Chapter 788: Great Development of Tanks

If the success of various domestic infrastructure projects represents the smooth development of civil affairs, then the breakthroughs in military technologies of military factories symbolize the rapid progress of Australasia's military strength.

Although Australasia has made considerable achievements in military technology of the three services of the navy, army and air force, Arthur has never been complacent.

Arthur understands that any military technology will never be strong all the time. Only by continuously studying and developing more advanced military technologies can Australasia's military strength be at the forefront of the world.

The atomic bombs dropped on island countries in history are powerful enough, right? At that time, it was known as the most powerful weapon in the world, which could easily destroy a city.

But in later generations, the earliest atomic bombs have become units of measurement, and the explosive power of the most advanced nuclear weapons is hundreds or even thousands of times greater than that of the earliest atomic bombs.

The first progress was Australasia's leading tank technology.

Having said that, since the T-22 tank was developed in 1922, there has been no new tank in Australasia for nearly ten years.

One of the reasons is that this period has been peaceful, and the T-22 tank can basically meet the needs of the Ministry of Defense.

The second is the limitation of related technology. Even if Australasia's tank technology has reached the forefront of the world, it still cannot surpass the time limit to develop more advanced tanks.

After all, if tank technology wants to make a breakthrough, it is nothing more than working hard on firepower, protection and speed.

More than nine years later, the Royal Arsenal finally handed over the design of the new tank to the Ministry of Defense, which eventually alarmed Arthur.

Because of the confidentiality of tank design, the design of the new tank was all participated by Australasia, and all participants signed a confidentiality agreement.

There are two designs of the latest tanks. The first is a new series of tanks, Knlurnvir-I.

The Knlurnvir-I tank is a light tank designed by Cromwell, a British military expert who has immigrated to Australasia.

Unlike the previous Australasian tank world concept that tends to be big, fast and strong, the light tank designed by Cromwell mainly pursues small size and fast speed.

The Cromwell I tank is 1 meter long and 2 meters wide, and can carry up to 3 people. Because the size of the tank has been greatly reduced, and the tank's protection ability has been weakened, the weight of the tank has been reduced to 5 tons, making it a truly light tank.

In terms of firepower, the 32mm machine gun originally equipped on the medium tank was replaced with a 20mm machine gun, and a machine gun using 92mm caliber bullets was installed.

The three members of the tank are scouts, drivers and gunners, which are the streamlined versions of the original tank personnel.

After adopting a small engine, the power of the Cromwell I tank can barely reach 148 horsepower, the maximum speed is 48 kilometers per hour, the average speed is 36 kilometers per hour, and the maximum distance can travel is 170 kilometers.

Although the power of light tanks on the battlefield is not as exaggerated as medium and heavy tanks, light tanks also have their own role.

After all, with its small size, the scope of use of light tanks will be wider. It can be used for reconnaissance, landing operations and rapid maneuver strategies.

Considering the role of light tanks and the results of the subsequent evolution of light tanks into special tanks, Arthur decided to set up a light tank company dedicated to the design and production of light tanks.

The helmsman of the new enterprise should be Cromwell Perry, the designer of the Cromwell light tank.

In Arthur's vision, it is not just light tanks. In the future, the production line of main battle tanks will also be separated from military factories to establish special tank factories.

The subsequent tank design and production will probably be divided into three types, namely light special tanks, medium and heavy main battle tanks and tracked infantry fighting vehicles.

According to the specific needs of the Ministry of Defense and the army for various types of tanks, orders can be placed with different tank factories, which can maximize the production efficiency of various military factories.

After all, if all weapon series are concentrated in one military factory, even if the military factory is huge, the production efficiency will be affected for various reasons.

In fact, the development prospects of special tanks mentioned earlier have been reflected in the current light tanks.

The Cromwell I tank is also equipped with smoke launchers, air filters and small air conditioners, which can ensure the combat capability of this light tank in various regions.

Arthur is also optimistic about the light tank developed by Cromwell, and decided to let the Royal Consortium invest 5 million Australian dollars as the start-up capital of the Cromwell Tank Factory, and the Royal Consortium holds 98% of the shares.

The remaining 2% of the shares will be used as a reward for Cromwell, and it will also increase his motivation to develop tanks. This is also one of Arthur's usual ways to reward talents.

After the establishment of the Cromwell Light Tank Factory, the light tank design drawings and construction technology previously mastered by the Royal Military Factory will also be transferred to the Cromwell Tank Factory.

By splitting the business, the Royal Military Factory can also have more energy to design other weapons, making all the weapons series in Australasia more powerful.

After reading the design of the light tank, Arthur became more curious about the design of the new medium and heavy tanks.

As the real main battle tank at present, the design of medium and heavy tanks determines the strength and combat effectiveness of the armored forces of Australasia.

According to the tank plan submitted to Arthur by the Ministry of Defense, this medium and heavy tank also has two different designs.

Because the design was completed in 1931, this new series of tanks was also named T-31 tanks.

Like the previous T-22 tanks, the T-31 tanks also have two versions, namely the T-31 medium tank and the T-31A heavy main battle tank.

Compared with the previous generation of medium tanks, the T-31 medium tank has decreased in weight.

The weight of the T-22 tank reached 7 tons, which is definitely heavier among medium tanks.

The latest version of the T-31 medium tank has appropriately reduced the weight to about 3 tons.

The entire tank is 63 meters long and 88 meters wide, and is covered with a layer of special steel armor of varying thicknesses.

The thickest part of the armor protection reaches 55 mm, and the side armor is also protected by 25 mm steel plates, ensuring that the tank can also ensure the safety of the crew inside the tank when facing bombing.

As a refined medium tank, the T-31 medium tank is also very different from the previous one in terms of firepower.

This level of medium tank is still the protagonist among tanks, and it is also the most purchased tank by the Ministry of National Defense among the three types of tanks.

Because of this, the T-31 medium tank has to carry the most excellent firepower, and the main weapon has been changed to a 32 mm rapid-fire machine gun.

The purpose of the design of the T-31 medium tank is to cause effective damage to the enemy's army in the war and become a nightmare for the enemy's army.

The secondary weapon uses two BLN-3 gas-operated medium machine guns, which are the second generation of medium machine guns developed by Browning, and can also be disassembled for individual use.

In terms of ammunition, the entire tank has 62 shells and 3,550 bullets, which can ensure sufficient power in the war.

Of course, there is another important data, that is, the speed and driving distance of the tank.

Although there is no exact number yet, according to the estimation of the tank designer, the maximum driving speed of the T-31 medium tank can reach 42 kilometers per hour, and the average stable driving speed can be maintained at least around 34 kilometers per hour.

Such speed is still a certain improvement compared with the previous generation of tanks, and it is also extremely helpful for the actual combat capability of the tank.

However, in terms of maximum driving distance, the new tank is actually a bit backward compared with the previous generation.

The fuel storage capacity of the previous generation of medium tanks allows the tank to travel continuously for more than 320 kilometers, but the fuel storage capacity of the new generation of tanks is only 280 kilometers.

In fact, such data is carefully calculated. According to the feedback from the armored forces, most of the time, the fuel storage capacity of 320 kilometers is a bit too wasteful, and the current tanks cannot travel continuously for 320 kilometers at all.

It is precisely because of this that in the design of the new generation of tanks, the Royal Arsenal directly cut a part of the fuel storage capacity and reduced it to 280 kilometers.

Even so, current tanks may not be able to travel continuously for more than 280 kilometers at a stable speed.

According to the current stable driving speed of 34 kilometers per hour, it will take at least 8 hours to use up the fuel in the tank.

It is still difficult for current technology to ensure that the tank does not have any problems during the eight-hour continuous driving.

You know, there are still many defects in the driving of tanks. For example, the bumps and noise during driving, and the stability of various parts.

At present, the tanks in Australasia can only travel stably for about four hours. If the time is longer, the tank will inevitably have problems, which is why the tank troops will equip each tank with a maintenance personnel.

In the organization of the tank troops in Australasia, the tank troops at the platoon level must be equipped with a special tank maintenance personnel.

Below the platoon, that is, each tank squad, it must be guaranteed that there is a tank crew member with good tank maintenance technology, and the other crew members must also have a rough understanding of tank maintenance.

Having said that, if it really reaches the battlefield, the tank will definitely not be able to move forward at the designed stable driving speed.

After all, there are enemies blocking the battlefield. If you want to move forward smoothly, you must clear all obstacles in front of you, including the enemies.

It is precisely because of these factors that such a tank design is completely sufficient for the current Australasia, and it is a relatively reasonable tank designed based on real battlefield data.

The first update of 3,000 words, please vote for me and support me!

Two updates today, and one more to go.