48-511: The SU-76 ( Samokhodnaya Ustanovka 76 ) was a Soviet light self-propelled gun used during and after World War II . The SU-76 was based on a lengthened version of the T-70 light tank chassis and armed with the ZIS-3 mod. 1942 76-mm divisional field gun. Developed under the leadership of chief designer S.A. Ginzburg (1900–1943). Its quite simple construction and multipurpose combat role made it
96-583: A hasty decision, and ordered the talented tank designer to be recalled from the front, but it was too late - Ginzburg was killed in action. A more reliable vehicle, the SU-15, appeared as a result of a competition announced by the management of the People's Commissariat of the Tank Industry for a light assault SPG armed with a 76-mm divisional gun. GAZ and Plant No. 38 took part in the competition. Tests of
144-604: A large number of ammunition types. They included armour-piercing (usual, with ballistic nose and subcaliber hyper-velocity), hollow charge, high explosive, fragmentation, shrapnel and incendiary projectiles. This made the SU-76M an excellent multi-purpose light armoured fighting vehicle. As a light assault gun, the SU-76M was well-regarded by Soviet infantrymen (in contrast with their own crews). It had more powerful gun than any previous light tank for close support of infantry in defense and offensive, and communication between infantry and
192-574: A large quantity coming from defeated German troops after the Battle of Stalingrad that year. This partially-modified vehicle was armed with an S-1 76.2 mm tank gun (a cheaper variant of the renowned F-34/ZIS-5 guns which were already mounted on T-34 and KV-1 tanks respectively) in a casemate superstructure but retained the original German Maybach gasoline engine and its torsion-bar suspension system. Around 200 of these ex-German vehicles were sent for conversion into SU-76is at Factory No. 37 to supplement
240-528: A subcategory of SU, May refer to any of these SPAAWs : GAZ GAZ or Gorkovsky avtomobilny zavod ( Russian : ГАЗ or Го́рьковский автомоби́льный заво́д , lit. ' Gorky Automobile Plant ') is a Russian automotive manufacturer located in Nizhny Novgorod , formerly known as Gorky (Горький) (1932–1990). It is the core subsidiary of GAZ Group Holding, which is itself part of Basic Element industrial group. JSC Russian Machines
288-544: A three cars on a demonstration drive from Moscow to the Crimea, two automatic models and a manual. It was launched in 1956 and became a symbol of the whole Soviet epoch. The car offered front seats able to fold flat and came standard with cigarette lighter and a radio at a time when most American-built cars did not have a radio. A small number of Volgas with the 195 hp (145 kW ; 198 PS ) Chaika engine, automatic transmission , and power steering were built for
336-535: Is expected that production will start in 2013. In February 2011, General Motors and GAZ Group signed an agreement on contract assembly of the new Chevrolet Aveo car at GAZ plant in Nizhny Novgorod. As of December 2012, production was underway with an expected annual production of 30,000 vehicles. In June 2011, Volkswagen Group Rus and GAZ Group signed a long-term agreement on contract manufacturing at GAZ plant with total investment of €200 million. It
384-572: Is planned to produce Škoda Yeti , the new Volkswagen Jetta and Škoda Octavia . The total production volume in the peak years will be about 110,000 vehicles. In November 2011, under the contract manufacturing agreement, GAZ started SKD assembly of Škoda Yeti; full-cycle production started in December 2012. In April 2019, GAZ asked for a $ 468 million bailout from the Russian government, saying that US sanctions on Oleg Deripaska and his assets put
432-686: Is the controlling shareholder in OAO GAZ. In May 1929 the Soviet Union signed an agreement with the American Ford Motor Company . Under its terms, the Soviets agreed to purchase $ 13 million worth of automobiles and parts, while Ford agreed to give technical assistance until 1938 to construct an integrated automobile-manufacturing plant at Nizhny Novgorod . The factory was founded and production started on 1 January 1932. At
480-519: The Ford Model AA and Ford Model A , respectively. In 1933, the factory's name changed to Gorkovsky avtomobilny zavod , or GAZ, when the city was renamed after Maxim Gorky . The GAZ-A was succeeded by the more modern GAZ-M1 (based largely on the four-cylinder version of the Ford Model B ), produced from 1936 to 1942. The M letter stands for Molotovets ('of Molotov's fame'), it was
528-567: The KGB as the M23 , 603 were built in 1962–1970. As the car's leading engineer Boris Dekhtyar recalled, the new version of the Volga had improved brake pads and reached a higher top speed of over 170 km/h; it was well received. The new engine produced 195 h.p. at 4,400 rpm. In the 1960s GAZ plant renewed its truck range by launching such models as GAZ-52, GAZ-53 А and GAZ-66 . In the 1960s and 1970s,
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#1732788085600576-800: The Korean People's Army took part in the Korean War , a small number of them were captured and used by South Korea after the landing at Incheon . The SU-76M was in service with the Polish People's Army until the mid-1950s. During the same period, SU-76Ms were used in the Czechoslovak and Romanian armies. The SU-76M served in the National People's Army of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) until
624-563: The Reserve of the Supreme High Command (60 SU-76M SPGs, 5 T-70 light tanks and 3 US M3A1 Scout Car armored personnel carriers in each) were formed, starting from the first half of 1944. The SU-76M was a multipurpose SPG and combined three main battlefield roles: light assault gun for infantry support, mobile anti-tank weapon and mobile gun for indirect fire. With all these tasks, light SPGs successfully coped. The SU-76M had
672-533: The "M" omitted, due to their ubiquity in comparison with the original SU-76s. The layout of the SU-76M and its chassis remained unchanged compared to the SU-76. But the SU-76M had an armored casemate open at the top and partly behind. Two chief designers at the GAZ, N.A. Astrov and A.A. Lipgart, changed the power plant arrangement to that of the T-70 light tank - two GAZ-202 engines were connected in series and installed on
720-607: The 76.2 mm shells was not sufficient in some cases. The SU-76M was the single Soviet vehicle able to operate in swamps with minimal support from engineers. During the Belarus liberation campaign in 1944 it was extremely useful for organizing surprise attacks through swamps; bypassing heavy German defenses on firmer ground. Usually only lightly armed infantry could pass through large swampy areas. With SU-76M support, Soviet soldiers and engineers could effectively destroy enemy strongpoints and continue to advance. One famous crewman
768-664: The M-30 was considered an insufficient weapon for infantry support. The also unrelated SU-76P (1941) was based on the T-26 chassis. It was built in Leningrad during the Siege of Leningrad and involved removing the turret from the T-26 and mounting a 76 mm regimental gun M1927 on the engine deck. This was created due to the lack of high-explosive 45 mm ammunition inside Leningrad due to
816-575: The SU-76M chassis, equipped with the TAB-71 turret. The vehicle entered service as the MLVM ( Romanian : Mașina de Luptă a Vânătorilor de Munte , meaning "infantry fighting vehicle of vânători de munte "). The unrelated SU-76i (the "i" standing for " inostrannaya ", or 'foreign', in Russian), first designed and fielded in 1943, was based on captured stocks of German Panzer III and StuG III chassis,
864-509: The SU-76M crew was simple due to the partially open fighting compartment. This was extremely useful in urban combats like the Battle of Berlin where good teamwork between infantry and AFVs was a key to success. The SU-76M was effective against any medium or light German tank. It could also knock out the Panther tank with a flank shot, but the ZIS-3 gun was not effective against Tiger tanks . Soviet manuals for SU-76M crews usually instructed
912-584: The SU-76M. Vehicles of later series received a higher rear armor plate of the fighting compartment with two firing ports and a larger door, a tube welded to the right and left sides at the back of a casemate appeared to mount a machine gun for anti-aircraft defense. Firing ports of a new shape began to be used, more adapted for firing from a machine gun, etc. Mass production of the SU-76M ceased in October 1945. In contemporary accounts SU-76Ms are often referred to in texts, public radio and TV broadcasting as SU-76s with
960-470: The SU-76s were out of order due to breakdowns in gearboxes and main shafts. An attempt to correct the situation by strengthening the shafts did not lead to anything. Moreover, such vehicles failed even more often. It became obvious that the transmission of the SU-76 had a fundamental design flaw, which was the parallel installation of two twin engines that worked on a common shaft. Such transmission scheme led to
1008-519: The ZIS-3 gun was sufficient against most German armoured fighting vehicles . The maximum elevation angle of the SU-76M's gun was the highest of all Soviet self-propelled guns. The maximum indirect fire distance was nearly 13 km. SU-76Ms were sometimes used as light artillery vehicles (like the German Wespe ) for counter-battery fights, bombardments, indirect fire support. However, the power of
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#17327880856001056-404: The ZIS-3 gun, and basic tank's hull was lengthened, adding one road wheel per side, to facilitate better gun mounting. The gun was installed in the embrasure of the front armored plate of the fixed fully closed armored casemate above the rear of the hull. The power plant consisted of two engines connected in parallel with the transmission. The units of the latter were also paralleled and connected at
1104-607: The boarding and disembarkation of the crew as well as the gun maintenance. In July 1943, the SU-15 under the army designation SU-76M was adopted by the Red Army. After production of the light SPGs resumed, GAZ and Plant No. 40 in Mytishchi near Moscow joined it in autumn 1943 (the same time the production of T-70 light tanks was fully finished), and as a result 13,732 SU-76Ms were built. More than 9,000 of these SPGs were built solely by Gorky Automobile Plant (GAZ), which became
1152-933: The early 1960s, and in the Border Troops of the German Democratic Republic they served even longer - until the early 1970s. Due to the large number of vehicles produced, many SU-76Ms have survived the post-war years, and most of the larger Russian military museums have examples of the SU-76M in their exhibitions. They can also be found at the German-Soviet War monuments or memorials in different Russian, Belarusian, and Ukrainian cities. Samokhodnaya Ustanovka Samohodnaya Ustanovka (SU; Russian : самоходная установка, СУ , lit. "Self-propelled installation") may refer to any of these Soviet casemate self-propelled guns : Zenitnaya Samokhodnaya Ustanovka (Russian: з енитная с амоходная у становка - ЗСУ, lit. Zenithal (anti-aircraft) self-propelled installation),
1200-430: The end of 1944 and the beginning of 1945, 70 self-propelled artillery divizions (16 SU-76M in each) were formed to be included into rifle divisions. Some rifle divisions, formed according to special reinforced states, for instance, the 9th plastun rifle volunteer division, received a self-propelled artillery regiment even (initially equipped with 8 SU-76M and 12 SU-122 ). Also 4 light self-propelled artillery brigades of
1248-526: The end of January, the first two self-propelled artillery regiments of a mixed organization (1433rd and 1434th) were sent to the Volkhov Front to participate in breaking the siege of Leningrad . In March 1943, two more regiments were formed - the 1485th and 1487th, which participated in battles on the Western Front (Soviet Union) . However, already after 10 days of military operation, most of
1296-457: The existing SU-76. They were issued to tank and self-propelled gun units starting in the fall of 1943. They were eventually withdrawn from the front in early 1944 and then used for training and testing until the end of 1945. Only 2 have survived the war, most having been scrapped after 1945. A similar vehicle called SG-122 existed, which was a similar Panzer III conversion, but armed with 122 mm M-30 howitzer . Only around 20 were converted, as
1344-720: The gun with the pointing correction was 10 rounds per minute, with the rapid fire - up to 20 rounds per minute. The SU-76 was the basis for the first serial Soviet tracked armored anti-aircraft vehicle, the ZSU-37 . Mass production of the ZSU-37 was continued after SU-76M production ceased. The majority of SU-76Ms had been withdrawn from the Soviet army service in the beginning of 1950s, although some were retained as training vehicles for tank crews as late as 1960s. In 1978, Institute 111 from Romania designed an armoured personnel carrier based on
1392-469: The gunner to aim for the tracks or gun barrels when facing Tigers. To improve the SU-76M's anti-armour capabilities, armour-piercing composite rigid (APCR) and hollow charge projectiles were introduced. This gave the SU-76M a better chance against heavily armoured German vehicles. A low profile, a low noise signature and good mobility were other advantages of the SU-76M. This was ideal for organizing ambushes and sudden flank or rear strikes in close combat, where
1440-597: The investigation that followed the mass failure of SPGs in the winter of 1943, a commission chaired by I.M. Zaltsman defined that the main culprit was the head of the Department of the Chief Designer of the People's Commissariat of the Tank Industry S.A. Ginzburg , who was removed from his position and sent to the front as the head of the repair service of the 32nd tank brigade belonged to the 29th tank corps. Stalin, having learned about this, did not approve of such
1488-526: The late 1990s GAZ was deemed to be the best managed Russian automotive manufacturer. In November 2000 GAZ was acquired in a hostile takeover by SibAl . In March 2003 GAZ declared that the production of passenger cars was no longer a priority for the company, and plans to release a new GAZ-3115 model had been abandoned. In 2006, GAZ made a move on the LDV company based in Birmingham , England, and acquired
SU-76 - Misplaced Pages Continue
1536-425: The level of the main gears. The mechanic-driver sat in the bow of the vehicle, and the gun crew of three men including the commander (usually junior lieutenant ) was located in the casemate. The SU-76 (factory designation SU-12) was put into service by a GKO decree of December 2, 1942. The first batch of SU-76s (25 units) was manufactured by January 1, 1943, and sent to the self-propelled artillery training center. At
1584-508: The main plant for the production of the SU-76M from January 1, 1944. The SU-76M became the second most produced Soviet armored fighting vehicle of World War II, after the T-34 medium tank. Under the leadership of the chief designer N.A. Astrov, since the autumn of 1943, work had been going on at GAZ to improve the SPG and adapt its design to mass production conditions. Changes were made to the design of
1632-530: The move. SU-76M was a reliable vehicle (the GAZ-203 engine unit confidently worked out not less than 350 hours without serious breakdowns). But the main advantage of light SPGs was their wide versatility. According to table of organization and equipment of 1943, each light self-propelled artillery regiment was equipped with 21 SU-76M, there were 119 such regiments in the Red Army by the end of World War II . In
1680-564: The new self-propelled guns took place at the Gorokhovets artillery training ground in July 1943, at the height of the Battle of Kursk . The SU-15 enjoyed the greatest success with the military, and it was recommended for mass production after some improvements. It was necessary to lighten the vehicle, which was done by removing the armored roof over the casemate, at the same time this solved all problems with its ventilation, and also facilitated
1728-479: The occurrence of resonant torsional vibrations on the shafts. Moreover, the maximum value of the resonant frequency accounted for the most intense mode of operation of the engines (driving in 2nd gear off-road), which led to their rapid failure. Elimination of this defect required time, therefore, on March 21, 1943, the production of the SU-76 was suspended. A total of 560 units were built at Plant No. 38 in Kirov . During
1776-538: The origin of the car's nickname, M'ka (эмка). During the war, GAZ assembled Chevrolet G7107 and G7117 (G7107 with winch) from parts shipped from the US under Lend Lease . At that time, GAZ engineers worked to develop an all-new car model to enter production once hostilities ended. Called the GAZ-M20 Pobeda (Victory), this affordably-priced sedan with streamlined, fastback styling, entered production in 1946 and
1824-568: The plant was overhauled and updated; 1962 saw it fitted with the Soviet Union's first automated precision shop. In 1994 the plant started production of GAZelle light commercial vehicles. The plant became AvtoGAZ , with the integration of its various subcontractors , on 24 August 1971; the same year, it was awarded the Order of Lenin . GAZ produced its ten millionth vehicle in March 1981. In
1872-613: The production at the LDV plant was halted and the plant was sold to a Chinese company called ECO Concept in 2009. As then DaimlerChrysler modernized its Sterling Heights Assembly plant in 2006, the old Chrysler Sebring / Dodge Stratus assembly line and tooling was sold to GAZ and was shipped to Nizhny Novgorod in Russia . Since then GAZ car facility is used for contract manufacturing for Volkswagen and General Motors . In 2009, Bo Andersson , former Vice-President of General Motors ,
1920-587: The retreating enemy. SU-76M SPGs took part in combat operations on the Eastern Front until the end of World War II, and then in the Soviet–Japanese War . During World War II, 130 SU-76Ms were given to the Polish People's Army . In the post-war period, the SU-76M was in service with the Soviet Army until the early 1950s, and in the armies of a number of countries even longer. The SU-76M SPGs of
1968-617: The right hand side of the vehicle. The transmission consisted of a two-disk main clutch of dry friction, a four-speed gearbox of the ZIS-5 type, a main drive, side clutches and side drives. The SU-76M had a clearance 0.3 m (1 ft 0 in). The SPG could climb a slope of 28, overcame a 1.6 m (5 ft 3 in) wide trench, a 0.6 m (2 ft 0 in) high wall and a 0.9 m (2 ft 11 in) deep ford. The ZIS-3 gun pointing angles ranged from -5 to +15 vertically and 15 left and right horizontally. The rate of fire of
SU-76 - Misplaced Pages Continue
2016-546: The second most produced Soviet armored fighting vehicle of World War II, after the T-34 medium tank. Design of the SU-76 began in June 1942, when the State Defense Committee (GKO) ordered the construction of infantry support self-propelled guns armed with the ZIS-3 76-mm divisional field gun and the M-30 122-mm howitzer. The T-70 light tank chassis was chosen by chief designer S.A. Ginzburg for mounting
2064-558: The siege, so some T-26 tanks were rearmed with 37mm or 76mm guns for which a reliable source of ammunition was available. They served until 1944, when the siege was broken. They were originally called "SU-76s", until the SU-76 came into service, upon which it was renamed "SU-76P" ("polkovaya" - regimental). The SU-76M virtually replaced light tanks in the close support role. While its thin armour and open top made it vulnerable to anti-tank weapons and grenades, its light weight and low ground pressure gave it good maneuverability and low noise on
2112-555: The time the factory was known as Nizhny Novgorod Automobile Plant , short NAZ ( Nizhegorodskiy avtomobilny zavod ), full name Nizhny Novgorod Automobile Plant named after V. M. Molotov ( Nizhegorodskiy avtomobilny zavod imeni V. M. Molotova ), after the Soviet minister Vyacheslav Molotov . In 1932 the plant produced its first automobiles, GAZ-AA (originally known as NAZ-AA, as they were manufactured before Nizhny Novgorod became Gorky) truck and GAZ-A passenger car (manufactured after Nizhny Novgorod became Gorky). The cars were based on
2160-615: The van maker from the venture capital group Sun European Partners, LLP in July of that year. GAZ said that they planned to market the MAXUS ( LDV 's new Panel-van that was released in January 2005) into the rest of Europe and Asia. GAZ proposed to increase production in the LDV plant in England, while also commencing production of the MAXUS in a new plant in Russia. However, due to the recession,
2208-657: Was Rem Nikolaevich Ulanov. In his younger days he was a mechanic-driver and later a commander of a SU-76. He and some other soldiers called their SU-76 Columbina after the female Renaissance Italian Commedia dell'Arte personage. The reliability and good driving performance of the SU-76M proved to be especially in demand at the final stages of World War II, during the liberation of Poland and battles in Germany. Relatively maneuverable and fast, SU-76Ms sometimes additionally armed with trophy machine guns and carried infantrymen on its armour were often included into vanguards to pursue
2256-625: Was invited to become a President/CEO of GAZ Group. In 2010, GAZ upgraded its model range by launching new GAZelle-BUSINESS lineup with diesel and petrol engines and LPG equipment. In November 2010 the company decided to end production of the Volga Siber , its last GAZ passenger car model, and to discontinue the GAZ Volga range. In December 2010, GAZ Group signed a memorandum of understanding with Daimler on contract manufacturing of Mercedes-Benz Sprinter at GAZ plant in Nizhny Novgorod. It
2304-527: Was produced by GAZ until 1958. (Licensed production under the name Warszawa continued in Polish FSO until the 1970s). It was the first Soviet car with electric windshield wipers (rather than mechanical- or vacuum-operated ones). GAZ also made GAZ-12 ZIM , GAZ-21 and GAZ-24 Volga and the luxury cars GAZ-13 and GAZ-14 Chaika . The ZIM was the first GAZ car to feature the leaping deer hood ornament . The GAZ-21 made its public debut in 1955, with
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