USSR 1941

It is said that Major Gavrilov also gave Katukov his opinion on this, because he felt distressed watching the brand-new T34s being commanded to drive into the muddy ground and break down.

"Comrade Colonel!" Major Gavrilov rushed into Katukov's office and said: "I have no objection to your training of troops like this, in fact I think this kind of training is very meaningful, but why don't we use other methods?" What about tank training? I mean... why don't we use T26, T28, they can also achieve the same training effect?"

"Comrade Major!" Katukov, who was tracking the training progress, raised his head and replied, "The problem is that I don't think other tanks can achieve the same training effect... The T34 uses the 12-cylinder V-type tank that we successfully developed the year before last. Water-cooled four-stroke diesel engine, its power is unmatched by other tanks. In this case, do you think we can achieve the same training effect with the much less powerful gasoline engine tank?"

Hearing this, Major Gavrilov couldn't help being stunned. He didn't expect Katukov's consideration to be so meticulous and in-depth.

"No, Comrade Gavrilov!" Katukov said: "Considering the weight, volume and other factors of the vehicle, I think the effect of training with other tanks is completely different, which will make the soldiers react to the situation on the battlefield. Miscalculation, like they thought the tank could pass through this muddy field, but the fact is that the T34 can't, they thought that the tank could break free after filling enough rocks, but the fact is that it is getting deeper and deeper... Gavri Comrade Love, I don't want these things to happen on the battlefield!"

Major Gavrilov nodded and said: "You are right, Comrade Colonel!"

In fact, there is another benefit: more failures of the tank can be found and tank soldiers can learn to eliminate them based on actual failures... This is not something that can be learned in the factory, because when the tank is just out of the factory or it is brand new , you can't imagine what kind of failure it will have during use.

What's more deadly is that tank soldiers cannot judge what level the tank failure belongs to.

Is it a simple fault that the tank crew can fix by themselves or a complex fault that must wait for the maintenance engineers to repair?

If you can't judge this point accurately, you will be in big trouble.

Throwing the T34 into the mud pile caused them to have some problems, and let the tank soldiers experience and try to eliminate them in person, while the tank maintenance soldiers were on the sidelines to guide them. This progress cannot be compared with the explanation in the factory.

Therefore, it is the mechanized infantry like Shulka who are suffering.

The choking exhaust, the roaring noise, the mud was lifted up from under the tracks in pieces, and sometimes there were road filling stones the size of a washbasin... The whole piece was lifted up by the tracks and brought to a height of more than half a meter, and then slammed smashed down,

It would be miserable if you happened to stand behind.

Shulka led the soldiers to carry rocks and sandbags, filling piles under the track.

It is very troublesome for a tank to get stuck in the mud, just like Shulka used traps to deal with German tanks... Once it gets stuck in the mud, it often forms a slanted downward angle, and the inclined tank body will Most of the weight is pressed on the softest sunken part, so no matter which direction the track turns, the tank will dig deeper and deeper into the ground like a groundhog digging a hole, accompanied by the excavated muddy water To confuse you stupid human beings.

At this time, you should not rush to start the tank to get out of trouble. The more you start it, the worse it may be.

The method is to dig a small hole in front of the track, use paving stones to tamp the soil under the track and in front of the track, and then drive the tank at a low speed to move forward slowly.

What made Shulka angry that day was that when he led the soldiers to work under the tank while eating muddy water, a tank lieutenant on the tank stood majestically on the turret and looked into the distance with a binoculars. Li murmured to himself:

"Move quickly, comrades, a large number of enemy tanks are approaching us!"

"Enemy fighter jets dive towards us, all get down!"

"The enemy tank is 300 meters away from us, organize defense!"

...

"Comrade Lieutenant!" Shulka couldn't help but said, "We've had enough troubles. Do me a favor. Can I be quiet for a while?"

The tank lieutenant was not angry either. He laughed and said, "I know, comrade. But the battlefield should be like this. I just want to make the training more vivid!"

"Have you ever been on the battlefield?" Shulka asked suspiciously.

In Shulka's view, only those who have never been on the battlefield can dream and imagine what the battlefield looks like.

The result really made Shulka guess right. The tank lieutenant was taken aback for a moment, and then replied: "No, I have never been on the battlefield!"

But then he asked again: "Comrade Second Lieutenant, I know you have fought several battles. Do you think the situation I just described is similar to the real battlefield?"

"Your picture is much more complicated than the real battlefield!" Shulka replied.

"Oh, is it?" The lieutenant was a little happy when he heard this, but the next Shulka's words made him feel embarrassed immediately.

"Of course, Comrade Lieutenant!" Shulka said: "The real battlefield is that a shell is fired from nowhere, and then there is a 'boom', and everything is gone!"

The soldiers laughed one by one, and then booed:

"Or just one bullet!"

"Yes, Comrade Lieutenant, standing on the turret like you will be a good target for enemy snipers!"

"Comrade Lieutenant, you probably know that bullets travel faster than sound, which means you can't hear the sound of the gun being fired, and the bullet has already passed through your head!"

...

The lieutenant smiled embarrassedly, as if he was sorry for his unprofessional "performance" before.

"Lieutenant!" Shulka quipped. "Have you thought about what to do when your tank is shot?"

"I will guard my tank until the last moment!" replied the lieutenant.

"No, you shouldn't do that!" Shulka replied, "You should get down and roll in the mud!"

"Thank you for your advice, Lieutenant!" said the tank lieutenant. "Maybe you are right!"

This lieutenant made Shulka feel a little strange. He seemed to have no sense of superiors to subordinates.

And...it's a bit unreasonable to be an officer of the Tank Corps of the 4th Tank Brigade without ever being on the battlefield.

So Shulka asked again: "Lieutenant, how did you...become a tank soldier?"

"Do you want to ask me how I became a lieutenant?" The lieutenant smiled: "I am a tank driver, and I also designed a device for the number of bullets fired by a tank machine gun, and a tank fuel consumption meter. Maybe they think I'm useful..."

TF, Shulka couldn't help but stare blankly at the tank lieutenant on the turret, this guy can't be that guy!