T-43
In service 1943 - 1943
Prototype only. The intended replacement for the T-34, dropped in favour of simply putting an 85 mm gun in the existing tank.
Built byFactory No. 183
Photograph pending. No clearly licensed photograph of this vehicle was found.
Development history
The T-43 used torsion-bar suspension, a three-man turret and much thicker armour on a T-34-sized hull. Trials in 1943 showed it was slower and no better armed, and rebuilding the factories for it would have cut output at the worst possible moment. Its wide three-man turret design, however, was adapted to the existing hull and became the T-34-85.
Notable actions
- Battle of Kursk