Mitsubishi G4M

The Mitsubishi G4M was a land-based medium-bomber in service with both the Imperial Japanese Navy and Army during World War II. It was known as 'Betty' by the Allies. It had been designed in 1937 by Kiro Honjo, performing its maiden flight on October 23, 1939. It became operational in 1940. It was built in greater number than any other Japanese aircraft, with the G4M2 being the main variant.

The Mitsubishi G4M achieved considerable success in long range bombing missions, being responsible for sinking two Allied battleships (HMS Prince of Wales and Repulse). As the war wore on, the Mitsubishi engineers improved the Betty, adding a better tail gun and other features. Ironically, after years of war against the Allies and the Chinese forces on mainland China, the G4M final duty was to transport the Japanese surrender delegation to the island of Ie Shima four days after the fighting ended.

Technical Characteristics

The Mitsubishi G4M was a twin-engine monoplane, featuring low-mounted straight wings. It had one bomb-bay and four fuel tanks, which were fitted in the leading edge of its wings. The Landing gear was retractable. The G4M2 version was powered by two Mitsubishi Kasei 25 radial engines. Its tail housed a 20-mm Type 99 cannon. Meanwhile, the nose contained two forward-firing 7.92-mm machine guns. Bomb load capacity was 1,800 kg, with four 250-kg bombs and one 800-kg torpedo.

Specifications

Type: Medium bomber

Length: 20 m

Wingspan: 25 m

Wing Area: 78.12 sq. meters

Height: 6 m

Maxium Speed: 438 km/h (270 mph)

Range: 4,335 km (2,694 miles)

Below, two Mitsubishi G4Ms in 1939, flying over Chinese territory.

A 'Betty' bomber taking off from an airbase in New Guinea.

T-15 IFV

The T-15 IFV is a Russian infantry fighting vehicle which was developed by the firm Uralvagonzavod from the hull of the T-14 Armata main battle tank. It was first seen in public during the 2015 Victory Day parade. It has two versions, one fitted with a 30-mm autocannon, which is mounted in a remote weapon station turret, and also with Ataka-T anti-tank guided missiles, and the other variant is equipped with a 57-mm gun. Both versions employs the same engine that propels the T-14 MBT: a 1500 hp diesel engine. As protection, the T-15 is equipped with ceramic composite plates, reactive armor, and steel slat armor.

A variant of the T-15 IFV, which is known as Kurganets-25, is armed with a 30-mm autocannon, instead of the 57-mm gun, and also with 9M133 Kornet EM anti-tank missiles and a coaxial machine gun. All three armored vehicles, the T-14, the T-15, and the Kurganets-25, are based on the Armata Universal Combat Platform, which is equipped with the same chassis, 1500 hp engine and the 16-gear automatic transmission. Along with the T-14 and the Kurganets-25, the T-15 IFV has not been employed in the Russian-Ukrainian War yet.

Specifications

Weight: 48 tons

Length: 8.7 m

Width: 3.5 m

Power plant: 1500 hp diesel engine

Transmission: automatic

Operational range: 550 km

Below, a column of T-15s before a parade in 2017.

Below, the T-15 IFV, with its 30-mm autocannon and four anti-tank missiles rolling along a street of Moscow

 

T-80 Tank

The T-80 tank is a Russian main battle tank, which was developed from the T-64. Manufactured by the State-owned Leningrad Kirov Plant, it entered service with the Soviet Army in 1976, during the Cold War. This tank is armed with a 125mm 2A46-2 smooth-bore cannon, anti-tank missiles, and machine guns. It has been produced since 1975 in four main variants: the T-80, which was the initial production batch; the T-80B (1978), which was fitted with a new turret, fire-control system, and auto-loader that allowed the firing of 9M112-1 Kobra antitank guided missile; T-80BV (1982), with a better armored turret; T-80U (1985), with explosive reactive armor, gunsight, and 9K119 Refleks missile system.

Below, four types of combat shells fired by its 125mm gun. From right to left: APFSDS, HE-fragmentation, HEAT, and the Reflex missile.

What made the Russians develop the T-80U was the First Chechen War, where several T-80BV tanks were destroyed by RPG-7 rockets in the ferocious urban battle of Grozny. This event led to the improvement of its armor and a more powerful engine. It is powered by a GTD-1250 gasturbine engine, delivering 1250 horsepower. The armor of the T-80 tank is made of composite armor on the turret and hull, while rubber flaps and sideskirts protect the sides and lower hull. However, the T-80U model use explosive reactive armor and stronger composite armor. Other protection systems include the Shtora-1 and Arena APS, as well as the discontinued Drozd APS.

According to data published in Russia, 2,256 T-80 tanks were deployed in East Germany between 1986 and 1987. Since NATO realized that new Soviet tanks could reach the Atlantic within two weeks, the United States began to develop counter methods that could stop them. This led to a sudden increase in development of anti-tank weapons which included attack helicopters. By 1991, when the Soviet Union was breaking up, the Soviet Army operated 4,839 T-80 main battle tanks in different versions.

Specifications (T-80U)

Type: main battle tank
Weight: 43 tons
Width: 3.6 m (11ft 9.9in)
Length: 7 m (23ft) without the gun
Height: 2.2 m (7ft 2.7in)
Crew: 3 (commander, driver, gunner)
Engine: one 1250hp, GTD-1250 gasturbine engine
Maximum speed: 70 km/h (43mph)
Range: 440 km (270mi)
Weapons: one 125mm 2A46-2 smooth bore gune; one 7.62mm PKT coaxial machine gun; one 12.7mm PKT anti-aircraft machine gun; six 9M119 Refleks ATGM anti-tank missiles

Below, the T-80U variant, whose gas turbine generated great power. Russia has about 650 T-80U and T-80BV in active service and about 3,000 in store.

Below, a picture of the T-80U taken in the early 1990s. It was the fastest tank in the Cold War period, because it was fitted with a powerful gasturbine engine.

 

Lavochkin LaGG-3

The Lavochkin LaGG-3 was a fighter aircraft employed by the Soviet Union during World War II. It was developed by the State-owned company Lavochkin from the LaGG-1, which had been designed by Vladimir Gorbunov. It performed its maiden flight on March 28, 1940, entering service on January 22, 1941. Later in the war, it would be developed into the La-5.

The LaGG-3 was massively built, with more than 6,000 aircraft having been produced by 1945. Although they had many shortcomings, the urgent need for new more modern fighters meant that around 300 of them were already in service by the time the Wehrmacht invaded the Soviet Union on June 22, 1941. During the first two years of the war, the good reputation of the Lavochkin LaGG-3 was due more to its rugged construction and the courage of the pilots than to its design as a fighter.

Technical Characteristics

The LaGG-3 was a single-seat, single-engine monoplane. Its fuselage was almost entirely made of wood. The aircraft was fitted with straight wings mounted low on the fuselage. The wings and their flaps were the only part of the plane which was built with metal alloy. To make it capable of carrying out ground-attack missions, it was equipped with either one 37-mm or a 20-mm gun, six 82-mm rockets, and pylons for two 100-kg bombs. It was powered by one Klimov M-105PF-1, liquid-cooled, 12-cylinder engine, which could deliver 1,240 HP.

Specifications

Type: Fighter Aircraft

Length: 8.9 m

Wingspan: 9.8 m

Wing Area: 17.5 sq. meters

Height: 3.3 m

Maximum Speed: 560 km/h (348 mph)

Range: 650 km (404 miles)

Crew: One

Below, the Lavochkin LaGG-3 in December 1941 in a military airbase east of Moscow.

 

M2 Light Tank

The M2 light tank was an American armored combat vehicle, which was developed and produced between 1934 and 1942. Since they saw it was not a match for the German Panzers at the outbreak of hostilities, it did not see combat action in the European theater of operation. Therefore, they were fielded by the US Marines and Army on the Pacific islands, such as Guadalcanal, and in the jungle of New Guinea by the Australian Army. It was made in three different variants, all of them weighing about 10 tons. It would be replaced by the M3 Stuart and the M4 Sherman.

Below, the American M2 light tank, here the M2A2 version, driving up the steep ramp onto a train flat car to be transported.

The M2A2 was the first vehicle of this series of light tanks, which had been designed as the T2 prototype. It was characterized by its twin turret, one featuring a .50-caliber Browning machine gun, and the other a .30-caliber machine gun. This entered into service in 1935, with limited production. Around 1937, they increased the thickness of its frontal armor, producing the M2A3 version. However, when WW2 broke out, they realized that it was equipped with underpower armament; thus, the American engineers replaced the small two towers for a bigger stronger one which was equipped with a 37-mm gun and five .30 machine guns. This new variant was called the M2A4, which would be widely produced.

Specifications:

Weight: 10.5 tons

Length: 4.4 m

Width: 2.4 m

Height: 2.6 m

Power Plant: a Continental W670, 7-cylinder gasoline engine, delivering 250 HP

Armor: 25-mm steel on turret front and 15-mm on hull glacis.

Below, three M2A2 light tanks driving over obstacle on the training field.

The M2A4 variant featured only one turret, with a 37mm gun.

 

Airco DH.4

The Airco DH.4 was a fighter-bomber employed by the British Royal Air Corps during the First World War. It was designed and produced by the Aircraft Manufacturing Company Limited (Airco) from England, performing its maiden flight in 1916. It entered service on April 6, 1917, with No 55 Squadron.

The Airco DH.4 received its baptism of fire on the same day it entered service, on an air raid to attack the German positions in Valenciennes, France. After the war, it would be massively produced in the United States, with more than 6,000 aircraft built as two main models would be developed from it; the DH.9 and the DH.9A, which were used in civil service for mail delivery.

Technical Characteristics

The Airco DH.4 was a single-engine, biplane, fitted with straight staggered wings. This means the lower wing was set backwards in relation to the upper one, so that the pilot had a good view of the ground. Like all World War I biplane, it was equipped with fixed landing gear. Variants: DH.4A, DH.4B, and DH.4M.

Armament

It was equipped with two, firing-forward, 7.7-mm Lewis machine guns, and one backward-firing 7.7-mm machine gun mounted in the rear cockpit. The bomb payload was 209 kg.

Specifications

Length: 9.35 m (30 ft, 8 in)

Wingspan: 12.92 m (42 ft, 5 in)

Wing Area: 40.32 sq. meter (434 sq. feet)

Height: 3 m (10 ft)

Power Plant: one Rolls Royce Eagle VIII, water-cooled, 12-cylinder engine, delivering 375 HP.

Maximum Speed: 230 km/h (143 mph)

Range: 700 km (435 miles)

Below, the Airco DH.4 in 1919 in Belgium, during peace time.

Below, the DH.4B, an air mail plane in the skies over the USA.

VPK-7829 Bumerang

The VPK-7829 Bumerang is a versatile infantry fighting vehicle in service with the Russian Ground Forces since 2017. It was developed from the Armata Universal Combat Platform, which is the same platform used to build the T-14 Armata MBT and  T-15 'Terminator-3' IFV. It is also an amphibious and anti-tank vehicle as it is equipped with powerful anti-armor guided missiles. By mid 2022, the firm Uralvagonzavod had delivered about 250 Bumerangs to the RGF and about 100 units to the Russian Navy. This is a good military vehicle for reconnaissance missions.

Technical Characteristics

The VPK-7829 is an 8x8 wheeled, amphibious IFV, which is powered by a turbocharged 750 HP diesel engine to move on solid ground. To sail through water, it is propelled by two turbojets, which are mounted exteriorly, at the lower rear end of vehicle. Its crew of 3 personnel and the soldiers it transports are well protected by advanced composite armor, which include ceramic and alloy metal. This special alloy avoid spalling and prevent lethal splinters from wounding the crew inside when hit by an anti-tank grenade or shell. To get in and out of this combat vehicle, the Bumerang is fitted with both a rear door and top hatches.

Weapons

The VPK-7829 is armed with a 30mm automatic gun 2A42 Shupinov or with a remote weapon station mounting a 57mm BM-57 autocannon, 9M133 Kornet EM anti-tank missiles, and a 7.62mm PKMT machine gun.

Specifications

Type: Infantry Fighting Vehicle/Armored Personnel Carrier

Weight: 34 tons

Length: 8.8 m

Width: 3.2 m

Height: 3.2 m

Traction: 8x8 bullet-proof wheels

Maximum Speed: 100 km/h.

Below, the Bumerang on a street of Moscow in 2017.

The VPK-7829 Bumerang on the Red Square on May 8, 2017, featuring the 57-mm gun mounted on the remote station. You can see the two anti-tank missiles on each side of it.

Below, the VPK-7829 on a range near Leningrad

 

Yakovlev Yak-130

The Yakovlev Yak-130, Mitten, is a Russian jet trainer aircraft, which is also used in the ground attack role. It was designed in the early 1990s, performing its maiden flight in 1996. It is light and very maneuverable aircraft, with a payload capacity of up to 3,500 kg. Not only is it an excellent trainer but it is also ideal to attack enemy targets on ground, such as concentration of enemy troops.

The Yak-130 is a two-seat, twin-engine aircraft, which entered service with the Russian Air Force in 2010, replacing the Aero L-39 Albatros as the official standard trainer. The Russians have more than 200 Yak-130 aircraft in active duty. Rosonboronexport, the Russian State-run intermediary agency, announced that it has been exported to several Asian countries, which include Iran, Bangladesh, and Syria.

Specifications

Type: Jet trainer/ground attack

Length: 11.49 m (37 ft, 8 in)

Wingspan: 9.84 m (32 ft, 3 in)

Wing Area: 23.52 sq. m

Height: 4.76 (15 ft, 7 in)

Engine: two Ivchenko-Progress AI-222-25 turbo-fan engines

Maximum Speed: sub-sonic (1,060 km/h)

Range: 2,100 km (1300 miles)

Crew: 2

Below, the Yak-130 in the skies over Russian territory

The Yakovlev Yak-130 video

Panther KF51

The Panther KF51 is the new main battle tank of Germany's Bundeswehr and it will be mass produced as a replacement for the Leopard 2. It is equipped with new type of armor, a more powerful gun and a stronger engine. This latest generation of tank was designed and developed by Rheinmetall as it will be combat-ready and fielded at the beginning of 2023. Nevertheless, the Leopard 2A6 and 2A7 version will still remain in service for a long while.

The Panther KF51 has just been introduced to the public in the Eurosatory 2022 defense exhibition in Paris, France. Although it looks like a mighty tank, some international political analysts heavily criticized the name of this powerful armored vehicle, because it has the same name of the Panzer V "Panther" tank of World War II. They said that the Germans still feel nostalgia for the Third Reich, when Germany was free from the USA's geopolitical influence; a time when elitist, globalist billionaires did not have the power and string-pulling capacity they have today.

Technical Characteristics

The Panther KF51 features a new 130-mm L/55 gun, which also replaces the 120-mm L/44. Although Rheinmetall spokesman at the Paris weapons show stated all technical features are still confidential information, weapons engineers estimate that the new Panzer weighs around 67 tons as it is powered by an MTU twin turbo diesel engine that generates 1,800 HP. It is also fitted with the most modern high-tech sensors, which enable this new German tank to fight at night, in the fog, and in all weather conditions.

Armor

The kind of armor that protects the crew is unknown, but it is estimated it is composed of different materials, which include tungsten carbide, ceramic, and a steel-nickle-titanium alloy. Tungsten and ceramic can resist the extremely high temperature of some types of anti-tank missile and gun munitions, while the three-metal alloy is impact-resistant as it is believed that it can stop Sabot rounds in their tracks.

Below, photo of the Panther KF51 MBT

The new MBT of the German Army: Panther KF51. Demonstration (video)

 

SdKfz 251

The SdKfz 251 was one of the most widely used half-track armored vehicles in World War II. Although it had entered service with the Wehrmacht by mid 1939, it was not employed during the German invasion of Poland. It would have to wait one year as it first saw combat action during the Battle of France in May and June 1940 as a sufficient number of SdKfz 251s had already been produced. Since then, it would be used on every front of the war; on the Eastern Front, in the Balkan, North Africa, and Italy. SdKfz was the German abbreviation of 'Sonderkraftfahrzeug'. However, it was also officially referred to as the 'Schutzenpanzerwagen'.

Below, the SdKfz 251 in Greece, April 1941, spearheading the infantry.

Although, technically, it was an armored personnel carrier, it was specially employed to carry out reconnaissance missions. Thus, it became the preferred half-track vehicle to be employed to explore and secure enemy ground in advance of the main force. Therefore, every mechanized infantry unit in the vanguard used it. It was designed and developed by Hanomag. It was also massively produced by the firms Horch and Adlerwerke, with more than 15,000 vehicles being made until 1945.

Technical Characteristics

The SdKfz 251 was a half-track personnel carrier for mechanized infantry and Panzergrenadiers. The track section of the vehicle was sturdy and reliable as it was composed of overlapping steel wheels (rollers), with the sprocket or drive wheel located at the front. In order to turn right or left, the driver had to not only turn the steering controlling the two front tire wheels but he also had to block with the brake either the left or right track, depending in which direction he was ordered to go.

The front part of the SdKfz 251 was protected by 14.5-mm-thick steel armor, while the sides were equipped with V-shaped 8-mm steel plates. The V-shape improved the armor protection. The infantry version was usually armed with two MG-34 or MG-42 machine guns, one mounted at the front and the other at the rear. Every version of the SdKfz 251 was powered by a Maybach HL42 6-cylinder gasoline engine, which delivered 100 HP.

Models and Variants

The following models of the SdKfz 251 were manufactured: Ausf. A, B, C, and D. The Ausf C was massively produced and could be recognized by the hexagonal shape frontal armor plates and the rear door or tail gate, which bulged out. The Ausf. D was a simplified model, with less protection, to speed up production for the demanding maws of war.

The SdKfz 251/I was the initial command version, which was made between 1939 and 1940. The SdKfz 251/2 featured a mobile mount for the 8 cm GrW34 mortar, which could be mounted quickly without trouble. The /3 was a communication half-track vehicles fitted with several radio set and antennas; however the /3 Ausf. B was usually fitted with a 2.8 cm Panzerbuchse anti-tank gun. The /4 was used as a towing vehicle to carry the 10.5 cm le FH 18 field howitzer as well was the 7.5cm PaK 40 and the 8.8 cm PaK 43 anti-tank guns employed by the infantry.

The /7 was armed with a 2 cm Flak 38 (a 20mm AA gun). The /9, which was fitted with a 7.5 cm KwK L/24 gun, which was used on the Panther IV tank, to provide fire support to the infantry. Other versions were equipped with different types of guns and equipment. The SdKfz 251/10 was armed with the 3.7 cm PaK anti-tank gun.

Specifications

Length: 19 feet (5.8 m)

Width: 6 feet 11 inches (2.1 m)

Height: 5 feet 9 inches (1.75 m)

Weight: 7.9 tons

Maximum Speed: 33 miles per hour

Below, the SdKfz 251 could drive over rough terrain and overcome many obstacles.

Below, the SdKfz 251 Ausf. C on the Eastern Front in 1942, during Operation Case Blue

The SdKfz 251/4 Ausf. C towing a 7.5 cm PaK 40 anti-tank gun

Below, the SonderKraftFahrzeug 251/9 featuring the 7.5 cm L/24 short-barreled gun

The German Army mechanized infantry troops jumping out the SdKfz 251 during an offensive.