Goryunov SG-43 heavy machine gun cartridge caliber 7.62 mm

The 7.62-mm Goryunov machine gun (SG-43, GAU Index - 56-P-428) is a Soviet heavy machine gun.

Story

After the defeat of the Nazis near Moscow, the question of a lightweight machine gun arose with new urgency. Maxim's machine gun continued to reliably serve our army thanks to the power and accuracy of its fire. However, although indispensable in defensive battles, the heavy weight of the machine gun had a negative effect on the offensive. Another factor was that the water needed to cool the barrel was not always available. One of the reviews from the front stated: “In terms of its weight (70 kg), the Maxim machine gun is an unsatisfactory design that reduces the maneuverability of units... The experience of military units in the use of heavy machine guns in the Patriotic War showed that heavy machine guns weighing over 40 kilograms in offensive operations are heavy and do not meet the conditions of maneuver warfare...”

In May 1942, in accordance with the order of the People's Commissar of Armaments of the USSR D.F. Ustinov, a competition was announced for the development of a new design of an easel machine gun for the Red Army (to replace the Maxim machine gun model 1910/30)

After the war, V. A. Degtyarev recalled: Another designer, hitherto unknown, announced himself. He was Pyotr Maksimovich Goryunov, who worked at the Kovrov plant. He was not young, he worked with us for fifteen years, he was known as an amazing craftsman, but he never showed himself either as an inventor or as a designer. And suddenly one day, just before dawn, Goryunov comes to me with a large package. This was the summer of 1942. — Vasily Alekseevich, look at the model of my machine gun. I’ve been going to see you many times, but I’ve always felt ashamed. I examined Goryunov’s model and, I admit, I couldn’t believe my eyes. The model was conceived taking into account the latest achievements in weapon automation. - When did you do this, Maksimych? - I asked. “I’ve been thinking about it for a long time, but I assembled the model recently, when I heard that we were given the task of creating a new heavy machine gun.

Goryunov SG-43 heavy machine gun

An experimental machine gun proposed for the competition, developed at the Kovrov Mechanical Plant by gunsmith P. M. Goryunov with the participation of M. M. Goryunov and V. E. Voronkov, was transferred for testing at the end of 1942. In May 1943, the results of field tests were summed up, according to the results of which the Goryunov machine gun won the competition for heavy machine guns.

On May 15, 1943, under the name SG-43, the heavy machine gun was adopted by the Red Army. The SG-43 began to enter service with the troops in June 1943. In 1944, designers G. Garanin and V. Seleznev developed a simplified wheeled machine for the SG-43, which was characterized by much higher performance when operating in difficult conditions.

In 1945, the machine gun itself was improved. To improve heat transfer, the barrel received transverse ribs instead of a smooth outer surface, the reloading handle, for ease of shooting from a prone and sitting position, was moved from under the fire control handles to the right side of the receiver, and an adjustable barrel lock was introduced, which made it possible to replace the heated barrel almost seamlessly.

Goryunov SGM heavy machine gun (on a wheeled machine, with a shield)

In general, before the end of the Great Patriotic War, over 80 thousand SG-43s were manufactured and transferred to the active army. Soon after the end of the Great Patriotic War, the machine gun was once again modernized. The rearmament of Soviet Army units with Goryunov machine guns was completed in the late 1940s and early 1950s.

Automation or parts of the SG-43 device were subsequently used to create single machine guns Type 67, KGK and SS-77. A single machine gun designed by Silin and Pererushev based on the SGM participated in the 1956 competition for a single machine gun, in which the Kalashnikov machine gun won.

For the creation of an easel machine gun, which was widely used at the front, Pyotr Maksimovich Goryunov (posthumously), Vasily Efimovich Voronkov, Mikhail Mikhailovich Goryunov and Vasily Alekseevich Degtyarev were awarded the Stalin Prize of the first degree.

Goryunov P.M. died on December 23, 1943, returning from Moscow, where he was debugging his machine guns before being sent to the front.

Top view of the SGM receiver, the lid is open; the gripper that removes the cartridges from the belt and the charging handle are visible.

Direct shot range:

— along the chest figure — 420 m; - according to a running figure - 640 m.

The bullet retains its lethal effect throughout the entire flight range (up to 3800 m). The muzzle energy of a bullet with a steel core is 3511 J, the 1930 model bullet is 3776 J. The combat rate of fire is 250-300 rounds per minute. The barrel is cooled by air. Intensive burst fire is possible up to 500 rounds, after which it is necessary to replace or cool the barrel.

Requirements for normal single combat for the Goryunov machine gun:

— all four holes fit into a circle with a diameter of 15 cm; - the average point of impact deviates from the control point by no more than 5 cm in any direction.

Requirements for normal burst combat for the Goryunov machine gun:

- at least eight holes out of ten fit into a circle with a diameter of 20 cm; - the average point of impact deviates from the control point by no more than 5 cm in any direction.

The battle is checked by shooting at a test target (cut off along the fourth horizontal line) or a black rectangle 30 cm high and 20 cm wide, mounted on a white shield 1 m high and 1 m wide. Firing range - 100 m, cartridges - with an ordinary bullet (with steel core or lightweight model 1908), sight - 3 (on the “L” scale).

Weight

- 13.5 kg (machine gun body) - 36.9 kg (on a wheeled machine) - 27.7 kg (on a tripod machine) - 8.75 kg (box with a loaded belt for 200 cartridges with bullets of the 1930 model) - 10 .25 kg (box with a loaded belt for 250 rounds with bullets of the 1930 model) - 8 kg (box with a loaded belt for 200 rounds with bullets with a steel core) - 9.5 kg (box with a loaded belt for 250 rounds with bullets with a steel core) - 9.5 kg (box with a loaded belt for 250 rounds with bullets with a steel core steel core) - 8.25 kg (box with a loaded belt for 200 rounds with bullets of the 1908 model) - 9.75 kg (box with a loaded tape for 250 rounds with bullets of the 1908 model) - 0.6 kg (anti-aircraft foreshortening sight )

Options and upgrades

SG-43 - the first produced samples were installed on a Sokolov wheeled machine, but the serial SG-43s were installed on a wheeled machine designed by V. A. Degtyarev

SGM is a modernized machine tool, installed on a wheeled machine designed by V. A. Degtyarev or a tripod machine designed by Sidorenko-Malinovsky.

SGMB is an armored personnel carrier, mounted on the front, side or rear bracket of an armored personnel carrier.

SGMT is a tank type, installed inside the tank turret on the gun cradle bracket, and has an electric trigger.

Device

The body of the Goryunov machine gun consists of the following main elements:

- barrel, - receiver with sight, - barrel lock, - receiver, - bolt carrier with piston, - bolt, - reloading handle, - trigger mechanism, - butt plate, - recoil spring.

The accessory of the Goryunov machine gun consists of: a cleaning rod, a combination wrench, an oiler, a drift, a extractor, an crank rod with a brush, a barrel locking key and a hammer.

The SGMT machine gun is equipped with an electric trigger in a special housing on the butt plate.

Sighting device

The sighting device of the Goryunov machine gun consists of a front sight and a sight, which in turn consists of a sight base, a sighting frame with a spring and a clamp with a rear sight. On the walls of the aiming frame there are divisions with numbers: for a light bullet of the 1908 model, a bullet with a steel core and special bullets - on the right side (the letter “L” and numbers from 0 to 20, indicating the range in hundreds of meters), for a heavy bullet of the model 1930 - on the left side (letter “T” and numbers from 0 to 23). There is a mark on the rear sight, and on the back side of the clamp there are marks for lateral corrections (five marks to the left and right of the main mark) for installing the rear sight. Each division of the rear sight is equal to one thousandth of the range.

To fire at air targets, an anti-aircraft sight is installed on the machine gun, designed to fire at air targets moving at a speed of no more than 600 km/h at ranges up to 1000 m. This sight consists of a sight base, front and rear visors. The front visor consists of concentric rings (with radii of 20, 40, 60 and 80 mm) for selecting lead, a central ring for sight alignment and a front visor stand. The rear sight consists of a ball, a locking screw (for sight alignment) and a rear sight stand.

Automation operating principle

The operation of the SG-43 automation is based on the use of the energy of powder gases removed from the barrel bore. The barrel bore is locked by tilting the bolt to the right. When fired, part of the powder gases that push the bullet out is directed through a hole in the barrel wall into the gas chamber and presses on the piston, causing the bolt frame to move back. The bolt remains in place until the bullet leaves the barrel, closing it and preventing gases from escaping into the receiver.

After the bullet leaves, the moving parts continue to move back, thereby compressing the recoil spring. The bolt opens the bore and removes the cartridge case from the chamber. The engine removes the next cartridge from the belt and feeds it into the longitudinal window of the receiver. The cartridge case is ejected from the receiver, the slide feeds the cartridge into the receiving window of the receiver.

If the trigger remains pressed, then the bolt frame with the bolt, under the influence of the return spring, rushes forward without stopping in the rear position. The bolt pushes the cartridge out of the longitudinal window of the receiver and sends it into the chamber. When the moving parts occupy the extreme position, the bolt closes the barrel bore. The firing pin breaks the cartridge's primer, a shot occurs, and the automatic operation repeats.

SG-43 (SGMB) on BRDM

Operating countries

- USSR - Poland: the first SG-43 machine guns were transferred to the 1st Army of the Polish Army during the Great Patriotic War, after the war the machine gun was adopted by the Polish Army under the name ckm SG-43 and was produced under license. — Hungary: produced under license. The modification had a pistol grip. — Vietnam — GDR — Egypt: produced under license. — Indonesia — China: produced under license. — Czechoslovakia: produced under license. — Belarus: in December 2005 they were withdrawn from service and sent for disposal

SGM (SG-43) on a wheeled machine with an anti-aircraft foreshortening sight

Gatling gun (USA)

The Gatling gun (eng. Gatling gun - Gatling gun, also Gatling canister, sometimes just "Gatling") is a multi-barreled rapid-fire small arms weapon, one of the first examples of a machine gun.

Patented by Dr. Richard Jordan Gatling in 1862 under the name Revolving Battery Gun. The predecessor of the Gatling gun is the mitrailleuse.

The Gatling is equipped with a top-mounted magazine with gravity-fed ammunition (without a spring). During the cycle of rotating the block of barrels by 360°, each barrel fires a single shot, is released from the cartridge case and loaded again. During this time, natural cooling of the barrel occurs. The rotation of the barrels in the first Gatling models was carried out manually, in later ones an electric drive was used for it. The rate of fire of manually driven models ranged from 200 to 1000 rounds per minute, and when using an electric drive it could reach 3000 rounds per minute.

The first prototypes of the Gatling gun were first used during the American Civil War. Machine guns were adopted by the US Army in 1866 after a manufacturing company representative demonstrated them on the battlefield. With the advent of single-barrel machine guns, operating on the principle of using the recoil energy of the barrel during its short stroke, the Gatling gun, like other multi-barrel systems, gradually fell out of use. Their significantly higher rate of fire did not have a significant impact on the fate of the Gatlings, since at that time there was no longer any special need for a rate of fire above 400 rounds per minute. But single-barrel systems clearly outperformed the Gatling gun in weight, maneuverability and ease of loading, which ultimately determined the priority of the single-barrel system. But the Gatlings were never completely supplanted - they continued to be installed on warships as air defense systems. Multi-barreled systems gained particular relevance during the Second World War, when the progress of aviation required the creation of automatic cannons and machine guns with a very high rate of fire.

Notes

1. ↑ Manual on shooting. 7.62 mm Goryunov machine gun (SGM, SGMB, SGMT). 1968
2. ↑
3. ↑ Novikov V.N. “On the eve and on the days of testing.” M.: Politizdat, 1988. - 398 p. Circulation 200,000 copies
4. ↑ Goryunov machine gun // “Equipment and weapons”, No. 4, 1983. p. 42
5. Babylon - "Civil War in North America" ​​/ . - M.: Military Publishing House of the Ministry of Defense of the USSR, 1979. - P. 617. - (Soviet Military Encyclopedia: ; 1976-1980, vol. 2).
6. D.F. Ustinov. In the name of Victory. M., Voenizdat, 1988. p.226
7. In flames and glory. Essays on the history of the Red Banner Siberian Military District. / editorial coll., pres. A. F. Mishchenko. Novosibirsk, West Siberian book. publishing house, 1969. p.343
8. Roman Simak. In the armies of the CIS // “Red Star” dated December 13, 2005

Colt Browning machine gun Colt Browning M1895

The first truly operational machine gun, using the energy of the previous shot to reload, appeared in the United States only in 1895, through the works of the legendary gunsmith John Moses Browning. Browning began experimenting with weapons that used the energy of powder gases for reloading back in 1891. The first experimental model, created by him for the .45-70 cartridge with black powder, was demonstrated to Colt, and businessmen from Hartford agreed to finance further work in this direction. In 1896, the US Navy adopted the Browning-designed Colt M1895 machine gun, chambered for the 6mm Lee cartridge then in service with the Navy. During the same period, the US Army purchased a small number of M1895 machine guns (nicknamed “potato diggers” by the troops for the characteristic lever that swings under the barrel) chambered for the .30-40 Krag military cartridge. The M1895 machine guns received their baptism of fire (side by side with hand-operated Gatling guns) in the US-Spain conflict that took place in Cuba in 1898. It is interesting that later Russia became one of the most widespread users of Browning M1895 machine guns, purchasing them in significant quantities (chambered in Russian 7.62mm) after the outbreak of the First World War.

The Colt Model 1895 machine gun used gas-operated automatics with a piston located under the barrel that rocked back and forth in a vertical plane. In the position before the shot, the gas piston lever was located under the barrel parallel to it, the piston head entered the transverse gas outlet hole in the barrel wall. After the shot, the powder gases pushed the piston head down, causing the piston lever to rotate down and back around an axis located under the barrel closer to the receiver of the weapon. Through the pusher system, the movement of the lever was transmitted to the bolt, and a distinctive feature of the system was that in the initial period of opening the bolt, its rollback speed was minimal, and the opening force was maximum, which significantly increased the reliability of removing spent cartridges. The barrel bore was locked by tilting the rear part of the bolt downwards. The massive lever, swinging under the barrel at a considerable speed, required sufficient free space under the barrel of the machine gun, otherwise the lever began to literally dig up the ground, for which the machine gun received the nickname “potato digger” among the troops.

The machine gun barrel was air-cooled, non-replaceable, and had a fairly significant mass. The machine gun fired from a closed bolt, with automatic fire only. The trigger mechanism included a trigger hidden inside the receiver. The cocking handle was located on the swinging lever of the gas piston. To simplify loading, a cord was sometimes attached to it, with a jerk for recharging. The cartridges were fed from canvas belts; the cartridge was fed from the tape in two steps - as the bolt rolled back, the cartridge was pulled back from the belt, and then fed into the chamber as the bolt rolled back. The tape feeding mechanism had a simple design and used a gear shaft driven through a ratchet mechanism by a bolt pusher connected to a gas piston. The direction of feed of the tape is from left to right. The fire controls included a single pistol grip on the buttplate of the receiver, which later became traditional for Browning machine guns, and a trigger. The machine gun was used from a massive tripod machine of a relatively simple design, which had guidance mechanisms and a saddle for the shooter.

Principle of operation

The weapon uses the energy of powder gases removed from the barrel channel. The latter is blocked by tilting the shutter to the right.

During a shot, the flow of powder gases is partially redirected through the barrel hole into the gas chamber and puts pressure on the piston, which retracts the bolt frame. Until the bullet exits, the bolt does not move, blocking the barrel and preventing gases from escaping into the box.

After the bullet leaves the barrel, the moving parts of the machine gun continue to move backward, compressing the spring. The bolt then unlocks the barrel; The cartridge case is removed from the chamber. Ammunition from a metal or canvas tape enters the barrel box window. The cartridges are ejected from it. Using a slider mechanism, cartridges are fed into a tape receiver with a hinged lid that speeds up reloading.

If the trigger is pressed, the bolt frame, under the action of a spring, rushes forward without remaining in the rearmost position. The bolt pushes the cartridge out of the receiver window and sends it into the chamber. The moving parts reach their limit position; the shutter blocks the barrel channel. The upper protrusion of the bolt frame hits the firing pin, firing from the rear sear. Then the process is repeated.

The reloading handle protrudes from below under the control handles and remains motionless when firing.

The weapon's automatic control is carried out using a three-position gas regulator. Air cooling allows for 500 rounds of continuous firing. In normal mode, shooting is carried out in short bursts of up to 30 shots. The Goryunov SG-43 heavy machine gun has a firing rate of 250–300 rounds/min. The replaceable barrel has a flash suppressor and a handle, which makes it easier to carry and replace, the time of which does not exceed 7–8 seconds.

Schwarzlose M1907 and M1907/12 heavy machine gun (Austria-Hungary/Austria)

In 1905, tests began in Austria to determine a new, promising machine gun system for the armed forces of the empire. In these tests, the already well-tried and tested system of Sir Hiram Maxim and the new, just patented design of the German Andreas Wilhelm Schwarzlose came face to face. Currently fairly forgotten, the Schwarzlose machine gun was quite a serious weapon for its time. It was reliable, provided firepower quite comparable to the Maxims (except that the effective firing range was shorter), and most importantly, it was noticeably simpler and cheaper to manufacture than the Maxim machine gun or the modified Skoda machine gun. In 1907, after two years of testing and improvements, the Schwarzlose machine gun was adopted by the Austrian Army. Production of the new model was established at an arms factory in the city of Steyr. In 1912, the machine gun underwent a minor modernization, receiving the designation M1907/12. The main differences of this version were the improved design of the lever pair of the shutter and the reinforced design of a number of parts. The external difference was the different shape of the receiver cover, in the front part now reaching the rear section of the barrel casing.

It must be said that the machine gun turned out to be successful - following Austria-Hungary, it was adopted into service in Holland and Sweden (both countries established licensed production of Schwarzlose machine guns, which continued until the mid-1930s). In addition, even before the First World War, Bulgaria, Greece, Romania, Serbia and Turkey purchased Schwarzlose guns in the calibers accepted in their armies. After the loss in the First World War and the subsequent collapse of the empire, these machine guns remained in service in new countries - former parts of the empire (Austria, Hungary and Czechoslovakia). During the war, a fair number of Schwarzlose machine guns were captured by the enemies of the empire - Russia and Italy, while in the Russian army the Schwarzlose machine gun was studied in machine gunner courses along with Maxim and Browning machine guns. In Italy, the captured machine guns were kept in storage until the next war, during which they were used by the Italian army in the African theater of operations (in the original caliber 8x50R).

The machine gun's barrel is relatively short and, as a rule, is equipped with a long conical shock absorber, which reduces the shooter's blinding from the muzzle flash when shooting at dusk.

The cartridges are fed by a belt feed; the canvas feed is fed only from the right side. The cartridge supply system has an extremely simple design with a minimum of parts. The basis of the tape feed mechanism is a toothed drum, each slot of which accommodates one cartridge in the tape pocket. The rotation of the drum is carried out by a simple ratcheting mechanism when the bolt is rolled back, while the topmost cartridge in the drum is removed from the belt back by a special protrusion on the bottom of the bolt when it is rolled back and then fed forward into the chamber as the bolt rolls back. Spent cartridges are thrown out through a window in the left wall of the receiver.

How can I explain it to you? When I was a child, my idol was Arnold Schwarzenegger, I believed that he was the strongest, most honest and would always save me. It’s the same with Goryunov - he is an idol not only for me, but also for many, many who have seen him in battle at least once.

Unimaginable feints, incredible strength, amazing speed and at the same time nobility, respect for the enemy, the desire to fight as cleanly as possible captivate and make Artyom Goryunov almost the most popular fighter both here and abroad. For a newcomer to say that he went 5 on 5 against Goryunov is a special reverent status, the same as saying that he lasted a couple of rounds against Klitschko. And if you manage to knock him down, then consider it as if the day was not in vain, and even if they didn’t win, they managed to knock down the toughest one. )

At the last “ Battle of the Nations ” in Warsaw, the Americans, without holding back their overwhelming emotions, gave Goryunov a cotta and everyone took a photo with him as the main star of our team. There was even a joke that they were ready to take on all the formalities in order to get Artyom a green card and take him to the States for at least a year to coach a team there. )))

I'll tell you a little about the history of the formation of the legend. 10 years ago, in the quiet, cozy town of Zelenograd near Moscow, there was one powerful role-playing team, distinguished by its desire to push hard, as well as to grow and develop. Even then, its most purposeful fighter was Artyom Goryunov , the future main star of our champion team. And everything was calm in this team: they went to games, killed their opponents and rested to the fullest, but the heart wanted more, because textolite swords, fake armor, the need to obey top-level Mages, whom in a real fight you would crush with one left - all this false and to some extent very unfair, alien to the desire to live life to the fullest and win. Therefore, when the captain of this team, Dima Trostin, offered to join the young historical reconstruction club “Bern”, this idea was received warmly and with inspiration, and, as they say, a completely different story began...

Around this time, the story of Goryunov’s famous helmet dates back, which he made himself, stealing some unwanted piece of iron from a factory and making a dome out of it, absorbing absolutely any blows. The helmet was not very beautiful, but it did not feel impacts, so convincing Artyom to replace it was not easy.

And yet, by the 2nd “Battle of the Nations” with its strict requirements for KVD, his teammates persuaded Goryunov to put on a brand new shiny bascinet, specially made personally for him by the craftsmen of “Krechet”. And what? The helmet sparkled amazingly, but it was unusual and uncomfortable to fight in it - Artyom longed for a long time to return to his old friend, who had never let him down. They even say they wanted to order an examination of the metal to understand why it holds up so well - maybe the piece of iron found in an old factory is a super-development of the Soviet defense industry, like a secret alloy and all that)))

Trips, festivals, buhurts-buhurts-buhurts. “Only God is higher than Bern!” - this is how the club’s motto is translated, and with each new fight this phrase began to sound more and more strongly in the heart. “Bern” is a special religion of victory, it is around this idea that the power of the strongest club in our country is built, it infects, unites, brings together, erases all differences and leads forward. And Goryunov loves Bern very much.

Artyom Goryunov always stood out in the club: strong, athletic, with excellent physical characteristics - he was one of those who created the Berne Era in the historical fencing of Russia and contributed to the decline of the St. Petersburg era, during which the “Princely Squad” and the “Livonian Order” dictated their rules at any festival and buhurt.

Along with his hobby, great love also came into Goryunov’s life - it just so happened. Yana complemented Artyom very much: so small and graceful, but very reliable and strong inside, she soon became his support, a quiet haven to which he wants to return, his greatest treasure and family.

Unfortunately, our generation has had to live with the legacy of crazy ideas of the 90s, when even the question “What if life after marriage?” many fell into deep thought, and if a child was born, it was believed that that’s it - you could give up on yourself.

The best proof of the fallacy of this opinion is the Goryunov family. Now they already have three charming kids - the decoration of any festival, but this does not stop them all from going to festivals together, and Artyom from being the strongest Russian fighter. Although, of course, the path to this idyll passed through an almost 3-year break associated with the birth of my first child. But nothing - they endured it, but what wealth and happiness they secured for themselves for the rest of their lives.

This feat of combining reconstruction and family should also not be underestimated. I know from myself how difficult it is and how much effort it takes to preserve love, family and hobbies and not sacrifice anything. Only very strong people, such as Artyom and Yana, are capable of such a breakthrough, and I try my best to be equal to them, although I can’t help myself.)

In 2009, Artyom quickly returned to historical fencing: he began training at the Bern base in the Dynamo SC and playing for the Partizan team. I was once lucky enough to attend a training session at the Dynamo base, which was led by Goryunov - what I remember most was his exactingness and rigor - he very carefully monitored the accuracy of all exercises.

The era of “Partizan” in Goryunov’s life is a special milestone, because it was not just a group of five, but a real family - close-knit, friendly, invincible. For many years, Partizan won in any situation, even when they tried to sue the team, they won by such an incredible margin that no one had any questions, and even a detailed analysis of the video did not provide clues to interpret the results of the buhurts differently. The victorious voyage of 2009-2012 swept through different cities of our country: St. Petersburg, Tula, Priozersk, Rostov-on-Don and so on. Having learned that there would be “Partizan”, some teams withdrew and did not come to the tournament, while others lost battles, without even particularly trying to defeat the invincible. Only a few desperate fives competed with Partizan, and each time Goryunov gave them more and more new types of blows: a kick to the head of an opponent 175 tall - how’s that? Is it even possible? Until you see it for yourself, you won’t believe it, but Tyoma did it to the admiring ovation of the audience. Knock down an opponent with a kick to the chest - is that so weak for you? Or deliver a knockout with one blow from a falchion? But even if we don’t take into account the “fantasy”, ordinary blows to the hip, head, and arm performed by Goryunov were enough for a week to straighten out dents in the armor and for 2 weeks to cover up purple bruises and hematomas on the legs and arms.

“Until you go against Goryunov yourself, you still don’t fully understand how powerful he is,” say his opponents. At some point, the dominance of Bern's top five on the 5v5 buhurt courts became so obvious and immutable that it was not even interesting to watch the tournaments, because everyone knew who would win with a high degree of probability.

At the same time, Artyom does not miss a single mass buhurt, be it “all for all”, or 21 vs 21, demonstrating in them how a competent shield fighter can still be mega-effective - even write a textbook.) Participates in professional fights, winning simply incredible victories over the strongest rivals: Kadaira, Makukha and Vasilinich. By the way, perhaps it was precisely on the wave of passion for professional fighting in 2013 that Tyoma moved to the Nizhny Novgorod team “Bear's Patch”, for which other strongest professional fighters Vitaly Gryzlov and Alexander Nikitin fight.

“Battle of the Nations” opened up new perspectives for the fighters of our entire Team. In the blink of an eye, from just people with an exotic hobby, they turned into world stars, whose lives are watched through the Spiridonov channel by like-minded people from different countries. The euphoria of the first Khotin and the dizzying annealing of the second, the Warsaw repercussions and the exploits of Aigues-Mortes - all this captured, swirled and led into unknown distances.

Now not only our Voronezh guys approached Goryunov with a request to sign the shield, he was known in all 23 BN member countries, photo-corks were taken for magazines, video operators were interviewed, ordinary Buhurtsmen came up to talk, hug and talk about their emotions, that arose while watching his fights.

Goryunov never loses; he’s probably never even heard such a word. And this is not just like that.

This is the result of careful and hard work for results: training, the psychology of the winner, competitions-competitions-competitions as much and as often as possible and not necessarily in HMB. Goryunov wins tournaments in knife fighting, Muay Thai, karate, and God knows how many different martial arts.

Now you are surprised, but in fact there is nothing supernatural in this, if you only know how much effort is invested in being the best, in being a legend.

Maxim machine gun (USA, UK, Russia, USSR)

The Maxim machine gun is a heavy machine gun developed by American-born British gunsmith Hiram Stephens Maxim in 1883. The Maxim machine gun became one of the founders of automatic weapons; it was widely used during the Boer War of 1899–1902, World War I and World War II, and in many minor wars and armed conflicts of the 20th century, and is also found in hot spots around the world and Nowadays.

In 1873, the American inventor Hiram Stephens Maxim (1840-1916) created the first example of an automatic weapon - the Maxim machine gun. He decided to use the recoil energy of the weapon, which had not been used in any way before. But testing and practical use of these weapons were stopped for 10 years, since Maxim was not only a gunsmith and was interested in other things in addition to weapons. His range of interests included various technology, electricity, and so on, and the machine gun was just one of his many inventions. In the early 1880s, Maxim finally took up his machine gun, but in appearance his weapon was already very different from the 1873 model. Perhaps these ten years were spent thinking about, calculating and improving the design in the drawings. After this, Hiram Maxim made a proposal to the US government to accept his machine gun for service. But no one in the USA was interested in the invention, and then Maxim emigrated to Great Britain, where its development initially also did not arouse much interest from the military. However, the British banker Nathaniel Rothschild, who was present at the testing of the new weapon, became seriously interested in it and agreed to finance the development and production of the machine gun.

After a successful demonstration of the machine gun in Switzerland, Italy and Austria, Hiram Maxim came to Russia with a demonstration example of a .45-caliber (11.43 mm) machine gun.

In 1887, the Maxim machine gun chambered for the 10.67 mm Berdan rifle cartridge with black powder was tested.

On March 8, 1888, Emperor Alexander III fired from it. After the tests, representatives of the Russian military department ordered Maxim 12 machine guns mod. 1895 chambered for the 10.67 mm Berdan rifle cartridge.

The company “Sons of Vickers and Maxim” began supplying Maxim machine guns to Russia. The machine guns were delivered to St. Petersburg in May 1899. The Russian navy also became interested in the new weapon and ordered two more machine guns for testing.

Subsequently, the Berdan rifle was removed from service, and the Maxim machine guns were converted to accept the 7.62 mm cartridge of the Russian Mosin rifle. In 1891-1892 Five machine guns chambered for 7.62x54 mm cartridges were purchased for testing. During 1897-1904. Another 291 machine guns were purchased.

By the end of the 1930s, the Maxim design was obsolete. The machine gun without the machine, water and cartridges had a mass of about 20 kg. The weight of Sokolov’s machine is 40 kg, plus 5 kg of water. Since it was impossible to use a machine gun without a machine and water, the working weight of the entire system (without cartridges) was about 65 kg. Moving such weight across the battlefield under fire was not easy. The high profile made camouflage difficult; Damage to the thin-walled casing in battle by a bullet or shrapnel practically rendered the machine gun inoperable. It was difficult to use Maxim in the mountains, where fighters had to use homemade tripods instead of standard machines. Significant difficulties in the summer were caused by supplying the machine gun with water. In addition, the Maxim system was very difficult to maintain. The cloth tape caused a lot of trouble - it was difficult to equip, it wore out, broke, and absorbed water. For comparison, the single Wehrmacht machine gun MG-34 had a mass of 10.5 kg without cartridges, was powered by a metal belt and did not require water for cooling (while being somewhat inferior to the Maxim in firepower, being in this indicator closer to the Degtyarev light machine gun, although and with one important nuance - the MG34 had a quick-change barrel, which made it possible, if there were spare barrels, to fire more intensive bursts from it). Firing from the MG-34 could be carried out without a machine gun, which contributed to the secrecy of the machine gunner’s position.

On the other hand, the positive properties of the Maxim were also noted: thanks to the shockless operation of the automatic system, it was very stable when fired from a standard machine gun, gave even better accuracy than later developments, and allowed very precise fire control. Provided proper maintenance, the machine gun could last twice as long as the established service life, which was already longer than that of new, lighter machine guns.

1 - fuse, 2 - sight, 3 - lock, 4 - filler plug, 5 - casing, 6 - steam exhaust device, 7 - front sight, 8 - muzzle, 9 - cartridge outlet tube, 10 - barrel, 11 - water, 12 - pourer plug, 13 - cap, steam outlet, 15 - return spring, 16 - release lever, 17 - handle, 18 - receiver.

Characteristics

Direct shot range:

• along the chest figure - 420 m;
• according to a running figure - 640 m.

The bullet retains its lethal effect throughout the entire flight range (up to 3800 m). The muzzle energy of a bullet with a steel core is 3511 J, the 1930 model bullet is 3776 J. The combat rate of fire is 250-300 rounds per minute. The barrel is cooled by air. Intensive burst fire is possible up to 500 rounds, after which it is necessary to replace or cool the barrel.

Requirements for normal single combat for a Goryunov machine gun: (Firing range - 100 m)

• all four holes fit into a circle with a diameter of 15 cm;
• the average point of impact deviates from the control point by no more than 5 cm in any direction.

Requirements for normal burst combat for a Goryunov machine gun: (Firing range - 100 m)

• at least eight holes out of ten fit into a circle with a diameter of 20 cm;
• the average point of impact deviates from the control point by no more than 5 cm in any direction.

The battle is checked by shooting at a test target (cut off along the fourth horizontal line) or a black rectangle 30 cm high and 20 cm wide, mounted on a white shield 1 m high and 1 m wide. Firing range - 100 m, cartridges - with an ordinary bullet (with steel core or lightweight model 1908), sight - 3 (on the “L” scale).

Indicators of the total dispersion of bullets with a steel core when firing bursts from the SG-43 and SGM reduced to normal combat:

Indicators of the total dispersion of bullets with a steel core when firing bursts from SGMB and SGMT reduced to normal combat:

Weight

Weight in kg. 13.5 (machine gun body) 36.9 (on a wheeled machine) 27.7 (on a tripod machine) 8.75 (box with a loaded belt for 200 cartridges with bullets of the 1930 model) 10.25 (box with a loaded belt for 250 cartridges with bullets of the 1930 model) 8 (a box with a loaded belt for 200 rounds of bullets with a steel core) 9.5 (a box with a loaded belt for 250 rounds of bullets with a steel core) 8.25 (a box with a loaded belt for 200 rounds with bullets of the 1908 model) 9.75 (box with a loaded tape for 250 rounds of bullets of the 1908 model) 0.6 (anti-aircraft foreshortening sight)

Browning M1921 M2 M2HB M2HB-QCB heavy machine gun (USA)

The 12.7mm (0.5 inch) machine gun was developed in the USA by John M. Browning at the end of the First World War. This machine gun was, in general, a slightly enlarged copy of the M1917 machine gun, designed by the same Browning, and had a water-cooled barrel. In 1923 it entered service with the US Army and Navy under the designation "M1921", primarily as an anti-aircraft weapon. In 1932, the machine gun underwent its first modernization, which consisted of the development of a universal design of mechanisms and receiver, which allowed the machine gun to be used both in aviation and in ground installations, with water or air cooling and the ability to change the direction of feed of the belt. This variant was designated M2, and began to enter service with the US Army and Navy in both air-cooled (as an infantry support weapon) and water-cooled (as an anti-aircraft weapon) version. To provide the necessary fire intensity, a heavier barrel was developed in the air-cooled version, and the machine gun received its current designation Browning M2HB (Heavy Barrel). In addition to the USA, in the pre-war period, Browning heavy machine guns were also produced under license in Belgium, by the FN company. During the Second World War, almost 2 million M2 12.7mm machine guns were produced in the United States, of which about 400,000 were in the M2HB infantry version, used both on infantry machines and on various armored vehicles.

The Browning M2HB heavy-caliber machine gun uses the recoil energy of the barrel during its short stroke for automatic operation. The bolt is engaged with the barrel shank using a locking wedge that is movable in a vertical plane. The design includes a lever-type shutter accelerator. The barrel has its own return spring and recoil buffer; in the rear part of the receiver there is an additional recoil buffer for the bolt group. Air-cooled barrel, replaceable (quick-change without adjustments on modern versions). The cartridges are fed from a loose metal tape with a closed link; the direction of feed of the tape is switched by rearranging a special selector on the upper surface of the bolt and rearranging a number of parts of the tape feeding mechanism. The cartridge is removed from the belt by the bolt as it rolls back, then lowered to the chambering line and fed into the barrel as the bolt rolls back. The spent cartridges are thrown down.

DOMESTIC ARMORED VEHICLES 1945–1965 (VII)

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Tank machine guns

In the first post-war years, all domestic military-produced tanks in service used well-proven coaxial, frontal and rear 7.62 mm DTM machine guns and 12.7 mm DShK anti-aircraft machine guns (only on heavy tanks).

At the first stage of development of tank weapons (1945–1955), taking into account the experience of the Great Patriotic War, in the designs of the first post-war tanks the number of machine guns was increased while the use of front and rear machine guns was simultaneously abandoned. Thus, on the T-54 medium tank produced before 1949, four machine guns were installed (two external frontal, coaxial with a cannon and anti-aircraft), on the experimental heavy tank “Object 260” (IS-7) mod. 1948 - eight machine guns (three gun embrasures mounted in movable armor, an anti-aircraft gun and four external gun guns). A large number of stationary forward machine guns, designed for non-aimed shooting, were mounted more for the moral impact on the enemy during an attack than for destroying his manpower. However, later, due to the difficulty of ensuring reloading, eliminating delays during firing, and protecting from damage, external forward-facing machine gun mounts did not become widespread. The frontal machine gun was preserved only on medium tanks (inside the hull, behind the upper frontal plate).

All production tanks used a machine gun coaxial with the cannon, which was explained by the ease of use by the gunner, the relatively small occupied volume and reliable protection. In addition, the subsequent introduction of a gun stabilizer made it possible to conduct accurate fire from a machine gun right away.

The refusal to install front and rear machine guns was due to the following reasons: limited firing angles, the need to place a machine gunner at the machine gun, as well as weakened armor protection due to the large hole for the ball joint at the weapon installation site. In addition, the use of an electric turret rotation drive on post-war tanks made it possible to turn the turret in the required direction in a short period of time and open fire from a coaxial machine gun.

At the first stage of the development of tank weapons, large-caliber anti-aircraft machine guns became widespread, and they began to be installed as additional weapons on all heavy and medium tanks, with the exception of light tanks created during this period.

Simultaneously with the choice of options for installing machine gun weapons in post-war tanks, work began to improve the design of tank machine guns. Soon after the end of the war, the 7.62-mm DTM machine gun (installed on tanks since January 1945), which no longer met the new requirements for rate of fire and reliability, was replaced by the 7.62-mm SG-43 machine gun (since 1949). – SGMT). Compared to the DTM machine gun, it was more reliable and had a belt feed. The disadvantage of the machine gun was its large mass.

In 1962, the SGMT machine gun was replaced by a 7.62 mm PKT machine gun, developed by M.T. Kalashnikov on the basis of a single PK machine gun in 1961. This machine gun had the same ballistic characteristics as the SGMT machine gun, so no design changes were required in the tank sights. Compared to the PK barrel, the PKT machine gun barrel was made more massive (by 1.2 kg) to ensure more intense fire. Maintaining the same accuracy of fire as the SGMT machine gun and reducing barrel roll in the receiver was ensured by introducing a piston guide tube spring. To reduce gas contamination in the fighting compartment, the gas regulator was made according to the principle of changing the cross-section of the gas outlet. In addition, the machine gun butt was abolished. Instead of a stock, an electric trigger mechanism was attached to the buttplate of the receiver for remote control of the machine gun's fire. The unification in the fastening of the receiver of the PKT machine gun and the SGMT machine gun was preserved by changing the design of the front and rear receiver liners in the PKT machine gun (compared to the PC). For many years, the PKT machine gun became the single 7.62 mm machine gun for most domestic armored vehicles.

During these same years, designer V.I. Silin developed an original design for a special tank machine gun chambered for a 7.62 mm standard rifle cartridge. The automatic operation of this machine gun was based on the principle of using the energy of powder gases. The barrel bore was locked using a wedge gate. The dimensions of the part of the machine gun that was located behind the armor were significantly reduced. The machine gun was powered from a one-piece machine gun belt, since the cartridges were automatically inserted back into the belt after extraction.

In parallel with the development of a special tank machine gun chambered for a standard rifle cartridge, a similar design was developed for the mod cartridge. 1943. The difference between these two systems was that the machine gun was chambered for mod. 1943 did not have locking elements, but only a free shutter with a mass that ensured normal operation of the automation. However, further work on these machine guns was stopped due to the adoption of the PKT machine gun.

The 12.7 mm DShK mod. machine gun was used as an anti-aircraft weapon on post-war tanks. 1938/46 (modernized) and put into service in 1949. 14.5 mm KPVT machine gun. The modernized DShK machine gun (the name DShKM was introduced in 1956) differed from the previous model in a new power mechanism, a modified bolt assembly, as well as the design of a number of parts. It was installed on medium tanks T-54 and its modifications, as well as twin and anti-aircraft on heavy tanks IS-4 (IS-4M), T-10, T-10A and T-10B. The KPVT machine gun served as a coaxial and anti-aircraft machine gun on the T-10M heavy tank, and every fifth tank had a KPVT anti-aircraft machine gun. As an auxiliary weapon, the KPVT coaxial machine gun was also installed on the experimental heavy tanks “Object 770”, “Object 277” and “Object 279”. On heavy tanks, coaxial machine guns, in addition to their main purpose, were also used to zero in the main weapon when firing at enemy tanks.

The automation of all tank machine guns worked on the principle of removing part of the powder gases, with the exception of the KPVT machine gun, the automation of which worked on the principle of using the recoil of the barrel with a short stroke.

To mount coaxial machine guns with a cannon, a fixed machine gun mount was used. The SGMT (PKT) machine gun was mounted on two supports: a front one with a spring shock absorber, which partially absorbed and softened vibrations of the machine gun when firing, and a rear support with a movable slider. The gunner fired from the coaxial machine gun. Loading and cocking of the machine gun was carried out by the loader. The machine gun's electric trigger button was located on the handle of the turret rotation mechanism or on the controller (on tanks equipped with a stabilizer - on the left handle of the control panel). The installation of the PKT coaxial machine gun differed from the installation of the SGMT coaxial machine gun only in the design and fastening of the sleeve tape catcher.

The installation of the KPVT coaxial machine gun also had a third fulcrum in the turret embrasure. The machine gun was equipped with an electric trigger and a pulse shot counter. To remotely control loading and reloading, a pneumatic charging mechanism was used, powered by a compressed air cylinder. The spent cartridges were reflected forward and retracted outside the tank's turret using a specially installed cartridge outlet. Increasing the rigidity of the casing and the ability to replace the machine gun barrel without screwing the piston together were ensured by increasing the diameter of its casing.

The forward-facing machine gun SGMT (PKT) was installed on medium tanks T-54 and its modifications, as well as on T-55 (inside the hull to the right of the driver on a bracket with front and rear sliders). To cock the machine gun, a cable drive with a handle was used. The machine gun was fired by the driver through a hole in the upper frontal plate of the hull. The machine gun was aimed horizontally by turning the tank. The electric release button was located at the top of the right PMP control lever.

The anti-aircraft machine guns of serial tanks were mounted on open turrets, since the remote control of an anti-aircraft machine gun during firing was still at the development and development stage. The installation of the DShK (DShKM) machine gun included a bracket attached to the movable shoulder strap of the loader's hatch base, into the hole of which the fork pin entered (the machine gun cradle was attached to it with pins). The cradle was balanced by a spring balancing mechanism. The aiming in the vertical plane is free, in the horizontal plane it is together with the hatch strap. Subsequently, to facilitate aiming the machine gun (especially when firing immediately), manual aiming mechanisms (in the vertical plane) were installed. To fix the machine gun mount at a certain elevation angle when firing, there was a shoe brake that was tightened manually.

The turret mount for the KPVT machine gun was additionally equipped with a manual mechanical drive for rotation in the horizontal plane, and an electromagnetic brake was used to lock it at the moment of firing.

In the fall of 1947, in order to increase the firepower of the machine gun weapons of the T-54 medium tank, the design bureau of plant No. 183 began a preliminary study of the installation of the KPVT anti-aircraft machine gun. As a result of the work performed, this installation was mounted on prototypes of the T-54M (1954) and Object 139 (1956) medium tanks. A similar anti-aircraft machine gun mount was placed on the experimental medium tank “Object 430” of plant No. 75 (1957). After field tests, the installation of 14.5 mm anti-aircraft machine guns on medium tanks was considered inappropriate due to the excessive destructive effect of a bullet of this caliber when firing at enemy personnel, as well as the cumbersome nature of the installation, which increased the overall height of the vehicles. In addition, with the limited volume allocated for the machine gun’s ammunition storage, its ammunition load was sharply reduced.

Despite the fact that the tanks were equipped with artillery and machine guns and had powerful armor protection, they were easily vulnerable to enemy infantry fire located in the “dead space” of their weapons in case of damage to the chassis and loss of mobility. This problem became most acute at the end of World War II. To solve this problem, the USA and Germany created samples of small arms with curved smooth-bore attachments (a submachine gun of the Reising system and a rifle of the Mauser system), which ensured shooting from behind cover or from a tank through an open hatch, hitting nearby enemy infantry.

After the end of the war, the task of determining the prospects for using curvilinear small arms systems in tanks was solved in the USSR. Thus, to fire at targets located in close proximity to the sides of the tank, in 1948, TsKB-14, at the suggestion of engineer K. G. Kurenkov, created two versions of small arms installations with curved nozzles for the T-54 and IS-3 tanks – TKB-450A and TKB-451. The details of the curved-barrel units for these installations were worked out by N.F. Makarov.

The TKB-450A installation was intended for a 7.62 mm Kalashnikov assault rifle with a curved nozzle, and the TKB-451 installation was intended for a 7.62 mm PP-41 submachine gun mod. 1941 with a curved barrel. Tests of the T-54 and IS-3 tanks with the TKB-450A and TKB-451 installations took place at the NIIBT test site in October-December 1948.

A Kalashnikov assault rifle (or PP-41) with a curved attachment was mounted in a ball joint of the installation, which had a PPKS periscope sight and was installed in the loader's hatch cover. The sight had a magnification of 1.8x, a field of view of 24° and a periscope of 400 mm. The optical design of the sight ensured a comfortable position for the shooter when shooting, ease of operation and fire control while simultaneously observing through the sight.

The vertical aiming angles of the TKB-450A installation ranged from -23 to +19° (for the TKB-451 installation - from -25 to +18°), the sighting range was 300 m. Target aiming was free, determined by the position of the Kalashnikov assault rifle (or PP-41). To reduce the size of the PP-41, the rifle-type stock was replaced by a stock with a pistol grip and a folding metal butt. The PP-41 submachine gun, removed from the TKB-451 installation, could be used as a personal weapon for the crew.

The rate of fire in automatic fire mode reached 70 rds/min, in single fire mode – 23 rds/min. The machine's magazine capacity is 30 rounds (PP-41 magazine - 71 rounds). The total weight of the TKB-450A installation was 96.83 kg, and the TKB-451 installation was 47.75 kg.

Mounting a Kalashnikov assault rifle (or PP-41) and a sight in the installation required up to 15 seconds, loading the assault rifle was carried out in 5-6 seconds. Transferring fire in depth and along the front, from side to side when firing did not cause any difficulties. The TKB-450A installation provided minimal all-round fire from the roof of the tank turret within 5-9 m from the vehicle contour, TKB-451 - 3-10 m. With targeted fire from the TKB-450A, the dead space did not exceed: on the starboard side - 7.0 m; on the left side - 11.4 m and towards the stern - 8.6 m; from the TKB-451 installation: on the starboard side - 3.6 m; on the left side - 9.4 m and towards the stern - 7.3 m.

Compared to the TKB-450A installation, the TKB-451 installation was smaller in size and more convenient to use. However, in terms of fire efficiency, flight range and bullet penetration, the TKB-450A installation turned out to be preferable, since the cartridge arr. 1943 for the Kalashnikov assault rifle was significantly more powerful than the pistol cartridge used in the PP-41 submachine gun of the TKB-451 installation.

The tests carried out revealed the following main disadvantages of the TKB-450A and TKB-451 installations: the large mass of the ball joint of the installations, the inability to ensure easy and smooth circular rotation of the machine gun (submachine gun) around the vertical axis, increased gas pollution in the fighting compartment when firing, a long time (56 s) transferring the installation from the traveling position to the combat position, as well as the impossibility of loading the cannon with an installed machine gun (submachine gun) and sight, and the need to move the shooter when transferring fire across the horizon. Further work on the submitted installations was stopped.

The beginning of the second stage of development of tank weapons (1956–1966) was characterized by the abandonment of the use of numerous auxiliary weapons due to the emergence of a large number of means supporting tanks during combat operations and interacting with them. The total number of machine guns on domestic tanks has decreased to one or two. Thus, the anti-aircraft machine gun was abolished on the T-55 medium tank, and the anti-aircraft and forward machine guns on the T-55A and T-62 tanks.

Thus, at the end of the first post-war period, domestic tanks were equipped with: coaxial and anti-aircraft machine guns DShKM (heavy tanks T-10, T-10A and T-1 OB); coaxial and anti-aircraft machine guns KPVT (heavy tank T-10M); course and coaxial PKT machine guns (T-55 medium tank), as well as a DShKM anti-aircraft machine gun (T-54, T-54A and T-54B medium tanks) and one PKT coaxial machine gun (T-55A, T-62 medium tanks and light tanks PT-76 and PT-76B).

In 1969, a decision was made to install the DShKM anti-aircraft machine gun on the T-55, T-55A, T-62 tanks and their subsequent modifications from May 1970. This was explained by the fact that helicopters equipped with anti-tank systems began to enter service with the armies of foreign countries, to combat which an anti-aircraft machine gun could be used. In addition, it was necessary to combat enemy airborne assaults, as well as to reduce the effectiveness of aviation against domestic tanks.

Table 22

Characteristics of domestic machine guns installed on tanks

Tank machine gun ammunition

7.62-mm cartridges with ordinary (steel core, light model 1908 and heavy model 1930), tracer and armor-piercing incendiary bullets were used for firing from course and coaxial machine guns SGMT (PKT).

When firing from large-caliber coaxial and anti-aircraft machine guns DShK (DShKM), 12.7-mm cartridges with armor-piercing (B-30), armor-piercing incendiary (B-32 and BS-41) and armor-piercing incendiary tracer (BZT) bullets were used.

For firing from large-caliber coaxial and anti-aircraft machine guns KPVT, 14.5-mm cartridges with armor-piercing incendiary (B-32 and BS-41), armor-piercing incendiary tracer (BZT and BST, adopted to replace BS-41) and incendiary (ZP) were used ) bullets.

To distinguish the cartridges, the head parts of the bullets were painted in the corresponding color.

Improving the firing accuracy of domestic tanks in the first post-war period was carried out by improving the sighting system and fire control devices. Based on the large amount of R&D carried out at the Research Institute-5 of the State Agrarian University, the Military Academy of Armored TV and at the NIIBT training ground by the end of the 1950s, appropriate tactical and technical requirements for a set of shooting and observation devices, aiming and stabilization drives for tanks were developed for industrial enterprises. weapons.

Shooting and observation devices

In accordance with the developed tactical and technical requirements, the set of shooting and observation devices had to provide:

– the superiority of a domestic tank over a tank of the same type of a potential enemy in the speed of target acquisition, determining the firing range, aiming and opening fire;

– duplication of the fire control system from the vehicle commander;

– direct fire from a single tank at a range of actual fire up to 3000 m, from a subunit - up to 5000 m, as well as fire from indirect firing positions.

Based on this, the set of instruments for the tank commander and gunner should have included:

– an observation device that made it possible to detect targets on the battlefield at ranges of up to 5000 m. The minimum permissible field of view of the device was at least 30°;

– a rangefinder to determine the initial range for firing at a distance of up to 5000 m. The error in measuring the range should not exceed 2% of the range;

– sighting devices and a ballistic computer for determining aiming angles when firing various types of projectiles at these ranges. The sight was supposed to provide variable magnification from 3x to 10x;

– control panels for transferring fire, aiming and tracking the target.

As a result of the work performed at the research institutes and design bureaus of factories of the relevant defense industries in the first post-war period, more advanced observation devices, new telescopic and periscope sights were created and installed in tanks. In addition, a large number of R&D projects were developed to create tank television equipment used as shooting and surveillance devices, as well as to develop optical sight-rangefinders, radar rangefinders, and ballistic computers.

The improvement of viewing devices was carried out in the direction of increasing the range of vision from workplaces. The desire to improve visibility from the tank necessitated the creation of devices that provided observation of characteristic targets at ranges of 2500-3000 m. The MK-4 device and viewing prisms available in the commander's cupola made it possible to clearly observe at ranges not exceeding 1000-1500 m. However, the observation device MK-4 did not provide the opportunity to increase the observation range. In addition, it did not allow measuring range, adjusting fire, or providing target designation. Therefore, in 1949, the TPK-1 command tank periscope, which was completely interchangeable with the MK-4 observation device, began to enter service with tanks. It was a combination of a periscope viewing device with five-fold magnification binoculars, which made it possible to recognize targets at a distance of up to 3000 m. Correction of cannon fire and target designation were carried out using the device’s reticle.

Subsequently, the TPK-1 device was replaced by the TP KU device (depending on the brand of the tank, various modifications of this device were installed - TPKUB and TPKU-2), and then by combined (day-night) devices TKN-2 and TKN-3. The range to a target 2.7 m high was determined by the tank commander using a range-measuring scale located in the field of view of the instruments. Technical characteristics of commander's viewing devices are given in Table 23.

Table 23

Characteristics of viewing devices installed by the tank commander

Simultaneously with the introduction of observation devices with image magnification, the number of viewing devices that did not have image magnification was gradually reduced. For example, the number of such viewing devices was reduced from ten on the T-54 tank to four on the Object 432 tank, which was subsequently put into service under the T-64 brand (see Table 24).

To monitor the battlefield for other crew members, prism viewing devices were widely used. Thus, the driver-mechanic of medium tanks T-54, T-55 and T-62 had prismatic periscope devices installed; on light and heavy vehicles, viewing devices TIP and TPV-51 with TPB-51 were used, respectively. The gunners (depending on the brand of the tank), in addition to the sight, used the MK-4, TPB-51 and TIP viewing devices. In 1960, the TIP-165 periscopic observation device was introduced for the gunner of the T-55 tank. TIP periscope viewing devices were also used in the commander's turrets of heavy tanks of the T-10 series to provide all-round visibility.

The design of the viewing devices themselves has also undergone changes. The housings of the devices began to be made by casting from aluminum alloy AL2 (instead of welded housings made of sheet steel 1 mm thick) using new sealing methods. On the head parts of the devices, shearing grooves or grooves were provided, and on some devices, intersecting grooves were provided, dividing it into separate sections. When the head of the device was hit by a bullet, the body was chipped along the groove, and the device was easily removed from the shaft for replacement. In the second case, when a bullet hit the head of the device, one section was knocked out, due to which the body did not bulge and the device was also freely removed from the shaft.

In connection with the advent of nuclear weapons, the types of optical glass crown K-3, K-8, barite crown BK-4 and BK-10, used for prisms of viewing devices, turned out to be unstable when exposed to gamma radiation during an explosion. They darkened greatly and acquired a grayish and brown color, as a result of which visibility was sharply reduced or completely lost. Therefore, from April 1956, industrial plants began to produce tank surveillance devices with new anti-nuclear glass of the K-108 brand, which included cerium, which significantly slowed down the darkening process. In addition, this glass had the property of restoring its light transmittance by heating to 200–250°C (in a special laboratory) or when illuminated by sunlight for several hours.

The improvement of tank sights was carried out in the direction of creating sights with a large number and range of magnification powers (in the future - with smoothly varying (pancratic) magnification) and a stabilized field of view.

Work on creating a telescopic sight with a stabilized line of sight for the D-10T cannon of the T-54 tank has resumed at the VAMM named after. I.V. Stalin in 1945. The sight was designed taking into account the experience of working on the “Taran” tank weapon stabilizer for the 85-mm ZIS-S-53 gun of the T-34-85 tank. The peculiarity of this type of sight was that a shot from the cannon of a moving tank occurred at the moment when the axis of the gun bore coincided with the stabilized aiming line of the sight. Three variants of the sight were proposed, two of which were implemented in working prototypes, but they could not bring this sight to an industrial design. Further work on the stabilized sight at the VAMM named after. I.V. Stalin in 1953 were stopped.

Table 24

Number of daytime viewing devices in domestic tanks

In parallel, in the summer of 1952, work on creating a stabilized sight for the 100-mm gun of the T-54 tank was organized in the design bureau of plant No. 183 together with TsKB-393, TsNIAG (Central Research Institute of Automation and Hydraulics, until 1949 - TsNII -173) and plants No. 9 and No. 292. It was planned to make a tank sight with a stabilized aiming line in two planes, combined with gun aiming drives. Technical projects for the installation of stabilization system equipment and a turret rotation mechanism of a new design were developed in November-December 1952. But these projects were not implemented in metal due to the lack of an extensive industrial base in the field of creating tank stabilization systems.

However, the work experience was not in vain. This idea was later put into practice when creating sights with a stabilized field of view for heavy tanks T-10A, T-10B and T-10M.

On the first production T-54 tanks, the TSh-20 telescopic sight was used for direct fire, which was created according to the design of the TSh mod. 1943 and had a fourfold magnification with a field of view of 16°.

In 1950, the TSh2 tank telescopic articulated sight was adopted. It was different from the TSh mod. 1943 mainly with the ability to enlarge the image by 3.5 and 7 times. The improved sights of the TSh2 family were designated TSh2A and TSh2B. The TSh2A sight differed from the TSh2 sight in the location of the eyepiece, which was moved to the left by 50 mm. The TSh2B differed from the TSh2A sight mainly in the use of ball bearings in the hinge instead of plain bearings and the design of the lens heater, which made it possible to replace the protective glass if it failed instead of replacing the entire heater assembly. The optical characteristics of these sights were the same. Sights of the TSh2 family were installed on medium and heavy production tanks, with the exception of the T-10A, T-10B and T-10M tanks.

The TSh2 sight for the 122-mm D-25T tank gun and the DShK coaxial machine gun was marked TSh2-21, for the D-25TA gun - TSh2-27. The letters and numbers in the sight mark indicated: T – tank, Ш – hinged, 2 – second sample, 21 or 27 – ballistics number (designation of sight scales). An additional scale for a cumulative projectile was applied in the field of view of the TSh2-27K sight. In addition, when firing from the 122-mm D-25T tank gun, the TSh-17, TSh-21, TSh-27, TSh-17K and TSh-27K sights could be used, which, unlike the TSh2 brand sights, did not have sight of the sight on the central vertical line of three strokes, designated by the numbers 10, 18 and 20, intended to determine the possibility of firing through friendly troops.

When firing from a 122-mm D-25T tank gun and a coaxial DShK machine gun, a telescopic articulated sight TSh-45 arr. was mounted on the IS-4 tank. 1945, the optical characteristics of which were the same as those of the TSh2 sight.

The TSh2 sight for the 100-mm D-10T tank gun and coaxial machine gun was marked TSh2-22 or TSh2-20, for the D-10TG gun - TSh2A-22 (TSh2B-22). The TSh2B-32 sight, unlike the TSh2B-22 sight, had an additional BC scale on the reticle for a cumulative projectile. In the field of view of the TSh2-32P, TSh2A-32P and TSh2B-32P sights, in addition to the scales of the TSh2B-32 sight, an additional “Subk.” scale was applied. for an armor-piercing sub-caliber projectile.

The TSh2 sight for the 115 mm U-5TS tank gun and coaxial machine gun was marked TSh2B-41.

The light tank PT-76 (PT-76B) was equipped with a telescopic articulated shortened sight TShK-66, which was used when firing from the 76.2 mm D-56TM tank gun and the coaxial 7.62 mm SGMT machine gun. The sight had remote scales for firing high-explosive fragmentation and armor-piercing shells.

When firing armor-piercing sub-caliber and cumulative projectiles, the divisions of the sight scales did not correspond to the ranges to the target, so the installation of the sight was determined according to the shooting tables.

On heavy tanks T-10A and T-10B, the TPS1 periscope sight was used for the 122-mm D-25TS tank gun. On the T-10M tank, the T2S-29-14 “Udar” periscopic sight was used for the 122-mm M-62T2 tank gun.

The TPS1 sight was the main device of the PUOT "Uragan" and PUOT-2 "Thunder" stabilizers and was an optical-gyroscopic device with a stabilized aiming line in the vertical plane and an automatic firing machine. It was located to the left of the gun and was fixedly attached to the roof of the tower. The sight (automatic firing device) was connected to the cannon using a parallelogram mechanism. The removable sight head, protruding outward beyond the roof of the turret, was covered with an armored cap with an embrasure.

The sight body was made of aluminum alloy. On the body of the sight (in the lower part) was attached a control panel with keys and buttons for firing from a cannon and a coaxial machine gun, as well as a number of auxiliary mechanisms and devices (a panel with toggle switches for turning on the stabilizer and turning off the electric aiming drives, a magnification switching mechanism, a handwheel for the aiming angle mechanism, a light filter with a handle and a flywheel for installing rangefinder scales, etc.).

Glass plates with three aiming angle scales, rangefinder scales, and a glass sector with a fixed index were installed in the focal plane of the eyepiece.

The sight had the following aiming angle scales:

– “BR/TUP” scale for firing the BR-471B blunt-headed armor-piercing tracer projectile (with a ballistic tip), which made it possible to fire at ranges up to 5000 m;

– “OF/full” scale for firing the OF-471N high-explosive fragmentation projectile at full charge at a range of up to 5000 m;

– “DShK” scale for firing from 12.7 mm machine guns mod. 1938/46 and arr. 1938 with an armor-piercing incendiary bullet B-32 at a range of 2900 m.

In addition, the sight had scales for lateral corrections, aiming angles and a rangefinder. Determining the range to the target using three rangefinder scales, each of which was designed to determine the ranges to typical targets with a height of 3 m (heavy tank), 2.7 m (medium tank) and 1.2 m (anti-tank gun), was carried out only at eight times zooming in on the sight. To illuminate the scales and reticle, two cartridges with electric bulbs were installed in the sight. The automatic firing machine served to stabilize the aiming line (field of view of the sight) and aim the stabilized aiming line vertically, as well as to fire a shot from a cannon, taking into account the delay time. The main parts of the machine were a three-degree gyroscope-stabilizer, a two-stage gyroscope-predictor, contact devices for coarse and fine alignment of the gun with the vertical aiming line, a contact device for firing a shot, guidance electromagnets, correction electromagnets and a three-degree gyroscope stopper.

In addition, in the T-10A and T-10B tanks, as a backup in case of failure of the TPS1 sight, a simplified TUP tank sight was installed, which was attached to the gun cradle on the left. According to the principle of operation, this sight was classified as a telescopic sight with fixed scales for aiming angles and lateral corrections. In view were: the PGP-BR scale for firing a blunt-headed BR-471 B projectile from a cannon; DShK scale for firing from a coaxial machine gun and a lateral correction scale. The TUP sight had a fourfold magnification and a field of view of 12°, the firing range on the PGP-BR scale was up to 3400 m, on the DShK scale - 1000 m; sight weight – 12 kg.

The T2S-29-14 “Udar” sight was part of the PUOT2S device system and worked in conjunction with the “Liven” stabilizer in stabilized and semi-automatic aiming modes. It consisted of an optical-mechanical part, an electrogyroscopic unit (automatic firing machine) and a stabilizer control panel and could be used both with the stabilizer turned off and on. When the stabilizer was turned off, the T2S-29-14 sight worked like a regular periscope sight with a gun-dependent aiming line. In this case, the aiming angles of the aiming line strictly corresponded to the gun aiming angles. This mode was used mainly when shooting from a place.

When the stabilizer was turned on, the sight worked as a sight with an aiming line independent of the gun. In this mode, the electrogyroscopic unit stabilized the aiming line (field of view), issued control signals for the gun and turret stabilizers, and monitored the position of the gun when fired.

The aiming angle scales were marked in concentric circles on a rotating glass plate located in the focal plane of the eyepiece in the upper part of the field of view.

The “Br” scale was used for firing an armor-piercing tracer projectile and was applied from 0 to 4000 m, the “Of” scale was for firing a high-explosive fragmentation grenade from 0 to 6000 m, the “KPVT” scale was for firing from 14.5 mm a machine gun coaxial with a cannon from 0 to 2000 m. In addition, the sight had a lateral correction scale with aiming marks, squares and strokes, as well as a movable thread, which served for aiming taking into account lateral leads when shooting at moving targets. For aiming at night at luminous points and illuminated targets, the scales were illuminated with electric bulbs.

The sight was mounted in the tank's turret on shock absorbers, which ensured small movements of the sight relative to the turret and gun in the firing plane, eliminating vibrations in the field of view that interfered with observation and shooting.

Table 25

Characteristics of domestic tank day sights

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M1917 Browning machine gun (USA)

In the United States, the problem of machine guns, which acutely arose with the country's entry into the First World War, was quickly and successfully solved by John Moses Browning in collaboration with the Colt company, in 1917 presenting his analogue of the Maxim machine gun, which, with similar characteristics, was distinguished by a greater simplicity of design. Already the very first prototype of a Browning machine gun with a water-cooled barrel set a kind of record, using 20 thousand rounds of ammunition in one test without a single breakdown. It is not surprising that by the end of the First World War, the production of these machine guns, designated M1917, went into tens of thousands. The very next year, on the basis of the M1917, Browning created the M1918 aviation machine gun with an air-cooled barrel, and a year later - the M1919 tank machine gun, also with air cooling. On the basis of the latter, Colt produces several models of “cavalry” machine guns on light machine guns, as well as export commercial samples for different calibers. In 1936, the M1917 machine gun, which at that time was the main machine gun for the US Army, underwent minor changes aimed at increasing its service life, but its main drawback - excessive weight (both the machine gun itself and the tripod machine) did not go away. Therefore, in 1940, a competition was announced for a new lightweight machine gun for the US Army. A significant part of the competitors were variations on the theme of Browning's design, but there were also purely original systems. However, none of the samples fully satisfied the requirements of the military, and as a result, a variant of the Browning M1919 machine gun in the M1919A4 version, complete with a lightweight M2 tripod machine, was adopted. It was the M1919A4 machine gun that became the main weapon of the American troops during the Second World War and the Korean War. However, a significant number of earlier M1917A1 machine guns also actively participated in combat operations in all theaters of war.

In 1941, the United States also announced a competition for a belt-fed light machine gun, in which several large corporations and government arsenals participated. It should be noted that the American military, like the Soviet military, also wanted too much from a light machine gun, and just like in the USSR, and as a result, the army had to be content with a palliative solution in the form of a modification of an existing machine gun. And since the US Army did not have a ready-made “normal” light machine gun, the Americans had to follow the path taken in other countries back in the First World War or immediately after it. This way was the creation of a lightweight “manual” version of the M1919A4 heavy machine gun, designated M1919A6. The result was a path and a reliable and relatively powerful, but very heavy and inconvenient weapon. In principle, special round boxes for a 100-round belt were developed for the M1919A6, attached to the machine gun, but in most cases the infantry used standard 200-round boxes with a belt, carried separately from the machine gun. Theoretically, this machine gun could be considered a single machine gun, since it made it possible to install it on a standard M2 machine gun (if the kit included a corresponding pin attached to the receiver), but in reality, the “big brother” M1919A4, which had more heavy barrel, etc. as a result, it provided greater capabilities for conducting intense fire. Interestingly, the Americans, apparently, were quite satisfied with the rate of fire of their machine guns, despite the fact that it was only a third of the rate of fire of the German MG 42 machine gun.

Variants of the Browning infantry machine guns were produced under license from Colt in Belgium at the FN plant and in Sweden at the Carl Gustaf plant, and without a license in Poland.

Use in combat

The Goryunov machine gun entered service in the spring of 1943. The weapon reached rifle battalions in the early summer of that year. It was used to destroy open groups of enemy personnel and fire weapons at distances of up to 1 km.

The success of the Goryunov in the battles of the final period of the war was due to its light weight: it was 6.5 kg lighter than the Maxim, and with a wheeled machine - 25 kg.

After World War II, the machine gun was modernized and renamed SGM (“M” - modernized). The dust protection and barrel cooling system was improved, and a new bolt was installed. A tank version of the SGMT appeared.

Chauchat CSRG Model 1915 light machine gun (France)

At the beginning of the 20th century, the French army was, one might say, at the forefront of military progress. In particular, it was the French who, back during the First World War, were the first to adopt self-loading rifles for mass production. They were the first to adopt and massively equip troops with a fundamentally new class of small arms - automatic rifles, which were used as squad-level support weapons (light machine guns in Russian terminology). We are talking about a system that is often not very deservedly classified as one of the worst examples of its period, namely the CSRG M1915 automatic rifle, named after its creators - designers Chauchat, Suterre and Ribeyrolle, as well as the manufacturing company - Gladiator (Chauchat, Suterre, Ribeyrolle , Établissements des Cycles “Clément-Gladiator”).

This light machine gun was originally designed taking into account the possibility of its mass production at non-specialized enterprises (let me remind you that its main manufacturer during the war was the Gladiator bicycle factory). The machine gun became truly widespread - its production during 3 years of the war exceeded 250,000 units. It was mass production that also became the main weak point of the new model - the level of industry at that time did not allow for the required quality and stability of characteristics from sample to sample, which, combined with a rather complex design and a magazine open to dirt and dust, led to increased sensitivity of the weapon to contamination and general low reliability. However, with proper care and maintenance (and the crews of these machine guns were recruited from non-commissioned officers and trained for up to 3 months), the CSRG M1915 light machine gun provided acceptable combat effectiveness.

An additional stain on the reputation of the Shosha machine gun was put by the unsuccessful modification M1918, developed by order of the American Expeditionary Force in Europe under the American .30-06 cartridge. During the process of reworking, the machine gun lost its capacity of already not very voluminous magazines (from 20 to 16 rounds), but most importantly, due to an error in the drawings of the “Americanized” Shoshas that came from nowhere, the barrels had an incorrect chamber configuration, which led to constant delays and problems with the extraction of spent cartridges.

In the post-war period, machine guns of the CSRG system were in service in Belgium, Greece, Denmark, Poland, France and a number of other countries (in variants for cartridges of the appropriate calibers adopted in these countries), until they were replaced by more successful models.

KisTv

TV series "Goryunov" - episode contents

Series 1 - 4

Based on the stories of the famous writer Alexander Pokrovsky. The young lieutenant Sanya Petrovsky, the son of great scientists, members of the British Geographical Society, the grandson of a lady-in-waiting of the imperial court, contrary to the expectations of his relatives, always dreamed of the sea. And his great-grandfather, a naval officer who died in the battle near Moonsund in 1914, was “guilty” of this. His great-grandfather's dirk, once given to little Sanya, awakened the romance of sea voyages in the child's soul, and he firmly decided to become a submariner. And so he became one - in our time. Petrovsky arrives at one of the northern bases of the Russian Navy. He is assigned to the nuclear submarine K-333 Lynx, commanded by Captain 1st Rank Pavel Goryunov. One can say about Goryunov that he is a reckless, obstinate, stubborn person - sometimes to the point of tyranny. “The authority of his superiors is not worth a penny” - this was written in one of his sixteen outstanding disciplinary sanctions. Sanya Petrovsky’s relationship with Goryunov did not work out from the first meeting...

Goryunov asks the division commander to transfer Petrovsky to another crew. But Sanya managed to stand up for himself. Goryunov leaves the young medic in the crew. The division commander gives Goryunov his final instructions. “Lynx” must enter the designated square and hide in anticipation of “Centurion”. "Lynx" goes to sea. Midshipman Huge shows Petrovsky his workplace, and his colleagues tell Sanya to take into account... two collapsible coffins - one for the commander, the other for the first mate. Sanya is falling for this prank. Then the guys apologize. "Lynx" arrives at the scene. The acoustics intercept the Centurion's signals. And suddenly the commander of the Centurion himself gets in touch and wishes Goryunov a successful hunt in Russian. Meanwhile, life is going on in the town - Polina Goryunova goes to see her husband’s mistress.

Masha explains to Polina that she has a fiancé, Sanya Petrovsky, and they love each other very much... The Lynx is chasing an American boat. You have to surface and then dive again. The Americans are escaping pursuit. And on the Lynx, during a sharp dive, sailor Kukvin falls off the ladder and breaks his head; he needs urgent surgery. Goryunov intends to urgently deliver Kukvin to the hospital. But the sailor is getting worse. Petrovsky decides to undergo surgery. Kukvin is saved. The boat arrives at the port. Goryunov thanks Petrovsky for Kukvin, but for the mess in the outpatient clinic he does not allow Sanya to go ashore. Gudinov was left on board and headed. However, they violate the order and go into the city. The divisional commander offers Goryunov a new medic, but he unexpectedly refuses. Gudinov brings Petrovsky to his home, promising gorgeous borscht. But at Gudinov’s house they discover the half-naked admiral and Gudinov’s wife...

Polina told Goryunov that Masha has a fiancé. Masha is trying to find Petrovsky, and Goryunov is looking for Masha throughout the town. The three meet at a local restaurant. Masha introduces Sanya Goryunova as her fiance. Goryunov takes the lieutenant outside for a “men’s conversation.” Gudinov, who is sitting with them at the table, goes to get some soup. He pours this soup on the head of the admiral who is in the same restaurant. This is revenge for the wife whom the admiral forced into cohabitation. The authorities are raising the question of decommissioning the nachkhim from the fleet. The next morning Petrovsky wakes up in Masha’s apartment. Her behavior suggests that something happened between them at night. But Sanya doesn’t remember anything! Masha accompanies Petrovsky to the service. Construction. Goryunov orders Petrovsky to be locked up on a boat in an isolation cell. But Petrovsky again runs away to the city to propose to Masha to become his wife...

Series 5 - 8

Petrovsky proposes to Masha. She promises to think about it. Petrovsky finds the admiral in the dining room and asks him to apologize to Gudinov. The admiral insults Sanya and gets a slap in the face. After this, the admiral knocks out Petrovsky with a strong blow. A witness to this skirmish, Goryunov, in turn, knocks out the admiral with a blow to his head. Goryunov and Petrovsky are arrested and end up in Gudinov’s cell. But they didn't have to sit there for long. At the direction of the command, the Lynx must set sail under the ice. All three prisoners are released. Petrovsky informs Goryunov that he intends to get married. Goryunov orders the senior mate to organize a “young fighter course” for Petrovsky. The chief mate carries out the order with his usual zeal. The crew sympathizes with Petrovsky and suggests how to “complete” this “course” faster and easier. But Sanya is not looking for easy ways - he conscientiously studies the structure of the boat, the purpose of its compartments, etc. As a result, the senior mate no longer knows how to get rid of the meticulous “student”...

“Lynx” must launch a rocket at the North Pole... The omnipresent deputy division commander, in the presence of the fleet commander, invites Goryunov to surface in the Pole area and fix the Russian national flag on the top of the world! The fleet commander sends the deputy divisional commander on a voyage aboard the Lynx. The boat goes out to sea. Goryunov continues to bully Petrovsky. "Lynx" launches a "Korund" torpedo. Goryunov does not lose hope of discovering the Centurion. “Corundum” is a “gift” from Goryunov to “Centurion”, whose acoustic system is damaged. The chief of staff receives a message from Goryunov - “Lynx” has approached the border of the polar ice... Meanwhile, Sonya, Goryunov’s daughter, decides to deal with her father’s mistress in her own way - to blow up her apartment!

"Lynx" moves under the ice. Finally, Goryunov's crew launches the rocket. Everyone is allowed to go upstairs. The team plays football at the North Pole. At this time, the deputy division commander with the flag climbs up and orders Petrovsky to follow him in order to plant the Russian flag exactly at the North Pole. At this time, a snowstorm and ice movement begins. Goryunov gives the command to dive. Buran. Petrovsky and his companion were almost covered in snow. And suddenly the ice next to them begins to stand on end, an icy hill rises - and from under it the Lynx’s wheelhouse appears. Hurray, they were found! ...The team is trying with all its might to warm up Petrovsky and the deputy division commander who were frozen at the pole. The submariners who returned home were declared heroes and were solemnly greeted on the shore. Gudinov forgives his Olga. The command decided to encourage the Lynx team with a trip to the Sevastopol sanatorium. Since Olga and Polina are busy with the play Othello, they cannot go. Gudinov is trying to say he is sick in order to stay at home... And Goryunov is unsuccessfully trying to regain Masha’s goodwill...

The base is preparing for the next admiral's inspection from Moscow. The division commander promises Goryunov that after checking, the entire crew will be nominated for awards and sent on vacation to the Sevastopol sanatorium! Goryunov is trying to make peace with Masha. But she only smiles mysteriously in response. At home, Goryunov finds out that neither his wife nor his daughter will go to the sanatorium with him. Goryunov is traveling alone. At the Rest House, the entire crew begins to drink. Petrovsky brings Goryunov a telegram from home, informing him that Petrovsky’s grandmother is dying. Goryunov lets Petrovsky go, and he goes after him - he thinks that Sanya is going to Masha, and intends to prevent their meeting at all costs.

Episodes 9 - 12

The senior mate is brought a letter from the District Headquarters, which states that the crew of the Lynx is invited to a gala reception on board the cruiser Atlant. Meanwhile, Goryunov, following Petrovsky, comes to St. Petersburg and sees Sanya being greeted by her parents and sister Dasha. The Petrovskys invite Goryunov to visit. At a family dinner, Petrovsky’s mother asks Goryunov about Masha as her son’s fiancée... And on the ship of the Ukrainian Navy there are “Rysevites” in full dress uniform. Around them are admirals and senior officers in NATO allied uniforms. Endless toasts. The next morning, the Rysevtsy wake up aboard the Atlant on the open sea. The launches were carried out successfully. "Atlant" returns to port. He is greeted by television camera lenses. The division commander calls Goryunov and asks: “Aren’t these your officers who just got off the NATO ramp? Immediately recall the crew to the unit!!!” Gudinov, as part of a reconnaissance group of divers, dives in order to find an enemy listening device. The box with the transmitter was found, but the enemy landing force discovered our soldiers. Gudinov is wounded. He is taken to the hospital. The bullet was removed, Gudinov was saved.

At division headquarters they are discussing the behavior of the Lynx crew on vacation. The deputy division commander proposes to punish the entire crew, and to issue a warning to Goryunov, as the commander, up to and including dismissal from the fleet. At home, Goryunov is also greeted unkindly - Polina gives her husband a folding bed, and daughter Sonya puts “this man’s” suitcase at the door. On an urgent call, Goryunov comes to his superiors. He must lead an autonomous team to conduct surveillance of the American listening apparatus. Realizing that the Russian sailors had discovered a wiretap, the Americans tried to remove the device using a robot. But Goryunov and his new group stopped this maneuver, and the device fell into the hands of the Russian special services. And Goryunov is again urgently summoned to the division commander - two days before the NATO delegation arrives at the submariner base, it turns out that it will be headed by the American General Nancy. Not immediately, but still it dawned on the submariners that Nancy was a woman. But how to meet a female general according to all the rules?

Goryunov asks Sanya Petrovsky for advice on good manners. But he worries in vain - General Nancy turns out to be quite his aunt. But at the end of the conversation she suddenly started talking... about a rugby match. Goryunov finds out that rugby is the deputy division commander’s idea. There is nothing to do, you have to play. Goryunov appoints Petrovsky captain of the team. The crew is conducting training. Rugby is hard... And here's the game. The Tajik bilge sailors are fighting to the death; even a team of blacks cannot move them. The scoreboard shows a draw. General Nancy is surprised; she didn’t think that Russian submariners were such good rugby players.

“Lynx” is in autonomous mode again. Goryunov's crew has been under water for the second month. The restless deputy division commander organizes themed evenings. Petrovsky writes detailed letters to Masha every evening. On one of these evenings, he discovers in his outpatient clinic... a white rat. The crew comes to life - the foundling is transferred from compartment to compartment, groomed and cherished, pampered with delicious food. Only the deputy division commander can’t stand everyone’s favorite - because he chewed off his brand new shoes and grabbed his toe. He intends to catch the little rat Minya at any cost...

Episodes 13 - 16

Suddenly, the boat receives distress signals from a Norwegian ship... You can’t surface and reveal yourself, but there’s a fire on the ship, people could die. The Lynx crew comes to the aid of sailors from a Norwegian ship. However, for disrupting a combat mission, Goryunov is removed from command of the crew... The deputy division commander also attributed him with immorality - because of Petrovsky's sister Dasha, who is in love with him... Petrovsky accompanies his sister home to her parents. On the way to the bus station, they meet one of the Lynx crew members, Foma. He falls in love with Dasha at first sight... Petrovsky is trying to support Goryunov - he intends to appeal personally to the Commander-in-Chief.

Goryunov and Petrovsky go to a restaurant out of grief. There Goryunov notices the deputy division commander as the culprit of all his misfortunes. Goryunov watches him in the toilet and dunks his head into the toilet. Goryunov and Petrovsky spend the night in the commandant's office. The gloomy Goryunov returns home. The daughter is alarmed - her mother feels bad. Goryunov calls an ambulance. Polina is admitted to the hospital. Masha declares to Petrovsky that she loves Goryunov and asks him to leave her alone!.. Shocked Sanya leaves, he is called to headquarters. There, red with anger, the Admiral reproaches him for the letter “upstream” and sends him “into exile” to a distant training ground. Well, seven troubles - one answer: Sanya ends up at a half-forgotten artillery range.

Goryunov takes command of an old torpedo boat and demands that it be painted, scrubbed, and put in order. Finally, he commands: “Weigh anchor!” Goryunov explains to the team the essence of the tests... The insidious “Centurion” sneaks towards the testing site. But Goryunov, on his boat, cuts off the Americans and, maneuvering dangerously, intercepts the torpedo... At the same time, one of our sailors falls into the water... The Americans pick him up and offer Goryunov a deal: a torpedo head in exchange for the sailor. Goryunov turns the machine gun towards the Americans. Bargaining is inappropriate, he is ready to start a war!

The command makes the final decision: for the loss of a sailor during combat trials and the direct threat of World War III, write Goryunov off from the fleet completely!.. Goryunov decides to shoot himself, as befits a combat officer, insulted in his best intentions. But Petrovsky guesses the commander’s intentions in time and hides Goryunov’s service weapon. And then the Queen of Norway invites the Lynx crew to Norway to thank the brave Russian submariners and award them Norwegian orders.

Lewis light machine gun (USA - UK)

American Isaac Lewis developed his light machine gun around 1910, based on an earlier machine gun design by Dr. Samuel McLean. The machine gun was proposed by the designer for arming the American army, but in response there was a harsh refusal (caused by a long-standing personal conflict between the inventor and General Crozier, then head of the US Army Weapons Department). As a result, Lewis sent his steps to Europe, to Belgium, where in 1912 he founded the company Armes Automatiques Lewis SA to sell his brainchild. Since the company did not have its own production facilities, the order for the production of the first