Steel Soviet Union

"So, Comrade General, why did you come here specifically on this trip?"

When the two of them were seated, Morozov went straight to the point and asked questions. However, Malashenko, who had guessed that this would happen in advance, was not too surprised.

"Of course I'm here to talk to you about tanks. I'm a major general in the tank corps. It's my job to drive tanks and command tanks to fight and defend the motherland. It's war now, and I came all the way from the front line to ask for leave to come here. I’m not here to chat with you, Comrade Morozov.”

Malashenko quite simply stated the true purpose of his trip, but Morozov didn't seem too surprised.

"Let me guess, well, it should be bad reviews and feedback. I have received a lot of similar messages before. The frontline troops have very bad reviews of our bureau's tanks. Some people even said that they were designed by traitors. The tattered scrap metal is a conspiracy to have the Red Army tank soldiers slaughtered by the Nazi fascists.”

"The words are ugly, but I know it means how bad the tanks designed by our bureau are. Facing the new tanks of the Germans, they may not even be able to fight back. No wonder the frontline soldiers said such ugly things."

When Morozov said this, the expression on his face was obviously lonely, disappointed, and even self-blame. And it was so full of self-blame that it was almost impossible to pretend.

Malashenko saw all this and took it to heart. Not to mention the grumpy and rough-tempered frontline tank soldiers, most of whom were rough-and-tumble soldiers, commented on the tanks this way. Malashenko could understand.

After all, after seeing the overwhelming power of the Germans' Black Panther II and King Tiger, a medium tank unit without heavy tanks to rely on would inevitably face a one-sided and near-massacre situation against these new monsters.

Especially the fishing rod equipped on the King Tiger is 88cm long. Without considering the hit problem, as long as it can hit the medium-sized tank of the Red Army, it will definitely be able to kill it instantly with one shot. The penetration depth of this thing has long exceeded the ultimate defense of the Red Army's current medium tanks. Even the thickest part of the vehicle's defense, including the tilt equivalent, cannot stop the bombardment of this thing.

It would be fine if only the King Tiger could instantly kill all medium-sized tanks of the Red Army. After all, the King Tiger is the latest elite of the German heavy tank force, and its numbers are not large at all, so it is difficult to achieve success.

But the problem is that the German medium tanks, the latest Panther II and the old Panther I, can also achieve similar effects.

As long as it is within two kilometers of a normal regular firefight, the roaring 75mm full-caliber armor-piercing hooded projectile will almost certainly be able to knock out the Red Army medium tanks on the spot. Neither the top of the head nor the front of the turret can stop its ferocious bombardment. Only the latest T43 medium tank, with a large enough defensive inclination, may be lucky enough to survive a single shot.

However, in actual combat, there are not many opportunities to set up the best defensive angle for you. If the angle is too large, it may even lead to the embarrassment of ignoring the head, leaking too much of the side of the car body, and then being penetrated.

It is impossible to defend against them, and these new tanks are useless against the Germans on the opposite side.

The situation when confronting the Panther was barely better, at least it was able to penetrate the frontal armor of the Panther's turret at a medium firefighting distance, but the situation when confronting the King Tiger was almost desperate and suffocating. There was a flurry of clanging noises, but it could only create a few sparks, but don't even think about penetrating it. Unless there was a chance to shoot the side, the Red Army's medium tank would not be able to do anything to this monster.

Well, it is normal for medium tanks to be unable to defeat heavy tanks head-on.

But the problem is that there are too many problems and troubles in the Red Army's medium tank units at this stage. There are so many that it is normal to be unable to defeat the King Tiger, which will aggravate the complaints and complaints of the frontline tank soldiers. After all, this kind of equipment gap requires their lives to fill it. Under such circumstances, any angry old man will become irritable, which is normal.

Malashenko, who has just returned from the front line, is very aware of the current situation. As for how to deal with this situation, he needs to know some prerequisites before he can make a decision. Malashenko is not an omnipotent person who just opens his mouth. It is still necessary to ask about some details that should be known in advance to facilitate subsequent communication and dialogue.

"Comrade Morozov, I understand all the situations you mentioned. To be honest, our medium tanks are indeed facing a lot of difficulties at the moment, and I am here to help you solve the difficulties."

"Before we start, I want to clarify a question first. What is the follow-up design of our medium tank? I mean what kind of design plan are you working on now? I want to know all the details, both Model improvements and new design solutions are required. Only by knowing these can I really help you.”

Morozov had long known about the close relationship between Malashenko and Kotin.

If we think about it based on common sense, it is not impossible that Malashenko is a "spy" sent by Kotin to find out the news.

But at this moment, Morozov asked himself in his heart, what if the real situation is like this?

In the past two years, Kogin's lead has become more and more obvious. This situation has existed and intensified since Kogin began to preside over the new Stalin series of heavy tanks.

When Kotin was tinkering with the bulky and difficult-to-use KV1, Morozov asked himself whether he could still maintain a technical and psychological advantage. Most of the time, frontline troops' evaluation of KV1 and T34 is overwhelmingly in favor of T34. KV1's shortcomings of difficulty in maneuvering, slow maneuvering, and clumsiness in turning like an old cow have been criticized in various ways.

But now, the situation is completely different.

The Stalin series of heavy tanks designed by Kogin have long become a symbol of victory for the Red Army tank troops in beating the Germans. In particular, the 1st Stalin Guards Tank Division under Malashenko relied on the powerful combat power of more than 200 heavy tanks to fight left and right in Cherkasy, like a herd of tigers and sheep.

The Germans, who were in chaos behind the front line, were unable to control the situation, and ended up with a disastrous defeat at the speed of light.

Kogin himself was also highly appreciated by Comrade Stalin for his excellent works. He was praised and awarded honorary awards at many meetings. On the contrary, he was always sitting on the bench like an orphan without a mother. It seemed that Comrade Stalin had a straight face and no smile when he mentioned the Second Design Bureau.

With this attitude, is it necessary for Kogin to join forces with Malashenko to trick him again?

The answer is obviously no.

Morozov, who only regarded a dead horse as a living horse doctor, was more straightforward and spoke directly to Malashenko without much thought.