Lend Lease Tanks

Armament: QF 2 pounder (40mm) main gun and 1 x 7.92mm mg mounted in the turret.

Weight: 16 tons.

Armour: 65mm.

Speed: 15mph (24kph) on road, 8mp (12kph) cross country.

Range: 90 miles, 145km.

Crew: 3 commander, driver and gunner.

The British Vickers MkIII Valentine was introduced in May 1938 and production continued until 1944 in order to satisfy Russian requirements. The Russian's received 3487 Valentine's as part of the lend lease programme. The simple and robust design of the vehicle made it popular amongst its Russian crews. However its 40mm main gun performed poorly against German armour. The small turret could only accommodate two crewmembers, leaving the commander to double up as the loader, which in turn reduced the vehicles combat effectiveness. Some vehicles had their main gun replaced with a 76.2mm gun. The vehicles narrow tracks also caused problems in the poor Russian ground conditions, especially in deep snow, which caused them to clog. The vehicles saw service on the eastern front from late 1941 until the end of the war and were employed mostly on the southern fronts, both because of the proximity to the Persian supply route and in order to avoid using the tank in very cold climate. Various improvements were made from the MkIV onwards. The main armament was increased to 57mm, the vehicle was fitted with a more powerful diesel engine and the welded superstructure was replaced by a riveted one to speed production. The final version, the MkX, was fitted with a 75mm main gun.

Armament: QF 2 pounder (40mm) main gun and 1 x 7.92mm mg mounted in the turret.

Weight: 26.5 tons.

Armour: 78mm.

Speed: 8mph (12kph) on road, 4mph (6kph) cross country.

Range: 160 miles, 257km.

Crew: 3 commander, driver, loader/radio operator and gunner.

The British Matilda MkII was adapted from the original MkI vehicle and was introduced in April 1937. The Russian's received 832 of the vehicles as part of the lend lease programme. Although the vehicle was reasonably well armored, it again suffered from being poorly armed and due to the small size of its turret ring, it could not be up-gunned sufficiently. When attempts were made to fit a larger gun, the turret ring was found to be too small to accommodate anything larger. Efforts were made to improve the vehicles cross-country performance by welding sections of steel bar to the tracks to increase traction.
The Red Army received some 1084 Matildas as part of the lend lease agreement. Matildas saw action on the eastern front as early as the Battle of Moscow and became fairly common during 1942, especially on the southern fronts closest to the Persian supply route. Unsurprisingly, the tank was found to be too slow and unreliable. Russian crews often complained that snow and dirt were accumulating behind the skirt panels, clogging the suspension. The slow speed and heavy armour made them comparable to the Red Army's KV-1 heavy tanks, but the Matilda had nowhere near the firepower of the KV. Most Russian Matildas were expended during 1942, but a few served on as late as 1944. The vehicles were modified with the addition of sections of steel welded to the tracks to give better performance in the poor ground conditions experienced in Russia.

Armament: QF 2 pounder 40mm main gun and 2 x 7.92mm mg mounted in the turret and hull.

Weight: 39 tons.

Armour: 101mm.

Speed: 15mph (22kph) on road, 8mph (12kph) cross country.

Range: 90 miles, 145km.

Crew: 5 Commander, gunner, loader, driver, co-driver/hull gunner.

The Churchill was introduced in late 1941 and 301 of the Churchill MkIII and MkIV types were sent to Russia as part of the Lend-Lease program. The vehicle suffered from an obsolete design and was plagued with mechanical faults. Most apparent was the Churchill's underpowered and unreliable engine, a situation made far worse by its lack of accessibility. To increase room for the crew, the designers mounted some elements of the transmission under the hull, with the tracks bent around it. In addition, the tracks were vulnerable to damage from shells and shell's fragments because they sat too high and the tracks often jammed the tanks turret. The first models (Churchill I and II) were armed with a QF 2 pounder (40mm) gun, which was found to be innefective against most German tanks, however later models, such as those sent to Russia, were fitted with the QF 6 pounder (57mm) gun.

Armament: 37mm M5 gun and 2 x 0.3in mg mounted in the turret and hull.

Weight: 12 tons.

Armour: 51mm.

Speed: 36mph (58kph)on road, 20mp (30kph) cross country.

Range: 70 miles, 113km.

Crew: 4 Commander, gunner, driver, co-driver.

The M3 'General Stuart' light tank was one of the first American tanks delivered to Russia as part of the Lend Lease programme. Introduced in March 1941, it was a highly manoeuvrable vehicle and had a good top speed. It featured a redesigned hull with sloped glacis plate and drivers hatches moved to the top and was powered by twin Cadillac automobile engines. Russian crews disliked the vehicle, considering it under gunned, under armored, likely to catch fire and too sensitive to fuel quality. However, the Stuart was still superior to early-war Russian light tanks, such as the T-60, and the M3 continued in Red Army service until at least 1944. The Russian's received 1233 of the vehicles as part of the lend lease programme.

Armament: 1 x 75mm M2 and 1 x 37mm M5 guns and 3 x 0.3in mg mounted in the turret, cupola and bow.

Weight: 29.5 tons.

Armour: 37mm.

Speed: 26mph (42kph) on road, 16mph (24kph) cross country.

Range: 120 miles, 193km.

Crew: 6. commander, driver, 2 x gunners and 2 x loaders.

The M3 'General Lee' was not popular with its Russian crews. Despite this, Russia received 1200 of the vehicles as part of the lend lease programme. The tanks design was unusual in that the main weapon, a larger caliber, low velocity 75mm M2 gun, was in an offset sponson mounting in the hull. It suffered from a consequently limited traverse, often requiring the vehicle to turn to engage a target. A small turret with a lighter, higher-velocity 37mm M5 gun was mounted on top of the hull. The tall silhouette and low, hull-mounted 75mm gun were severe tactical drawbacks, as they prevented the tank from fighting in hull-down firing positions.
The use of riveted armor also led to a problem called spalling, whereby the impact of enemy shells would cause the rivets to break off and become projectiles inside the tank. Later models were welded to eliminate this problem. The harsh Russian environment also caused problems with the vehicles engine. However its most important drawback was its rubber-metal tracks, which frequently collapsed, immobilising the vehicle. Its Russian crews soon nicknamed it the 'Grave for seven brothers'. Few were seen in combat after mid-1943, although some M3's were used on the Arctic Front during the Red Army's offensive on the Litsa front towards Kirkenes in October 1944.

Armament: 75mm main gun and 2 x 7.62mm and 1 x 12.7mm mg.

Weight: 32.5 tons.

Armour: 75mm.

Speed: 26mph (42kph).

Range: 120 miles, 193km.

Crew: 5. Commander, driver, loader, radio operator and gunner.

The M4 Sherman was introduced to Russian units in 1942. The Russian crews did not like the Sherman due to its high silhouette and thin armour. The M4A1 with its petrol engine was also prone to burning when hit. In an effort to make the vehicle safer, the M4A2 was fitted with a diesel engine and a wet stowage system to protect the ammunition storage. Despite these failings the Sherman was reliable and easy to maintain in the field.
Its 75mm M3 gun was completely ineffective against the front of the German Panther & Tiger I and the front of more common later version German tanks such as the Panzer IV at typical combat ranges. Later vehicles in the series, the M4A1(76)W and M4A3E8, were fitted with a higher-velocity 76 mm M1 gun, giving them anti-tank firepower at least equal to most of the German vehicles they encountered, particularly the Panzer IV and StuG. The Sherman's armor, while good for an early war tank, was inadequate against the German 75mm KwK 40 L/48 used by the later Panzer IV's, the higher velocity 75mm KwK 42 L/70 used by the Panther tank and the infamous 88mm kwk 36 L/56 used on the Tiger tanks. It was this deficiency in its frontal armor that made the Sherman very vulnerable to most German anti-tank rounds by 1944. In Russia's poor ground conditions, such as mud or snow, the narrow tracks gave poor ground pressure compared to wide-tracked Russian models and modified tracks were fitted to give better grip. In total 3600 Sherman's were sent to Russia as part of the lend lease agreement.