KV series
of tanks were named after Klementi Voroshilov,
the minister of defence in the Soviet Union
during the Second World War. The KV-1 was first
used in the Russo-Finnish War in 1939.
Armed with a 76.2mm gun of 30 calibers in length, weighed 46 tons,
had a crew of five men, and was propelled by a 550hp diesel engine.
Its frontal armour was 77mm and made the KV-1 resistant to most anti-tank
weapons.
An improved
model, KV-1A, that had a longer (40 calibers) 76mm gun, was introduced
in 1940. The following year the KV-1B was developed and was given
additional armour at the front and sides to give a thickness of 100mm.
The German
Army found it difficult to cope with the KV tank during Operation
Barbarossa. Even so, the Soviets continued to improve the vehicle
and in 1942 the KV-1C was introduced. It had a new 600hp engine and
its armour was now 130mm thick. The tracks were made wider to give
better performances in mud and snow.
In 1943
the Red Army got the KV-85. These used the
same chassis as the KV-1C but was fitted with a high-velocity 85mm
anti-aircraft gun. The tank remained
in service until the end of the war.
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