55 series. First produced at the KhPZ factory in Kharkov ( Kharkiv, Ukraine), it was the mainstay of Soviet armoured forces throughout World War II, and widely exported afterwards. It was the world's best tank when the Soviet Union entered the Second World War, and although its armour and armament were surpassed by later WWII tanks, it is credited as the war's most effective, efficient and influential design. The T-34 is a Soviet medium tank produced from 1940 to 1958. Related subjects: Military History and War
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