Dear friends, welcome to the channel Eastern Front!
And today we will talk about how Soviet and German tankers warmed up during the war.
And also I will tell you about the method of Soviet tankers to warm up the tank very
fast.
The harsh Russian winters were hard trials for Germans and Soviet soldiers.
The equipment of this time was created not for comfort but for war and was designed according
to the principle of maximum simplification and cheapening of production.
The inside of the combat compartment of the T-34 tank was not provided with an air heating
system and at minus 20 degrees the steel tank would turn into a freezer.
During long marches, the combat compartment somehow warmed up from the engine and the
transmission but still it was not enough.
In the winter tankers wore quilted jackets, earflaps and felt boots, but even this clothing
did not always save them from the cold.
The driver-mechanic was freezing most of all.
For a better view he would open the hatch through which an icy wind blew directly into
his face.
During the halts, tank commanders were allowed to make bonfires to heat the personnel and
when the fire stopped burning, smoldering coals were put into a metal bucket which was
then placed inside the tank and somehow warmed the combat compartment of the tank.
If there was a stop for a day or more, the crew would dug a small trench, placed a metal
tank stove in it, which each tank was equipped with in winter, mounted a pipe to remove smoke
and carbon monoxide, and stoked it.
After that, the tank would be put over the trench and covered with a tarpaulin, which
each tank was also equipped with.
The edges of the tarpaulin were attached to the ground by pegs and snow was put on the
edges.
This turned into a kind of a dugout which became warm in a few hours.
This dugout kept warm not only the crew but also the tank itself, which, if necessary,
could be started up and continue moving without any problems.
If there was no time to dig a trench, then a small hole 50 by 50 centimeters was dug,
into which only the stove was placed.
The tank was covered with a tarpaulin, and the crew was inside the tank.
To keep the fire in the stove the crew members took turns on duty.
I think that this design is very similar to the Russian bath.
That is why Russian tankers used such a way to warm themselves.
Even in our time, on vacation by the rivers, Russians make home-made baths from polyethylene.
The stones are heated with a fire, and then water is poured over them.
As for the German tankers, things were no better for them, since it was originally planned
to capture the USSR before the onset of the first frosts, which did not happen.
With great horror, the Wehrmacht soldiers recalled the 20-degree frost.
At a halt, German tankers had the opportunity to warm themselves from the heat of the fire.
During the marching, the German tankers had the only option to warm themselves from the
heat that was released from the running tank engine.
But there was a problem.
The engine compartment of the tank was separated from the fighting compartment by a protective
shield.
The Germans drilled a hole then inserted a hose that connected to the radiator duct.
Thus, a small portion of heat, along with carbon monoxide, entered the fighting compartment.
But there was a danger of poisoning.
If the tankers were located in the village, they could spend the night in the house.
But quite often the tankers had to spend the night in the fields or forests.
In those cases, they could use an ordinary kerosene lamp, which was produced to warm
up the tank engine after a long halt.
Germans spent the night in the tank, setting up duty posts around the equipment.
They were located in the fighting compartment, tightly clinging to each other, and lit the
lamp.
After everyone fell asleep, the lamp often went out, and started to smoke.
There was a danger of carbon monoxide poisoning, which at that time scared few people.
The probability of freezing was much higher.
As a result, Wehrmacht tankers woke up completely frozen.
Many of them later recall that if during sleep they unknowingly touch their head to the icy
iron of the tank, the hair instantly freezes, after which they are literally torn off from
the armor.
The first German tank heaters appeared only in the autumn of 1944.
the sixties on the T-64 tank.
As for the Soviet tanks, the first heater of the combat compartment appeared only in
Dear friends, that's all for today.
On my channel I have a video about a soviet tanker who got stuck in a swamp and fought
with Germans during 2 weeks in winter 1943.
You will see the memories of a tanker who stayed in a frozen tank in those days.It was
Tim and the Eastern Front channel.
And as usual I wish to all of us peace and health.