In the Soviet Union, tens of hundreds of samples of various armored vehicles were developed and created. Not only tanks, but armored vehicles and self-propelled guns. As is very often the case, a large mass of all these developments have remained prototypes. Today we will focus on several of the most bizarre weapons.
1. Object 279
As part of the Object 279 project, the Soviet Union tried to create a tank in case of warfare in a nuclear war. This machine was developed in 1959 at the Leningrad design bureau under the guidance of designer Joseph Kotin. The body of the machine is shaped like a flying saucer. It was assumed that this shape would avoid overturning at the time of a nuclear explosion. So also got four tracks at once. This was supposed to increase its cross-country ability. As a result, the car came out too expensive, technically complex and clumsy.
2. MAC-1
Tanks can fly too. In any case, this was the hope of the designers who worked before the start of the war in 1937. The strange tank MAC-1 was created on the basis of the light vehicle BT-7 and had a frankly futuristic shape. The tank had an aircraft tail and retractable wings for flight. It was assumed that such a machine could be used for reconnaissance. In practice, due to its high mass and poor aerodynamics, the tank had no chance of getting off the ground.
3. "Swamp" tank
Another "miracle of technology" hails from 1937, created by engineers of the Moscow Aviation Plant N84. An air cushion armored vehicle was created for warfare in swampy terrain. The project was headed by the designer Vladimir Levkov. The armored vehicles were based on the first Soviet hovercraft L-1, which was created in 1934. The project was closed at the prototype stage.
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4. SU-100-Y
Engineers of the Izhora and Kirovsky plants in 1940 conducted an experiment, which ended generally successfully. A ship's gun was installed on the T-100 heavy tank base. It was assumed that such an ACS could be used to destroy enemy fortifications. The Finnish War imposed an imprint on the project. Several such vehicles with B-13-IIs cannons even managed to create and deliver to Karelia. However, when the guns were in place, the war with Finland ended. The "bunker crushers" never fired a single shot.
5. 1K17 "Compression"
Some weapons from the Soviet era look fantastic at all. So in the 1980s, NPO Astrophysics was actively working on the 1K17 Compression laser complex. The gun was installed on the Msta-S platform. The novelty was supposed to disable the optics and electronics of enemy vehicles with its rays using 12 optical channels. To create the weapon, a 30-kilogram artificial ruby crystal had to be grown. The first sample was ready for testing in 1990. The machine showed its best side, however, no money was found in the 1990s to put it into service.
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Want to know even more interesting things?
Then read about a flamethrower, which was feared by both spooks and Chechens during the last wars in the region.
A source: https://novate.ru/blogs/310819/51584/