NIS Agents Tearing Up the Japanese Empire - Chapter 292



Only Noblemtl

Episode 292

New wind (1)

1930.

A new year has dawned.

The new year was a time when the world was still reeling from the effects of the Great Depression, economic problems were spreading to the political world, and words of judgment and condemnation were heard frequently from all sides.

The Soviet Union planned a massive military parade to welcome the new year and show off its power to the world.

The plan itself was nothing special.

These people are always like this.

It was a show of their power to the world in order to overcome the isolation caused by their greatly diminished influence.

Just like Russia used to be.

By boasting about their power, the Soviet Union wanted to show that they were not dead yet, and at the same time, they wanted to make it known that, unlike the other great powers who were struggling with the Great Depression, they were moving forward steadfastly even in these circumstances.

-Kurururung.

And this day.

A new Soviet tank has been revealed to the world.

The front line of the military parade that began with a loud bang.

There was a new Soviet tank, the T-24.

It was a neat tank with one gun in one turret, and one hull machine gun and a coaxial machine gun built into the tank.

The tank, which was neither too small like the Carden-Lloyd tankette nor unnecessarily large like the Independent tank, was of an appropriate size and gave considerable shock to intelligence agents from various countries who came to observe the status of the Soviet Army.

“A new Soviet tank?”

“Obviously the new tank plan has been ruined… …!”

“We must inform our home country of this fact.”

News about the new Soviet tanks spread quickly through photographs taken by intelligence agents, drawings made by intelligence agents, and various information media such as newspapers and books.

“The Soviet Union… … .”

“… … A new tank?”

“What are the specific performances?”

“With a 45mm main gun… … .”

“Up to 70mm of armor? Is this possible?”

The military of each country was literally turned upside down when they came across the catalog specifications of the new tank that the Soviet press was talking about.

If the new tank’s specifications are true, it would be nearly impossible to destroy it with any anti-tank weapon they currently have.

Their weak tanks were not able to destroy the new Soviet tanks, and instead had to flee in fear of being hunted by them.

In particular, the British military, which was known as the leader in tanks, was most shocked.

“… … Gentlemen, is there a tank among the tanks our army possesses that can gain an advantage over Soviet tanks or even destroy those communist tanks?”

“If the catalog specs are true… …no.”

“It might be possible to sneak up on the enemy and surprise them with a flank attack or a back attack, but it’s not possible when facing them head-on.”

“Let’s lay a few more mines.”

The British military, which thought it was ahead of the curve in tank development, was shocked when it saw the new Soviet tank.

The British people’s deep-seated anti-communist sentiments began to raise their heads again when they suddenly saw a tank that was far more powerful than theirs emerge from a communist country that they had looked down on for so long.

The French military, which had great success with the FT-17, also felt the same way as the British.

Britain and France, who were leaders in tank development, only reconsidered their tank development with a slight sense of crisis and deep displeasure, but the situation was different for other countries.

The United States, located far across the ocean, was less concerned because it was not connected to the Soviet Union by land and was located far away, but Central European countries such as Poland, Hungary, and Czechoslovakia, and Balkan countries such as Romania and Bulgaria, which bordered the Soviet Union, felt a great sense of crisis.

In particular, Poland, which had nearly perished in the war with the Soviet Union just a few years earlier, was gripped by a sense of crisis that the country it had so hard to regain might perish again.

“The Soviet Union has developed a new tank whose performance is said to be superior to that of the latest tanks from Western Europe. What should we do about this?”

“Shouldn’t we also… develop our own tank to match that?”

“First of all, it would be cheaper and more efficient to build anti-tank fortifications in the border area.”

“The enemy’s tanks are said to have considerable mobility. No matter how strong the fortress is, it would be a disaster if the enemy bypasses it.”

“That’s right. Even if we build a fortress around the entire border area, there’s no way to stop them if they invade the other side of the border.”

“First of all, let’s introduce tanks from Western countries and establish a tank unit… .”

The mere existence of this new tank, developed by the Soviet Union itself, made all of Europe tremble.

But as always,

Humans avoid and run away from things they fear, but they also analyze the other person.

That was the case with Germany, the loser of the last great war.

* * *

“… … The drivetrain was vulnerable due to excessive armor buildup… … The engine, which was originally designed to be a diesel engine, was forcibly changed to a gasoline engine, which greatly reduced the internal space… … .”

“The gloves were also made in a hurry to meet the promotional specifications, so the material is not good and the appearance is just barely adequate… … .”

“The main gun, a 45mm anti-tank gun, was installed without any modifications for tank use, so the turret space is abnormally narrow, making it difficult to use in actual combat.”

Army officers from the Weimar government in Germany who came to Moscow to study disassembled the new Soviet T-24 tank used in military parades and studied the tank’s strengths and weaknesses in detail.

“We need to send as much information as possible to our home country, so everyone, don’t just glance at it, but look through it thoroughly.”

“Sir, can we just look at the new Soviet tanks like this?”

“It’s okay. If the Soviet Army had intended to adopt this as a regular feature, they would have kept it very well hidden.”

“Huh? Are you saying that the Soviet Army doesn’t formally introduce this?”

“okay.”

The new Soviet tank, with its sturdy 45mm main gun that seemed capable of piercing anything at first glance and its 70mm frontal armor that seemed capable of bouncing off anything, evoked a sense of awe rather than fear in those who saw it.

On the surface, that is.

But in this world, since it is an equivalent exchange, to gain one thing, you have to lose one.

The same was true of the new Soviet tanks.

First of all, the new Soviet tanks were products of an unknown design forcibly sewn into existing tank projects in time for the New Year’s military parade.

To begin with, the previous tank project was a failure, and since it was forcibly modified to fit a different design, there was no way it would be okay.

Even the main gun was close to a prototype that had just been test-produced.

In the first place, how could the Soviet Union, which had gone through the Russian Revolution, the Great War, and the Civil War, have the capacity to develop its own anti-tank guns?

It was only after the Rapallo Treaty with the Weimar government of Germany that the Soviet Union began to develop military weapons in earnest.

The Soviet government, in collaboration with the German company Rheinmetall, had set up a joint venture and a factory to design an anti-tank gun, and had been producing 37mm anti-tank guns for training the Red Army for just a few months.

So, originally, the main gun of the new Soviet tank was supposed to be 37mm, but due to Stalin’s directive to show the world the spirit of the Soviet Union, the main gun was upgraded to 45mm.

Of course, they said it was 45mm, but in reality, they just increased the diameter and didn’t check whether it actually worked, so even God knows whether it will actually work.

Because they forcibly crammed a 45mm main gun into the turret, the already narrow turret became even narrower, and the turret, which was supposed to accommodate a loader and a commander, ended up only accommodating the commander.

The situation arose where the tank commander alone had to take on the roles of gunner and loader.

There was not enough space to store spare ammunition, so after firing one shot, the tank commander had to bend down to take out the ammunition and reload it, which made the reload speed incredibly slow.

The problem wasn’t just the turret.

The gloves were also designed thicker than the existing design and were designed to fit the new design, but the problem arose in the drive system that supported this.

The existing Soviet Union’s new tank development project had planned to have thin armor of up to 15 mm, but the design was suddenly changed to heavy armor of at least 20 mm and a frontal thickness of 70 mm, which inevitably put a strain on the engine.

So, they hurriedly combined two existing engines into one and modified it to work, and somehow managed to get the tank moving, but the existing drivetrain couldn’t handle it.

There was no need to exaggerate how serious the problem was, given that all but two of the 27 tanks used in the parade had their drivetrains destroyed and were rendered immobile.

The two remaining intact vehicles were lucky enough to avoid being disabled, but their drivetrains were severely damaged.

“If a tank is damaged to this extent just by simple maneuvering, it will probably have a hard time being used in actual combat.”

“That’s right.”

In terms of sheer results, the new Soviet tank was a complete failure.

“But isn’t there a saying that failure is the mother of success? No one knows what will happen in the future.”

But if you look at it only from the outside, the Soviet T-24 was a tank that had as many advantages as disadvantages.

It boasted a powerful main gun that no one of its contemporaries could match, sturdy armor, and a very advanced design, although it was damaged by various factors.

“I thought that in the coming new era, multi-turreted tanks would dominate the battlefield… … .”

“The Soviet Union is also developing a multi-turreted tank.”

“A tank is ultimately a thing made to hit the enemy’s strongest point hard, so in the end, the tank’s opponent is more likely to be not the enemy’s defense line, but another enemy tank.”

“Oh, so that’s how it is.”

Powerful main gun and thick armor.

It was truly an object filled with the determination to destroy the opponent.

“Will our German tanks end up like this someday?”

A young German officer muttered to himself as he lightly tapped a new Soviet tank.

“This is the future of battle.”

* * *

As expected, the Soviet Union’s new tank development program was only a half success.

“Wow… It seems that the Soviet Union’s industrial power was a bit weaker than I thought.”

“Maybe it’s because I’m too greedy.”

“Greed? Greed… … Yeah, maybe that’s true.”

The whole world was abuzz with the military parade that took place in Moscow.

Newspapers around the world were abuzz with stories about a new tank being announced by the Soviet Union.

Thanks to that, other stories were quickly buried.

“What happened to the light tank we talked about last time?”

“Ah, that… that thing you showed me last time?”

“Yeah, that one.”

“Um… … First, we made a prototype at this tractor factory and tested it, and the field evaluation was better than expected.”

A few months ago.

When I transferred tank technology to the Soviet Union to save Beria’s life, there were a few more things I included as a tie-in.

The design of Matilda that was initially handed over was exactly what the Soviet government wanted, and the rest were things that we wanted to use on our own side, with their help rather than the Soviet government.

“Then is it possible to mass produce it right away?”

“You mean the Type 95 tank?”

“Oh, now we should call it T-25.”

“Ah, yes yes… … Once I get permission from my superiors, I think I can make ten units a month.”

“Really? When can I get permission?”

“Well… … Given the current mood, I think it could easily be done with just one telegram.”