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SU-6 self-propelled anti-aircraft gun

Wihin a decade, the self-propelled anti-aircraft guns on the chassis of commercial trucks created back during the Great War were hopelessly outdated and decommissioned. In 1933, to replace old systems, a task was given to design an anti-aircraft self-propelled guns on the chassis of the T-26 tank. Requirements for a new self-propelled gun were issued to the design department of self-propelled artillery of plant No. 185.

The experimental light anti-aircraft installation SU-6 arr. 1935 was one of the first anti-aircraft self-propelled guns developed in the pre-war period. It was developed simultaneously with the Small Triplex complex. It was intended to equip primarily mechanized troops, and later on cavalry and combined arms units. To increase the accuracy of firing, the suspension of the installation was equipped with a special mechanism to turn off the elastic elements. Due to the large overload of the chassis, it was not adopted for service.

Since the installation of the 76 mm 3K gun of the 1931 model was supposed to be the main weapon, it was already obvious at the preliminary design stage that the T-26 chassis would have to be lengthened. GAU and UMM did not agree with this, which in every possible way prevented alterations on the tank, which had recently been accepted for serial production.

Nevertheless, in May 1943, the project of self-propelled guns, which received the SU-6 index, was approved, but the task was adjusted for the use of guns in the battle formations of troops against enemy tanks. The direct design and manufacture of the prototype began in June. The layout of the self-propelled guns was carried out by L. Troyanov under the general leadership of P.V.Syachintov. The machine body was a box-shaped riveted structure reinforced for rigidity by three transverse partitions. The body and track of the SU-6 were wider than that of the T-26. Along the perimeter of the hull were articulated hinged folding armor shields that covered the calculation from machine-gun fire during movement. In the tilted position, the sides were held by special supports that had a reference point on the body of the additional suspension. Thus, the area where the calculation of the gun was operating increased. In the front and rear hinged shields there were ball mounts of machine guns DT. The folding crew seats were attached to the inner walls of the hull. The crew of the combat vehicle consisted of 6 people.

The 76 mm anti-aircraft gun 3K arr. 1931 with a barrel length of 56 calibers was installed on a pedestal in the middle of the hull. The gun had a horizontal angle of fire of 360°, vertical - from -5° to + 82°. The height of the line of fire was 2445 mm. Ammunition consisted of 48 rounds. The undercarriage was lengthened due to the installation in the middle part of the casing on each side, an additional support roller sprung by a coil spring was additionally installed. To turn off the suspension during firing, a special hydraulic device was used. The engine and transmission were entirely borrowed from the serial T-26 tank of the 1933 model.

Factory tests of the SU-6 were carried out between September and October 1935. With a mass of 11,000 kg, the self-propelled gun showed a maximum speed of 28 km/hr and had a cruising range of about 130 km. A few days later, on October 13, the SU-6 arrived at NIAP from Plant No. 185, where it was tested for almost a year.

Such a long test period was explained by the fact that the self-propelled guns were under repair for a long time and, in addition, was used along the way to test the installation of the 37-mm anti-aircraft gun (the 76-mm gun was dismantled). Field trials for 750 km lasted from June 25 to September 14, 1936 with intervals for engine and chassis repairs, which were heavily overloaded due to the increased mass of the combat vehicle.

Testing of the vehicle was also complicated by severe weather conditions, which led to frequent breakdowns of the chassis and the motor-transmission group. So, after a march of 15-25 km at a speed of 25 km / h, a stop was required, since the oil temperature was approaching 105°C. In addition, the process of testing revealed insufficient engine power T-26, which poorly "kept" the weight of the heavy self-propelled guns, low strength rollers of the chassis and suspension springs.

Fire tests, during which 416 shots were fired, also did not bring the desired result. When shooting on the move or when moving through the meadow at a speed of 7-10 km \ h, 8 shots were fired from a distance of 400-500 meters on the shield and no shells hit the target. The accuracy of firing at the initial stage was recognized as satisfactory, but in the end the assessment was replaced with unsatisfactory, both with and without suspension.

The system also had low ground stability. When fired, the SU-6 jumped to a height of up to 170 mm when firing with an elevation angle of 0°, and also rolled back to 210 mm. With each shot, a pickup of up to 15' was observed at an elevation angle of +85°. In addition, the crew of the SU-6 in the stowed position was not completely placed on the self-propelled guns and the installers of the remote barrels had to go by escort vehicle.

All these factors led to the fact that the SU-6 was deemed unsuitable for escorting motorized columns. Nevertheless, in March 1936 at the plant number 185 managed to lay the installation batch of 14 cars. Later, 10 of them planned to be adapted for the installation of the 37 mm automatic anti-aircraft machine of Shpitalny, but in January 1937 this option was also abandoned, since the release of this type of guns was not established. To prevent the vehicles from being idle idle on March 13, 1936, Order No. 0K-58ss was issued, according to which four 76-mm anti-aircraft self-propelled guns were supposed to be used for training personnel.

By January 1937, four SU-6 chassis were assembled, and the rest were in different stages of readiness in the workshop of plant No. 185. Their further fate was uncertain, since P.V.Syachintov was arrested and work on self-propelled guns was severely inhibited. The fate of the self-propelled guns could be decided in 1938, when a report was sent to the head of the 2nd department of the AC of the Red Army “on the storage and use of SU-6,” where, in particular, the following was said:

“I ask for your order to the non-representative of the Leningrad Plant of Lifting Facilities on transferring for long-term storage to the warehouse of the AU backlog (of unfinished products) for all SU-6 machines manufactured by the Leningrad Lifting Facilities Plant named after T. Kirov, in accordance with the agreement with AU of the Red Army from 08/28/1936 according to the drawings of the plant for long-term storage. Otherwise, the plant will have to pay for the long-term storage of the aforementioned. a survey of the further use of four transferred finished SU-6 vehicles designed for the 76-mm anti-aircraft gun arr. 1931, it turns out what you will be additionally informed. Chairman of the Artcom AU RKKA Comdiv Grendal. ”

Thus, the Red Army was not eager to accept the SU-6 in any capacity and sent the finished cars to the warehouses, where they ended their lives.