New Israeli tank. Tanks of Israel – photo and description

No. 19 ORDER OF THE PEOPLE'S COMMISSIONER OF DEFENSE No. 298 ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE PROVISIONS ON PENALTY BATTALIONS AND COMPANIES AND STAFF OF THE PENALTY BATTALION, COMPANY AND BACKGROUND DETACHMENT OF THE ACTING ARMY September 28, 1942 I announce for the leadership: 1. Regulations on penal battalions of the current

3. ORDER OF THE PEOPLE'S DEFENSE OF THE USSR ON IMPOSING PENALTIES ON THE COMMAND OF THE 6TH ARMY, COMMANDERS OF A NUMBER OF UNITS FOR ILLEGAL ACTIONS ON THE TERRITORY OF WESTERN UKRAINE November 10, 1939 On October 16, a letter was received from the military prosecutor of the 6th Army, Comrade Stalin, and mine. Nechiporenko about

1.2. The state of defense of the Oryol bridgehead of the German army, the grouping of German troops on the bridgehead and the plans of the German command for its defense. Since August 1942, the German command took all measures to turn the Oryol bridgehead into a powerful

Document No. 7.11 Report of the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy, Fleet Admiral V.N. Chernavin, to the USSR Minister of Defense, Army General D.T. Yazov Report. Military Council Navy On February 22, 1990, considered numerous applications and requests public organizations And

Document No. 7.12 Memo to the Minister of Defense of the USSR, General of the Army D.T. Yazov Alexander Ivanovich MARINESKO, former commander of the M-96 and S-13 submarines. Captain 3rd rank. Born 1913, Ukrainian. Feat: January 30, 1945 submarine S-13 under the command of Marinesko A.I. after

American tanks and self-propelled guns in the British army The defeat of British troops on the European continent and their loss of almost 2/3 of their tanks forced the British to turn to an overseas ally for help. The British cannot make up for losses through their own production.

French tanks in the Italian army After the defeat of France in 1940, Italy received 109 captured Renault R35 light tanks, 32 Somua S35 medium tanks and several heavy tanks B1 bis. Refinement of the resulting material was kept to a minimum. Only installed on tanks

The Israeli main battle tank Merkava (Chariot) was first shown in 1979 and surprised many with its layout, eventually becoming the subject of debate as to whether such a design for a modern MBT was justified. Its development took into account predominantly defensive battle tactics and the need for maximum crew protection, which led to a change in priorities. Most MBTs are designed on the principle of firepower-protection-mobility, while the Merkava has protection as a priority.

The Israelis created an MBT that was to be used only in their country and not exported to others. Therefore, Merkava fully meets their specific requirements, while having shortcomings that would be noticeable in other armies, but we will talk about them at the end of the article.

Design

The chief designer, Israel Tal, led an armored brigade during the Suez Crisis and a division during the Six-Day War, so he, like no one else, knew about the peculiarities of combat and significantly influenced Israeli armored doctrine.

According to it, most combat operations were to be conducted from pre-prepared defensive positions in natural shelters due to differences in altitude. Thus, often only the tower will be vulnerable to enemy fire. Therefore, when developing the Merkava, the frontal silhouette of its turret was reduced as much as possible, and the fighting compartment was moved as much as possible into the hull.

The second task to be solved was maximum protection of the crew. And here the car stands out again. Its layout is not similar to other modern MBTs, since the engine, transmission and fuel tank are moved forward, separated from each other by an armored partition and separated by another armored partition from the crew, who are thus protected not only by frontal armor.

In addition, the fighting compartment in the hull is maximally enlarged and has a door at the rear, so the Merkava MBT can transport 6 paratroopers, 4 stretchers with wounded or additional ammunition, which is a unique feature.

Armor protection

The tank's protection itself is unusual and stands out from others. The differences are in the already mentioned layout, in which the engine and transmission act as additional armor, and the higher altitude contributes to a greater number of hits. The hull and turret are cast, have a strong slope, and the top armor plate can be removed and has a special protrusion that covers the junction of the turret and the hull.

On the sides of the hull there are screens protecting the chassis.

The Merkava tower, as already mentioned, has a small frontal projection, which is ensured by a wedge-shaped shape, which also increases the chances of a rebound. Its design is original, since the protection consists of two layers of spaced armor, between the walls of which there are cartridge boxes for machine guns. The battles in Lebanon showed that this was not enough, so the following modifications received additional armor.

An interesting feature is the headlights, which are hidden in the body under the cover of armor and open during use.

With each modification, the Merkava's armor protection increases. For example, additional screens and modular armor appear.

Armament

Initially, they installed the American 105 mm M68, which is a licensed version of the English L7A1, but immediately provided for the installation of a gun in the turret design larger caliber. The ammunition load is 62 rounds, but can always be increased due to the fighting compartment.

Starting with the Mk.3 modification, the tank began to be equipped with an Israeli-made 120 mm MG251 gun.

Secondary armament consists of a coaxial 7.62 mm machine gun and two additional detachable FN MAG machine guns on the turret roof. The total ammunition load is 2000 rounds. Optionally, a 12.7 mm M2NV machine gun can be mounted on the gun mantlet.

To set up smoke screens, a mortar is provided, which allows you to fire while under the cover of armor, starting with Mk.2.

The Matador fire control system is located on high level and is updated with every modification. However, the accuracy and rate of fire are at a rather mediocre level. This is due to both the layout and the requirements of the Israeli military.

As with all modern MBTs, targeting is carried out using sighting devices. The problem is that the engine located at the front with jets of hot air greatly reduces the capabilities of these devices, creating a constant thermal field around the tank. This can be partly solved by firing tactics from previously prepared positions and with a cooled engine, but this is not always applicable in practice.

Moreover, due to the layout, the front part of the Merkava is heavily overweight, which creates strong longitudinal vibrations when firing, significantly reducing the accuracy of a repeat shot and forcing the rate of fire to be reduced several times due to pauses between shots.

But the Israeli military does not consider all this critical, due to the tactics and use of adjustable ammunition, which allows them to hit targets with almost 100% accuracy with the first shot.

Chassis and engine

Israeli engineers decided to create a chassis based on the Centurion, since its suspension had excellent resistance to mines and explosive devices. It uses coil springs and four bolts to the body of each suspension assembly, allowing for easy replacement of damaged parts and a V-shaped body bottom that is resistant to explosions from below.

In total, on each side of the Merkava there are 6 rubber-coated road wheels, 5 support rollers, a drive wheel at the front and a guide wheel at the rear.

The tracks are also borrowed from the Centurion.

Most tanks are equipped with American AVDS-1790 diesel engines with a power of 900 hp. and modified American Allison CD-850-6B semi-automatic transmissions. Due to their specific location, almost any projectile that penetrates the frontal armor immobilizes the vehicle. But they are assembled in one module, which allows for quick and easy replacement in the field. IN once again The Merkava is not like other MBTs, in which in such a situation part of the crew is disabled, but the tank itself does not lose the ability to move.

Modifications

Merkava mk.1

The first version, mass production began in 1979, a total of about 250 units were created. Participated in the 1982 Lebanon War, after which, taking into account the shortcomings and vulnerabilities that emerged, it was decided to create new version, as a result of which a modification of the Merkava Mk.2 (Merkava Mk.1B) appeared. All tanks of the first modification were later brought to a new level.

Merkava Mk.2

A version created based on the experience of the Lebanon War. Got much better protection, increased firepower and increased cross-country ability. We replaced the side screens and improved the turret protection by installing overhead screens. At the rear of the turret there are baskets for property and metal chains with balls hung, all this provides additional protection against cumulative ammunition.

The Matador-2 control system and thermal imager were installed, the transmission was replaced with the Israeli Ashot, the capacity of the fuel tanks was increased by 25% and the suspension was modernized.

In total, about 600 of these tanks were produced.

Merkava Mk.3

The tank was equipped with modular armor protection for the hull and turret, which consists of special modules bolted to the hull and turret. This design allows you to easily and quickly replace damaged sections of armor and increase the Merkava’s protection by simply replacing modules with more advanced ones.

The LWS-2 laser radiation system appeared, warning the crew about aiming various weapons at the tank, the control system was replaced with Matador-3, the hydraulic drives for turning the turret and aiming the gun were replaced with electric ones, adding the possibility of manual duplication.

To increase firepower, a locally produced 120 mm MG251 smoothbore gun was installed, and to improve mobility, the AVDS-1790-9AR diesel engine was boosted to 1200 hp. and replaced the transmission with an Israeli one, and also improved the suspension.

In total, about 640 units of such modifications were produced.

Merkava Mk.4

Latest and most advanced version.

The protection was further increased, which is why the dimensions increased, the weight reached 70 tons. To maintain mobility, a new GD 883 engine with 1,500 hp was installed. The Trophy active protection complex has been installed, protecting the Merkava from guided missiles and grenades from anti-tank grenade launchers.

The turret has increased in size, is protected by modular armor and has only one hatch used by the commander, a new commander's cupola has been installed. Added underbody protection.

The Merkava Mk.4 tank promises to be the last in the series, after which it will be replaced by a fundamentally new vehicle of the next generation.

Epilogue

As can be seen from the article, the Merkava tank was created strictly according to the requirements israeli army, therefore has pronounced strong and weaknesses. It was not designed for long-distance transportation, so heavy weight and the dimensions have practically no effect on anything. The impossibility of accurate shooting with minimal pauses, as well as shooting on the move, is gradually being corrected by new fire control systems and adjustable ammunition, in addition modern technologies It is quite possible to correct the increased thermal field in front of observation devices. The inability of the tank to move after breaking through the frontal armor is more than compensated by the protection of the crew, who, although they turn into simple infantry after the tank is hit, survive, and this is the main thing in the Merkava’s idea.

It is incorrect to compare this tank with other modern MBTs, since they are trying to make them universal and adapted to various climatic and combat conditions. Merkava is completely different.

Israel is considered a great tank power: the IDF tank fleet is one of the largest in the world - it is armed with from 4 to 5 thousand tanks, the Merkava tank built at Israeli tank factories, according to many experts, is the best main battle tank in the world, Israeli tank crews have invaluable combat experience gained in numerous wars and armed conflicts.

The Israeli combat example had a significant impact on the development of strategy and tactics of armored forces: Israeli tank generals Israel Tal and Moshe Peled are presented in the Hall of Great Tank Commanders at the General Patton Tank Forces Center, along with German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel and American General George Patton .

Emblem of the Israeli Armored Forces (Heil HaShiryon)

Creation of tank forces

Israeli tank forces, the main striking force ground forces IDF, born in the battles of the War of Independence. In February 1948, the Armored Service was created under the command of Yitzhak Sadeh, but the tanks themselves did not yet exist - the main tank manufacturers - the USA, Great Britain and France - introduced a ban on the sale of weapons to the Jewish state.

Already during the battles of the War of Independence, it was possible to acquire 10 Hotchkiss N-39 tanks, which, together with the Sherman M4 tank and two Cromwell tanks stolen from the British, entered service with the first tank unit - the 82nd Tank Battalion. The battalion commander was former Polish Army major Felix Beatus, who served from Stalingrad to Berlin. The battalion's crews included tank crews - Jewish volunteers from around the world who fought against the Nazis in the ranks of the British Army and the Polish Army.

Among them were several former Red Army tank officers. They were called "suicide bombers" - they deserted the Soviet occupation forces in Germany and reached Eretz Israel by different routes. In the USSR they were sentenced to death in absentia for “treason to the Motherland.” They went through mortal dangers to fight for the Jewish state.

By mid-1948, the 7th and 8th tank brigades were formed and took part in battles with the Arab aggressors.

In those years, the doctrine of tank warfare began to take shape, adopted by the IDF. It is based on the following principles:
The first is “Totality of the Tank”. This means that tank formations, due to mobility, armor and firepower, are capable of independently solving the main tasks of a land war.
The second is “Armored Fist” as the main tank maneuver,” which consists of introducing large tank forces into a breakthrough, capable of attacking at high speed, destroying enemy forces along the way.
The main combat unit of the Israeli armored forces is tank brigade. During combat operations, tank divisions and corps are formed from tank brigades.

Analysis tank battles showed a high percentage of losses among tank commanders. This is due to the requirements of a unique code of commander’s honor adopted in the Israeli army:
“Follow me!” - the main command in the IDF, the commander is obliged to lead his subordinates by personal example.
Tanks go into battle with open hatches - the commander, standing in the tank turret with the hatch folded back, controls the actions of the crew. This significantly expands the view and allows you to fight with " with open eyes", however, the commander becomes a prime target for enemy fire.

The formation of tank forces

The first battle test of this doctrine took place during Operation Kadesh in 1956. In three days, the 7th and 27th tank brigades, interacting with infantry and parachute units, broke through the enemy’s defenses and, having passed through the Sinai Desert, reached the Suez Canal. During the fighting, up to 600 units of enemy armored vehicles were destroyed or captured, Israeli losses amounted to 30 tanks and armored personnel carriers.

The IDF tank fleet began to be replenished with modern military equipment. During the battles, the AMX-13 tanks purchased in France performed well - the first modern tanks to enter service with the IDF. In total, about 200 of these tanks entered service with the IDF.
In the early 60s, hundreds of Super-Sherman M-50 and M-51 tanks entered service with the IDF.

In the early 1960s, the United States finally agreed to sell M48 tanks, called Magah in Israel. However, the Americans tried to hide this deal from their Arab friends. Therefore, a deal was concluded between Germany and the United States, and Israel formally purchased these tanks from Germany. In total, as part of this deal, more than 200 M48 tanks entered service with the IDF.

Around the same time, several hundred British tanks Centurion, which in Israel received the name Shot (translated from Hebrew as “whip”)

With this updated tank fleet, Israel was to fight fierce tank battles in
Six Day War of 1967 and the Yom Kippur War of 1973.

In 1964, General Israel Tal became commander-in-chief of the tank forces. This most experienced tanker, based on combat experience, developed completely new tactical techniques for conducting tank warfare. These include sniper fire turret guns tanks for long and ultra-long distances - up to 5-6 kilometers and even 10-11 kilometers. This immediately gave noticeable advantages in battle.

New tactics were tested in battle during the “Battle for Water” in 1964-1966. Then Syria tried to divert the water of the Jordan River, and thereby deprive Israel of water resources. The Syrians began to build a diversion canal, which Israel could not allow.
It was decided to use tank gun fire to destroy the enemy’s earth-moving equipment, tanks and artillery batteries covering the construction.

For this purpose, the Israeli command equipped the Sherman and Centurion tank units with trained crews, with General Tal personally taking the place of the gunner in one of the tanks, and the loader - the commander of the 7th Tank Brigade, Colonel Shlomo Lahat

The Israelis sent a tractor into the no man's land as bait. The Syrians immediately bought into the ruse and opened fire. The targets were immediately detected. Sniper fire from Israeli tank crews destroyed all selected targets at a distance of up to 6 kilometers, and then tank fire was transferred to targets located at a distance of 11 kilometers.

Such tank fire strikes were carried out many times throughout the year. The Syrians suffered heavy losses and were forced to completely abandon their plans to divert the water.

Six Day War. 1967

The Six-Day War of 1967 was a true triumph for Israeli tank forces. For the first time, Israeli tank formations operated simultaneously on three fronts. They were opposed by many times superior forces of five Arab states, but this did not save the Arabs from total defeat.

On the southern front, the attack was carried out by the forces of three tank divisions of generals Tal, Sharon and Joffe. IN offensive operation, called the “March through Sinai,” Israeli tank formations, interacting with aviation, motorized infantry and paratroopers, made a lightning-fast breakthrough of the enemy’s defenses and moved through the desert, destroying the encircled Arab groups. On the northern front, General Peled's 36th Tank Division advanced along impassable mountain paths, and after three days of fierce fighting reached the outskirts of Damascus. On the eastern front, Israeli troops drove Jordanian units out of Jerusalem and liberated ancient Jewish shrines from foreign invaders.

On September 9, 1969, an armored group consisting of 6 captured Russian T-55 tanks and three BTR-50 armored personnel carriers captured in the Six-Day War was secretly transported on landing ships to the Egyptian shore of the Suez Canal. The main goal was the destruction of the Russian air defense system, which was interfering with the actions of Israeli aviation. During this brilliantly conceived and executed operation, called Raviv, Israeli tank crews for 9 hours walked through the enemy’s rear with a fiery wave, mercilessly destroying radar stations and positions missile forces and artillery, headquarters, warehouses and army bases. Having successfully completed the raid without losses, the Israeli armored group returned safely on landing ships to its base.

Yom Kippur War. 1973

The most ordeal for Israel was the Yom Kippur War, which began on October 6, 1973, on the day of one of the most important Jewish holidays, when most military personnel were on leave. Israel was suddenly attacked on all fronts by vastly superior aggressor forces, including the armies of Egypt, Syria, Iraq, Morocco, Jordan, Libya, Algeria, Lebanon, Sudan, thousands of Russian “military advisers,” Cuban and North Korean “volunteers.” In the vastness from Sinai to the Golan Heights, one of the largest tank battles in the world military unfolded - up to six thousand tanks took part in it on both sides.

Especially dangerous situation took shape on the Golan Heights - there, only 200 tanks of the 7th and 188th tank brigades confronted almost 1,400 Syrian tanks on a 40-kilometer stretch. Israeli tank crews fought to the death, demonstrating mass heroism.

The names of the tank heroes who stopped the enemy went down in the history of Israel. Among them are platoon commander Lieutenant Zvi Gringold, company commander Captain Meir Zamir, nicknamed “Tiger,” and battalion commander Lieutenant Colonel Kahalani.

Lieutenant (already a captain in the photo) Zvi Gringold is a tanker who accomplished an unprecedented feat: during a battle that lasted about a day, he destroyed up to 60 Russian tanks

The tankers fought until the last shell; from the tankers who survived the battle, who had just left the burning tanks, new crews were immediately formed, which again went into battle on repaired combat vehicles. Lieutenant Gringold went into battle three times in new vehicles. Being shell-shocked and wounded, he did not leave the battlefield and destroyed up to 60 Russian tanks. The Israeli tankers survived and won; the 210th Tank Division, under the command of General Dan Laner, arrived in time and completed the defeat of the enemy.

During the fighting, the Iraqi tank corps, which was sent to help the Syrians, was also destroyed. Israeli troops launched a counteroffensive and on October 14 were already in the suburbs of Damascus.

An equally fierce tank battle took place in the sands of Sinai, where the Arabs initially managed to push back units of the 252nd tank division General Mendler. General Mendler died in battle, but stopped the enemy's further advance. On October 7, the 162nd Panzer Division under the command of General Bren and the 143rd Panzer Division under the command of General Ariel Sharon entered the battle. During difficult tank battles The main Arab forces were destroyed.

Commander of the 162nd Tank Division, General Abraham Adan (Bren)

On October 14, the largest counter battle of tank formations since World War II took place, “tanks against tanks,” in which 260 enemy tanks were destroyed. Israeli tank crews lost 20 of their combat vehicles.

On October 16, Israeli tank forces launched a counteroffensive. General Sharon's tankers broke through the front, established a pontoon crossing across the Suez Canal, and Israeli tanks poured onto the African coast. In the ensuing battles, the Egyptian army was surrounded, all its reserves were destroyed, and a direct road was opened for an attack on Cairo.

Video of the 14th Tank Brigade fighting during the Yom Kippur War in Sinai


War of Yom Kippur. October 1973

During the fierce tank battles of the Yom Kippur War, Israeli tank forces again proved their superiority: more than 2,500 enemy tanks (T-62, T-55, T-54) and thousands of other armored vehicles were destroyed in the battles. However, a high price had to be paid for the victory - more than a thousand Israeli tank crews who heroically fought died in the battles.

Tank Merkava

One of the results of past wars was the creation of our own tank, in which the requirements of Israeli tank crews for a combat vehicle were most fully realized and their combat experience was taken into account. Another reason that prompted the creation of the Israeli tank was the embargo on the supply of military equipment, imposed by foreign manufacturers every time wars began. This situation was intolerable, since there was always a continuous flow of Russian weapons coming to the Arabs.

The Israeli tank project was headed by General Israel Tal, a combat tank officer who had gone through all the wars. Under his leadership, in just a few years, the project of the first Israeli tank, Merkava-1, was created, which already in 1976 was put into mass production at Israeli tank factories. The history of world tank building has never seen such a rate of creation of a tank industry.

General Tal gave the new tank the name “Merkava”, which means “war chariot” in Hebrew. This word comes from the TANAKH; it is mentioned in the first chapter of the Book of the Prophet Ezekiel as a symbol of movement, power and a stable foundation.

The first Merkava tanks were equipped with a tank battalion commanded by the son of General Tal. The Merkava tank is recognized as the world's best tank for the Middle Eastern theater of operations. Israeli designers were the first in the world to develop dynamic armor, the use of which greatly reduced the likelihood of a tank being hit by shells and guided missiles. Blazer dynamic protection units were installed on Merkava tanks, and on most of the Centurions, M48 and M60, which remained in service with the IDF
The fourth generation of Merkava tanks is now being produced, and the Israeli tank industry has become one of the largest in the world - tens of thousands of engineers and workers work at more than 200 enterprises.

War in Lebanon. 1982

“Shlom HaGalil” (Peace to Galilee) is how the IDF General Staff called the Israeli invasion of Lebanon, which began on June 6, 1982. in response to attacks by Palestinian terrorists operating from Lebanese territory.

On the Lebanese border, Israel concentrated 11 divisions, united into three army corps. Each corps was assigned its own area of ​​responsibility or direction: the Western direction was commanded by Lieutenant General Yekutiel Adam, the Central direction - by Lieutenant General Uri Simhoni, and the Eastern direction - by Lieutenant General Janusz Ben-Gal. In addition, two divisions under the command of Lieutenant General Moshe Bar Kokhb were deployed to the Golan Heights, in the immediate vicinity of Damascus. The armored divisions included 1,200 tanks. The overall command of the operation was entrusted to the Chief of the General Staff, Colonel General R. Eitan and the commander of the Northern Military District, Lieutenant General A. Drori.

Tank divisions advanced in the coastal direction and already on June 10 entered the suburbs of the Lebanese capital Beirut. Beirut was later completely captured by Israeli troops. During the offensive, the largest amphibious landing operation was carried out, when behind enemy lines from landing ships The Israeli Navy landed tank and motorized infantry units.

Particularly fierce fighting took place in east direction, where the target of the offensive was the strategically important Beirut-Damascus highway. Under the terms of the ceasefire agreement, Israeli tanks were stopped about 30 kilometers from the Syrian capital Damascus.

Operation in Lebanon. 2006

During the operation in Lebanon in July-August 2006. The IDF was practicing completely new methods of waging war against terrorist groups.

Terrorist organization Hezbollah created a deeply echeloned system of fortified areas in southern Lebanon, including many camouflaged underground bunkers, connected by tens of kilometers of tunnels. and the equipment accumulated by the militants, according to their plans, should have been enough for a multi-month defense, during which they expected to inflict heavy losses on the Israeli army.

The terrorists paid special attention to anti-tank warfare - they carried out continuous mining in tank-hazardous areas, including laying dozens of landmines with hundreds of kilograms of TNT in each. The terrorists were armed with the most modern Russian anti-tank weapons: ATGMs “Malyutka”, “Fagot”, “Konkurs”, “Metis-M”, “Kornet-E”, as well as RPG-7 and RPG-29 “Vampire” grenade launchers.

Despite such impressive training of the militants, the IDF successfully completed all assigned tasks with minimal losses and completely eliminated the terrorist presence in the border areas.

According to Israeli data, during the battles the militants carried out hundreds of launches of anti-tank missiles, but their effectiveness was quite low: there were only 22 cases of penetration of tank armor; damaged tanks returned to service after repairs during the battles in Lebanon. Irreversible losses amounted to only 5 tanks, two of which were blown up by landmines. During the fighting, 30 Israeli tank crews were killed.

Israeli Armored Forces

All military experts note the high survivability of Israeli tanks, especially the modern tank Merkava 4.
The experience of fighting in Lebanon has shown that despite the minimal losses of armored vehicles during the fighting, the solution to the problem of the survivability of the main battle tank and its crew on a battlefield saturated with anti-tank weapons is the use of high-tech active defense means that ensure a change in trajectory or destruction of all types of incoming cumulative ammunition.

In Israel, the development of active protection equipment for armored vehicles is carried out by the military-industrial concern RAFAEL; among the numerous projects, the Iron Fist and Trophy active protection systems should be noted. Israel is leading in this direction - the Trophy active protection system was the first in the world to be installed on mass-produced Merkava Mk4 tanks.

Israeli tank forces have gone through a glorious battle path and are rightfully considered one of the strongest in the world - according to open data, it is known that the IDF now has up to 5,000 tanks in service. This is more than, for example, countries such as the UK, France and Germany. But the main strength of the Israeli tank forces lies in people whose invaluable combat experience and courage are the guarantor of Israel's security.

If the first combat aircraft that were at the disposal of the Israeli army were Messerschmitts of the Czech post-war assembly (S-199), then their first tanks were the English Cromwells. At the same time, the first two Cromwell medium tanks were literally stolen right from under the noses of the British. In this detective story Two sergeants were involved: Irish mechanic Michael Flanagan and Scotsman Harry MacDonald. One of the tanks they stole can still be seen in Latournay, where the Israeli armored forces museum Yad Le-Shiryon is located.

In 1947, Britain decided to abandon its colonial mandate to govern Palestine. The British were frankly tired of looking for any solution to the Arab-Jewish conflict, so they decided to get rid of this problem. The official end of their mandate was supposed to occur on May 14, 1948. On the same day the creation was announced independent state Israel, after which the second stage of the Arab-Israeli war of 1947-49 began, which in the Jewish state itself, as in most countries of the world, is called the “War of Independence” (while states that sympathized with the anti-Israeli coalition call it in another way - “Nakba”, that is, “catastrophe”).

In fact, the war in Palestine began even before representatives of the British administration left it. However, at the first stage of this conflict, the fighting was exclusively positional in nature, and the parties to the conflict were mainly engaged in obtaining weapons, building fortifications and strengthening their positions. At the same time, by the beginning of the war, the Jews managed to create two large semi-clandestine military organizations - the Hagana and the Irgun. Both organizations were dissolved in 1948, joining the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) formed in May of the same year.

At the same time, the Israel Defense Forces were armed with weapons of a wide variety of origins. The collection of various weapons began long before May 1948. The arsenals collected by the Jews were incredibly diverse in models, calibers, origin and age. For example, even before the start of World War II, the Hagana had smuggled submachine guns at its disposal; these were the Finnish Suomi and the American Thompson, which were very convenient for fighting in the city and settlements. The flow of arms smuggling did not stop even after the end of the great war in Europe. From 1946 to 1948, more than 1,300 different submachine guns were transferred to Israel, and approximately another 870 submachine guns, mainly British Stans, were obtained directly “on site” during the period 1941-1947. They were stolen from British warehouses, bought from Arab smugglers, etc. Repeated rifles and even light mortars were obtained in the same way.

As a result, the territory of Palestine was literally filled with weapons. Cache caches were found all over the country. So in 1946 in Tel Aviv, in just one building of the Tahemoni school, representatives of the British administration discovered more than 50 mortars, 50 rifles and several thousand cartridges and mines for them. And in Kibbutz Dorot, two dozen submachine guns and light machine guns were found. Weapons were even bought from the British themselves. At the same time, this was explained quite simply: discipline in the troops, who were already counting the days until their departure from Palestine, was lame, to put it mildly. For example, already in 1951, an officer was convicted in Great Britain who in 1948 sold a shipment of weapons to Jews. Initially, he was going to sell the entire lot to the Arabs for 25,000 pounds sterling, but representatives of the Haganah offered 30 thousand for it and won. As a result of this transaction, they received an armored car, a jeep, 180 Browning machine guns, rifles and thousands of cartridges for them. At the same time, the Haganah bought weapons not only from the British, but also from the Arabs themselves in Palestine, as well as neighboring Egypt and Syria.

There was also a hunt for serial armored vehicles; they were obtained from the same British. In some cases, armored vehicles were simply stolen. The Jews acted according to all the rules: they took the armored vehicle under their supervision and waited for the moment until the crew went for a swim or a snack. However, this was not about tanks. The first tanks, which became the ancestors of the Israeli tank forces, were stolen from the British contingent by the British soldiers of the Hussar Regiment located in Haifa. These were two Cromwell medium tanks armed with 75 mm cannons.

Before the cancellation of the British Mandate in Palestine, the Haganah managed to obtain the two Cromwell tanks listed above, one Daimler armored car, two disarmed Sherman tanks (they were purchased) and the GMS Otter reconnaissance vehicle. Already in May 1948, the formation of the Israeli armored service began, but on May 15, of all the tanks of the newly proclaimed Israeli state, only one was on the move. In June of the same year, 10 Hotchkiss N-39 light tanks arrived in Israel, which at that time were hopelessly outdated vehicles; they were bought in France. And in July, Hotchkiss, Cromwell and Sherman already took part in battles with the Arabs as part of the 82nd Tank Battalion of the Israel Defense Forces. Moreover, out of 30 faulty Sherman tanks that were hastily purchased from Italy, only two vehicles were put into operation during the war.

Returning to the British medium tank "Cromwell", which in English terminology was a cruising tank, it can be noted that during the Second World War this tank was rightfully considered one of the best British combat vehicles. This tank was created in Great Britain already during the war years and, thanks to its relatively light armor and powerful Rolls-Royce engine, was distinguished high speed movement. Armed with a 75-mm cannon, the tank found worthy use during the Second World War, fighting against German troops. The history of the appearance of these tanks in the IDF begins with an idea that came to the mind of Isaac Sada, the founder of the first tank brigade of the Jewish state. In the spring of 1948, he decided to take advantage of the British evacuation of his army in order to simply steal several of these vehicles, joining them with the Haganah forces.

The first attempt to steal tanks from the British during their transfer from a military base in the Jezreel Valley to Haifa was planned for the end of May 1948. Previously, a “purchasing” department specially created under the Hagan was able to agree with several British soldiers that during the move the last tanks would lag behind the column and turn onto a side road, where the organization’s fighters would be waiting for them. For each of the stolen tanks, the soldiers were promised 3 thousand pounds sterling. However, this plan failed, as the security of the convoy was strengthened, which frightened the soldiers who took part in the deal. But Isaac Sade was not going to give up and ordered a search for new opportunities to take possession of the tanks. So at the beginning of the summer of the same year, the Haganah was able to contact two British sergeants - Irish mechanic Michael Flanagan and Scotsman Harry MacDonald, who served as commander of one of the tanks.

The operation to steal armored vehicles was planned for the night of June 29-30, 1948, on the eve of the departure of the last units of the British army from Palestine. The four remaining Cromwell tanks were planned to be stolen from the base located at the Haifa airfield, with the help of the two above-mentioned sergeants and a couple of Jewish soldiers who managed to take a crash course in operating a Cromwell tank. In the absence of other opportunities for this, British sergeants taught their partners how to control a combat vehicle, conducting only theoretical classes in one of the cafes in Haifa - with the help of drawings and drawings.

On the evening before “Day X,” trained Haganah fighters infiltrated a British airfield, where they hid inside a light aircraft that belonged to one of the wealthy Jews. At the appointed time night hour all four hijackers took their places in tanks prepared in advance by the sergeants for the hijacking, which were loaded with spare parts and ammunition. However, this is where the first problems began. One of the newly minted Israeli driver mechanics was unable to start the tank and, abandoning the combat vehicle, fled from the base. Three other tanks, breaking through the gates of the base, rushed towards Kibbutz Yagur, located in the Jezreel Valley, several tens of kilometers east of Haifa. Here it finally became clear that the theoretical training that was received in the cafe was clearly not enough to control tanks. Another Cromwell, driven by a Jewish driver, went off the road and literally got stuck in the sand. Trying to free the tank from the trap, the inexperienced driver only damaged the gearbox. As a result, the combat vehicle had to be abandoned. Subsequently, it became clear that the two abandoned tanks helped the others escape. In the atmosphere of terrible confusion that arose at the British base after the daring hijacking, officers spent at least 30 minutes clarifying the situation and inspecting the two abandoned tanks, which allowed the other two Cromwells to successfully break away from the pursuit.

Directly at Kibbutz Yagur, the tanks were supposed to meet trailers designed to transport them, but there were no trucks on site. It was dangerous to wait for their arrival, since by that time the British had launched aircraft into the air, which were supposed to find and destroy the fugitives. Therefore, the Cromwells rushed to Tel Aviv, but under their own power. Ahead, showing the tankers the way, was the Hagan jeep. And old trucks, purchased in advance during preparation for the operation, loaded with rubble and with punctured tires, blocked junctions after the passing tanks, cutting them off from possible pursuers. The combat vehicles that reached Tel Aviv were hidden directly in the courtyard of a residential building in one of the eastern suburbs of the city - Givatayim.

Tank stolen by Mike Flanagan

Upon learning of the successful theft of tanks, the British command was furious. The officers refused to participate in the farewell banquet organized by the mayor of Haifa and, hoping to somehow hush up this shameful story for the British army, unofficially proposed an exchange, giving the Haganah three tanks of a different type in exchange for the two stolen Cromwells. Apparently, the proposal turned out to be not so interesting and the British officers were refused.

And a week later, both stolen Cromwell tanks ended up at the location of the 82nd tank battalion of the 8th tank brigade of Yitzhak Sade. Actually, they, together with the Sherman tank, which at that time did not have a gun, made up the first and only heavy tank company of the Israeli army at that time. In addition to them, the tank brigade had only a few light French tanks, which were recaptured from the Syrians during the fighting in May 1948.

In July of the same year, an Israeli tank unit took part in a daring and successful operation"Dani", which resulted in the subsequent capture of Lydda Airport (today Ben Gurion Airport) and other strategic positions located in the center of the country. In October 1948, the brigade was transferred to the southern front, where, during Operation Joab, it was able to capture the Iraqi Suwaydan police fort. And during the winter Operation Horev, Israeli tanks managed to defeat parts of the Egyptians and reached the border with Sinai.

The memory of the first Israeli Cromwells lives on to this day; the silhouette of this tank adorned the emblem that can be found on the berets of Israeli tank crews. The tanks themselves were able to get into the Museum of Tank Forces, located on the site of the British Fort Latrun, which was never captured during the War of Independence (the Israelis captured the fort only during the Six-Day War). British sergeants Harry MacDonald and Michael Flanagan remained in Israel, enlisting in Sadeh's brigade. Over time, MacDonald left the service and left Israel, and Flanagan converted, married Ruth Levy, who served in the same unit, and settled with her on Kibbutz Sha'ar Ha'Amakim.

It is still quite difficult to judge what exactly made two British Army sergeants desert in the summer of 1948, taking their tanks with them. Over time this story, as often happens, has grown a large number legends - both about the girls with whom the Haganah seduced the sergeants, and about the huge monetary reward, and about the fact that Israeli underground fighters threatened the sergeant with weapons. Perhaps the fact that both hijackers were Irish and Scottish by nationality and did not feel entirely comfortable in the British army also played a role.

However, Amnon Doumani, who personally knew Flangan for many years while he lived in Kibbutz Shaar HaAmakim, is convinced that the Irishman was not pushed to steal the tank by lyrical or commercial reasons. His choice was influenced by something completely different. Michael Flangan graduated from military school at the age of 16, and at the age of 19 he took part in the liberation of the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in Europe. In the concentration camp, he saw something that greatly shocked him and changed his life forever. However, he never spoke in detail about the camp he saw, trying to avoid these conversations. During his service in Palestine after the end of World War II, he became openly sympathetic to the Jews, eventually deciding to stay in the country to help the young state survive the fight against the Arabs. Sergeant Harry MacDonald was like-minded and supported his choice.

Sources of information:

At the first stage, the tanks only underwent standardization - repairs, replacement of machine guns and radio equipment, as well as a number of other minor changes (spare parts were partly produced independently, partly purchased in Finland). In total in 1968-69. According to official data, 146 tanks were standardized - 139 in 1968 and 7 in 1969 (previously, the numbers 147, 151 and 154 were found in unofficial sources). Later (before the 1973 war), the original 100 mm gun was replaced by the 105 mm M68. According to some sources, a total of 250 T-54/55 tanks were rearmed in Israel, including trophies from 1973.

T-54/55 tanks took part in the War of Attrition 1969-1970. (including Operation Raviv 09/09/69 - a raid of 6 T-55s and 3 BTR-50s with paratroopers along the African coast of the Gulf of Suez), then in the Yom Kippur War of 1973 (by the beginning of the war they made up 7.6% of the Israeli tank fleet). The irretrievable losses of the T-54/55 amounted to 7 vehicles (it should be noted that the brigade equipped with these tanks entered the battle only on October 12).

During the 1973 war, Israel captured about 1,500 Arab tanks (including 200 T-62), of which 550 were operational. Of these tanks, 400 were put into operation, incl. 72 T-62. In the mid-70s. T-54/55/62 accounted for up to 20% of the IDF tank fleet. T-62 tanks underwent the same standardization as the T-54/55, but retained the 115 mm smoothbore gun. In the late 70s - early 80s. T-54/55/62 received mounted dynamic protection, a heat-insulating casing for the gun barrel, etc. It is possible that after the 1973 war, T-54s were no longer used - more advanced T-55s were enough.

Israeli T-54/55s did not participate in the main battles of the 1982 war. However, after the start of the siege of West Beirut, a number of T-54/55s were transferred by sea to Christian areas to strengthen the blockade of Palestinian-controlled areas from the east. It is not clear whether they were immediately transferred to Christian militias - Israel has been supplying them with such tanks since the early 80s. - or acted as part of IDF units. In the 1982 war, Israel captured up to 400 Arab tanks (of which up to 200 were serviceable), mainly T-62, as well as T-54/55, etc. Perhaps a number of these vehicles were subsequently put into service.

Estimates of the number of these tanks in the IDF by the IISS reference book vary greatly different years- 250-488 for T-54/55, 70-150 for T-62. Since 1999, it has been estimated at 200 T-54/55 (in storage) and 100 T-62. As for the JCSS, for the modernized T-55s it gave the figure 250 in 1983-1986, then their withdrawal from service began, ending in 1993. The number of T-62s was estimated at 150 in 1983-1991, 140 in 1992- 94, 70 in 1994-95, 50 from 1996 until now.

As for the re-export of T-54/55, then, as already mentioned, since the beginning of the 80s. they were supplied to the Lebanese Christian militias, as well as the South Lebanon Army (SLA). For example, about 18 T-54s were delivered to ALE in 1987. Since the late 80s. ALE constantly had approximately 30 T-54/55. Back on 12/03/99, less than six months before the withdrawal of the IDF from the Security Zone in Southern Lebanon, the Bamahan magazine reported Israel’s intention to transfer another 15 such tanks to the SLA (although it was not reported whether the transfer took place). After the collapse of the SLA in May 2000, some of the tanks returned to Israel, some were destroyed (including bombing by Israeli aircraft), and several ended up with Hezbollah.

In 1990, 30 T-55s were sold to Ethiopia, and in 1997-98. 15 (11 according to another source) T-55 - to Uruguay.

In the IDF, the T-54/55 tanks, and then the T-62, received the name “Tyrant”, and the word is not from the name of the island at the exit of the Gulf of Eilat in the Red Sea, but “cruel ruler”...
Distinguished:
- "Tiran-4" - T-54;
- "Tiran-4Sh" - T-54 with a 105 mm cannon;
- "Tiran-5" - T-55;
- "Tiran-5Sh" - T-55 with a 105 mm cannon;
- "Tiran-6" - T-62.
Here "Sh" (the letter "shin" in Hebrew) comes from the word "Sharir" ("Strong") - this is how the IDF called the 105-mm English gun (both the original L7 and its American version M68, as well as the version produced in Israel under license from IMI).

By 1984, the Israeli company Nimda upgraded the T-54/55/62 into the T-54/55/62 S series (Samovar). The above tanks sold to Uruguay were modernized according to this project. The IDF never used the name "Samovar".

The last message related to "Tiran" appeared at the end of 2005 (Hadashot Bamahane, 12/30/2005). The article states that the IDF is replacing Tiran tanks in units of the Southern Military District with MAGAHs, and the old Tirans will be converted into heavy armored personnel carriers.
(Waronline, 2006)