KV-9 (Klimenti Voroshilov) / (Object 229)

History

The KV-1 heavy tank of the WWII era (1939-1945) proved to be as important as any other Soviet tank product. With wartime desperation set in, engineers worked hard on the design to barely make many improvements.

Heavy armor was a hallmark of the series in the early days, but reliability and cost resulted in a total production of 5,219 units by the end - the T-34 medium tank proved to be a very viable replacement.

A branch of the KV-1 project became "KV-9". The project was driven by the German invasion of the Soviet Union (Operation Barbarossa) in June 1941, which cost the Red Army dearly in armament and manpower, and sent Germany through the Soviet countryside on its way to Moscow.

That fall, Soviet Army authorities explored the prospect of a heavy, attack-oriented tracked vehicle to destroy enemy bunkers and other battlefield fortifications from a distance.

Kirov Plant (Plant No. 100) in Chelyabinsk took the frame of the KV-1 and matched it with a modified turret shape to accommodate a modified version of the 122mm towed howitzer D-30 - This became the 122mm "U-11" spool form.

The turret had 135mm thick frontal protection, making it extremely disadvantageous against most German field or tank guns (the famous "88" anti-aircraft gun was the most important).

The prototype, known internally as "Object 229," was unveiled in April 1942, and mating evaluations were soon followed as the war progressed. Plans were made for a pre-production batch of 10 tanks, designated "KV-9", but the effort ultimately failed - only one prototype was completed because the Army was concerned about the accuracy of the main gun's range (mainly due to its inherently low muzzle velocity) and quickly lost interest in the face of other growing demands.

The turret and gun of the KV-9 were later rebuilt in the KV-13 medium tank project (known as "Object 233"), where this component was mated with the established KV-13 chassis and airframe to produce " IS Model 2". Once again, a prototype was successfully evaluated in 1943, but this proposed form ultimately lost out to a competing "IS Model 1" product.

When completed, the KV-9 will carry a crew of 4 and use the 122mm U-11 howitzer as the primary weapon, armed with up to 3 x 7.62mm DT machine guns for self-defense and anti-infantry purposes. It weighs 47 tons, and the car's barrel is 6.76 meters long, 3.3 meters wide and 2.8 meters high.

Power comes from a single 600-horsepower W-2K 12-cylinder diesel engine driving a standard track wheel arrangement with six twin-tire wheels on one side of the hull. The drive sprocket is at the rear and the chain idler is at the front.

Three large track return rollers were used on the sides of the fuselage.

Performance includes a top speed of 30 km/h on-road, 19 km/h off-road and a range of up to 230 km on road. The wading depth reaches 1.5 meters.

Overall, the vehicle retains the form and function of the original KV-1, including its rear turret overhang, rear engine bay and handcrafted exterior.

Specification

Basic

Roles

Dimensions

Performance

Performance

for everyone else in our database)

Armor

Not available.

Changes