TP-1 (356-mm cannon) / TG-1 (500-mm howitzer)

The history of the creation of the newest artillery of a very large caliber is connected with the fifth of May, 1936. The Council of People's Commissars approved the resolution on the creation of railway artillery of a large and very large caliber. In this connection, in February 1938, a tactical and technical task was issued for the development of new railway installations, which received the name TP-1 (with a 356-mm cannon) and TG-1 (with a 500-mm howitzer). In the same year, OKB-172 was appointed the lead developer of the TP-1 project, and was also entrusted with the development of documentation for the swinging part of the installation (gun barrel, recoil devices and cradle). According to the project "TP-1" was created to counter surface ships and the enemy's monitors and to use batteries in ground operations with concrete complexes. The project "TM-1-14." "TG-1" was intended to be used only in ground operations.

As the experience of combat operations on the Western Front during the First World War showed, such installations were the most effective weapon for the destruction of enemy fortifications with multi-meter reinforced concrete floors. However, at first there was no consensus about the caliber of the gun for such an installation. In this regard, the specialists of the Artillery Scientific Research Institute in 1937 conducted a thorough analysis of the options for railway artillery installations with howitzers of 450. 475 and 500 mm caliber.

From the caliber of 475 mm in the end was refjected. There were two options left - 450 and 500 mm. And although it was believed that the 450-mm howitzer would have the best ballistic characteristics, a 500 mm caliber gun was considered more universal. This view was supported by the fact that the action on concrete for all howitzers was assumed to be the same, but the action on the ground should have been better for a 500-mm howitzer. As a result, she was given preference.

The conveyor design was carried out by TsKB-19. BAT-13 (issues of external and internal ballistics) and NII-24 (design of projectiles) were also connected to the works. The entire TP-1 system was installed at the Novokramatorsk Mechanical Plant, the swinging part of the csupzhen was at the plant No. 221 "Barricades", railway trolleys with movement mechanisms - "Red Profintern", the electrical part was charged to the Kharkov Electrotechnical Plant (KETZ) , Jenny clutches - plant imenis Kirov in Leningrad, the cellar cars and the power carriage were to be built by the Red Profintern plant, the Comintern engines were ordered to plant No. 183 (KhPZ), artillery fire control devices were to be made by plant No. 212, sights - factory No. 172, shells - Plant number 3, and charges - plants number 40 and number 59.

Several dozen factories from all over the Soviet Union took part in the work to create these colossal battle rail batteries. The barrels on TP-1 and TG-1 were installed lined, the piston gates opened two push-ups, the platforms were identical to TM-1-14. The speed of movement on railways up to 50 km / h, there was the possibility of restructuring the movement by rail of the western type.

For the TG-1 with a 500-mm gun, there were two projectiles, an armor-piercing reinforced power (concrete) weighing 2 tons and having 200 kg of explosive and a high-explosive mixture, weighing one and a half tons and having an explosive mixture of about 300 kg. An armor-piercing projectile of enhanced power (concrete) pierced concrete walls with a thickness of up to 4.5 meters.

For the TP-1 with a 356-mm caliber long-range, high-explosive, armor-piercing and combined projectiles were provided. High-explosive and armor-piercing were the same weight - 750 kg and differed in the amount of explosive mixture. Long-range ammunition differed from the armor-piercing only by a reduced weight - 495 kg, and, accordingly, a range, 60 km versus 49 km. Combined ammunition in 40 years was considered sub-caliber ammunition, weighing 235 kg (the weight of the projectile 127 kg), with a maximum range of 120 km.

In accordance with the plans of the command of the Red Army, these installations were to be put into service with the railroad artillery batteries of special power RVGK. Each such battery should have included three artillery conveyors, three power wagons (one for the gun), six cellar wagons (two for the gun) with 24 shots in each car, and two battery and central wagons (according to TM-3-12). In addition, the mobile base should have included two spare cellar cars for the gun, the installation for changing the liner and the means for restoring the destroyed track 40 m long. The TP-1 battery’s air defense should consist of a three-battery battalion. For transportation of artillery transporters and escort cars, “E” type locomotives were to be used. As with the batteries of marine railway installations, it was also provided for the presence of a battery post with a collapsible tower and a central post.

In accordance with the plans of the Main Artillery Directorate, the Novokramatorsk Mechanical Plant, which carried out the entire installation of the system, was to manufacture 16 TG-1 installations by the end of 1942, designed to arm artillery batteries of a special power reserve of the High Command. The batteries of the TG-1 installations should have the same organizational structure as the TP-1 batteries: three artillery transporters; three power station wagons (one per gun); six cellar cars (two per gun) with 24 shots in each car; one wagon-battery post, one wagon-central post. It was also supposed to have a mobile base with two spare carriage-cellars for the gun and means for restoring the destroyed section of the railway line with a length of up to 40 m.

Germany’s attack on the USSR interrupted work on the TP-1 and TG-1, which were never put into service. By the end of 1942, the Soviet Union planned to build a total of 28 guns on the railway platform of these projects, but due to the constant workload of the factories creating surface ships, only one TP-1 and one TG-1 were built. And after the start of the war, work on projects was interrupted.