T-28 Medium Tank |
| Written by Marcia Malory | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The T-28 medium tank was the first Soviet medium tank to see combat. It was designed to break though fortified defense zones. The T-28 medium tank was a three-turreted tank. The main turret - the largest of the three - housed a 0.3 inch (7.62mm) gun and a 0.3 inch (7.62 mm) DT machine gun. Each of the two smaller turrets each of had a 0.3 inch (7.62 mm) DT machine gun. In 1931, the first prototype of the T-28 was built. It weighed slightly less than 28 tons. Its armor had a maximum thickness of 1.18 inches (30mm). The T-28 medium tank was operated by a 6 man crew. All models of the T-28 medium tank had a radio. Some models had anti-aircraft gun mounts. Variants of the T-28 included a bridgelayer and a flamethrower. 
The T-28 was used during the Winter War against Finland, during the Soviet Invasion of Poland, and during Operation Barbarossa, the attempted German invasion of the USSR. When the T-28 medium tank was first designed in 1941, it was advanced for its time. However, by 1939, when the T-28 first saw combat, it was being outclassed by more modern tanks. These newer tanks had better, more reliable suspensions than the T-28. The armor on the T-28 could not withstand fire from more modern anti-tank weapons. In 1940, the armor thickness of the T-28 was increased so that the tank's armor had a maximum thickness of 3.15 inches (80mm). Nevertheless, the T-28 was still no match for the more modern German panzers. The T-29 medium tank was a variant of the T-28 medium tank with a Christie suspension. The T-29 never went into production. It was replaced by the T-34 medium tank.
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