T-26

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T-26 T-26 mod. 1933 at the museum "Breaching of the Leningrad Blockade" near Kirovsk, Leningrad Oblast. This tank was raised from a river bottom at Nevsky Pyatachok in May 2003. Type Light infantry tank Place of origin  Soviet Union Service history In service 1931–45 in USSR, –1953 in Spain, –1961 in Finland Used by Soviet Union, Spain, Finland, China, Turkey, Nazi Germany, Romania, Hungary, Afghanistan Wars Spanish Civil War, Second Sino-Japanese War, Soviet–Japanese Border Wars, Soviet invasion of Poland, Winter War, Great Patriotic War, Soviet-Japanese War 1945, Chinese Civil War Production history Designer Vickers-Armstrongs, OKMO of Bolshevik Factory in Leningrad Designed 1928-1931 Manufacturer Factory No. 174 named after K.E. Voroshilov in Leningrad, Stalingrad Tractor Factory Produced 1931–41 Number built 10,300 tanks and 1,701 other vehicles[1] Specifications (T-26 mod. 1933[2]) Weight 9.6 tonnes (10.6 short tons) Length 4.65 m (15.3 ft) Width 2.44 m (8.0 ft) Height 2.24 m (7.3 ft) Crew 3 (commander, gunner, driver) Armour 6 mm (0.24 in) bottom, 6–10 mm (0.24–0.39 in) roof, 15 mm (0.59 in) hull (front, rear, sides) and turret Primary armament 45 mm 20K mod. 1932/34 tank gun (122 rds.) Secondary armament 7.62 mm DT tank machine gun (2,961 rds.) Engine 4-cylinder gasoline inline horizontal air-cooled T-26 (Armstrong Siddeley type); engine volume 6,600 cc 90 hp (67 kW) at 2,100 rpm Power/weight 9.38 hp/t Transmission single-disk main dry clutch, drive shaft, gearbox with five gears, steering clutches, final drives Suspension leaf quarter-elliptic springs Ground clearance 380 mm (15 in) Fuel capacity 290 L (64 imp gal; 77 U.S. gal) [with additional 110-L fuel tank] Operational range 220–240 km (140–150 mi) - high-road; 130–140 km (81–87 mi) - off-road; Speed 31.1 km/h (19.3 mph) - high-road; 22 km/h (14 mph) - by-road; 16 km/h (9.9 mph) - off-road

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For other uses, see T26

For armoured combat vehicles based on the T-26 chassis, see T-26 variants

The T-26 was a Soviet light infantry tank which was used during many conflicts of the 1930s as well as during World War II. It was a development of the British Vickers 6-Ton tank and is widely considered one of the most successful tank designs of the 1930s.^[3]

It was produced in greater numbers than any 1930s tank, with more than 11,000 produced.^[4] A large number (around 50) of different modifications and armoured combat vehicles based on the T-26 chassis were developed in the USSR in the 1930s, 23 of them were series-produced.^[5]

The T-26 saw a long history in the armies of various nations around the world, including Spain, China and Turkey; captured T-26 light tanks were used by the Finnish, German, Romanian and Hungarian armies.^[6]

Already becoming obsolete by the beginning of World War II, it was nevertheless the most important tank of the Spanish Civil War and played a significant role during the Battle of Lake Khasan in 1938 and the Winter War. The T-26 was the most numerous tank in the Red Army's armoured force during the German invasion of the Soviet Union in June 1941.^[7] The battle career of the T-26 ended in August 1945 in Manchuria.^[8]

The T-26 was reliable and simple to maintain and was continuously modernized between 1931 and 1941. However, no new models of the T-26 were developed after 1940.

British origin

It is well known that the T-26 was a Soviet development of the British Vickers Mk.E 6-ton light tank which was designed by Vickers-Armstrongs company in 1928-1929. The simple to maintain Vickers 6-ton tank was intended especially for export to countries with a low level of machine-building industry: the Soviet Union, Poland, Finland, Bulgaria, Greece, Japan, Thailand, China, Brazil, Argentina, and Bolivia. There was an active advertising of the tank in military publications that time, and Soviet Union and Poland were the first countries indeed which became interested in that Vickers design.

In spring 1930, the Soviet buying committee under the direction of S. Ginzburg arrived in Great Britain to select tanks, tractors and cars available to be used in the Red Army. Soviet representatives selected four tank models during the visit to Vickers-Armstrongs company: Vickers-Carden-Loyd Mk.VI tankette, Vickers-Carden-Loyd amphibious tank, Vickers Mk.E 6-ton light tank and Vickers Armstrong Mk.II 12-ton medium tank. According to the contract signed on 28 May 1930 Vickers-Armstrongs delivered to the USSR 15 twin-turreted Mk.E (Model A armed with two 7.71 mm water-cooled Vickers machine guns) 6-ton tanks together with full technical documentation to organize the series production of this tank in the USSR. Model A was meant to kill enemy troops during breakthrough of field entrenchments - turn of two turrets made possible to shoot a trench right and left.^[9] Several Soviet engineers participated in assembly of those tanks at Vickers Factory in 1930.^[10]

The first four Vickers 6-ton tanks arrived to USSR in the end of 1930 and the last ones - in 1932 only (when series production of the native T-26 was in progress). The British tanks were issued to Soviet factories for study in preparation for series production and to military educational institutions and training units; later some of Vickers light tanks were given to military supply depots and proving grounds. Production of a new tank was planned at the Chelyabinsk Tractor Factory and at the Stalingrad Tractor Factory (both were under construction that time). In the end, it was decided to use Bolshevik Factory in Leningrad for that purpose.

The arrived Vickers 6-ton tanks had the designator V-26 in the USSR, and three of them (No. 215/1, 214/2 and 216/3) were successfully tested on the small proving ground near Moscow on Poklonnaya Hill in January 1931. The "special commission for the RKKA new tanks" under the direction of S. Ginzburg was created according to the order of K. Voroshilov to define the tank type suitable for the Red Army. The T-19 8-ton light infantry tank, developed that time by S. Ginzburg in the Design Office of the Bolshevik Factory, was a theoretical competitor to British Vickers (the prototype of the quite complicated and expensive T-19 was finished in August 1931 only). As both tank models had their own advantages and disadvantages, S. Ginzburg suggested to develop a more powerful hybrid tank (so called "improved" T-19) - with a hull, a 100 hp (75 kW) six-cylinder engine developed by A. Mikulin and an armament (37 mm PS-2 mod. 1930 semi-automatic tank gun and two DT tank machine guns) from the T-19, and a transmission and a chassis from the Vickers 6-ton.^[9][11]

But on 26 January 1931, the chief of the Department of Mechanization and Motorization of the RKKA (UMM RKKA), I. Khalepsky, wrote a letter to S. Ginzburg with the information obtained through intelligence service that Polish government decided to purchase Vickers 6-ton infantry tanks as well as Christie 10-ton cavalry tanks and to mass produce them with the British-French assistance in 1931 already. So the Soviet Revolutionary Military Council took this erroneous information into consideration and decided to pass the aforementioned foreign tank models into Red Army's service immediately without any further experimental work in order to counter possible aggression; Poland was considered by Soviet military doctrine as the main enemy until around 1935. The RKKA had only several tens of outdated captured Mk.V, Mk.A and Renault FT-17 tanks of WWI period together with different armoured cars and obsolescent home-produced MS-1 (T-18) light infantry tanks that time. On 13 February 1931 the Vickers 6-ton light infantry tank under the designator T-26 officially entered service in the Red Army as the "main tank for close support of combined arms units and tank units of High Command reserve".^[9][11]

The prototype of TMM-1 light infantry tank during tests. Spring 1932.

At the same time the engineer group from the Faculty of Mechanization and Motorization of the Military Technical Academy named after F.E. Dzerzhinsky developed two tank models (TMM-1 and TMM-2) based on the purchased Vickers 6-ton tank design but with an American Hercules 95 hp (71 kW) six-cylinder water-cooled engine, improved front armour (to 15-20 mm) and a driver's position on the left side. TMM stands for tank maloy moshchnosti - tank of low power. The TMM-1 was equipped with transmission details from the home-produced Ya-5 truck and a ball mount for the DT tank machine gun in front of the hull (a crew consisted of 4 men) whereas the TMM-2 was equipped with an improved gear box, a steering device without clutches and a 37 mm Hotchkiss gun in the right turret. But representatives from the main Soviet tank manufacturers (Bolshevik Factory and Kharkov Locomotive Factory), together with officials from the RKKA Mobilization Department, considered the Hercules engine to be too difficult to produce. The Hercules engine overheated in tank engine compartment also. Besides, tests of TMM-1 and TMM-2 prototypes performed in the beginning of 1932 demonstrated no any advantage over the Vickers 6-ton and the already produced T-26 (the TMM-2's maneuverability was found to be even worse).^[12][13]

One of the Vickers 6-ton tanks was tested for gunfire resistance at the factory named after S. Ordzhonikidze in August 1931 - the hull was shelled from rifle and Maxim machine gun with the use of usual and armour-piercing bullets from 50 m (160 ft). It was found that tank armour plates withstood gunfire (only some rivets were damaged), the chemical analysis demonstrated that 9.8–12.7 mm (0.39–0.50 in) turret and front armour plates were made from a high-quality cemented armour (S.t.a Plat according to Vickers-Armstrongs classification) whereas homogenous 5 mm (0.20 in) roof and bottom armour plates were made from mediocre steel. Nevertheless, the British armour was better than armour produced by Izhora Factory for the first T-26 light tanks (because of shortage of modern metallurgical equipment in the USSR that time).^[14]

Design

T-26 mod. 1931 (with welded turrets) after modernization. Military Academy of Mechanization and Motorization of the RKKA, 1940.

Rear view of T-26 mod. 1933 with a welded hull and turret. Note the rear turret hatch for gun removal, the mounting of exhaust muffler, the cover over the air outlet window and louvers of oil cooler. Museum "Breaching of the Blockade of the Leningrad" near Kirovsk, Leningrad Oblast, 2007.

The T-26 was designed to replace the obsolescent MS-1 (T-18) light infantry tank which represented the Soviet development of a Fiat 3000 design.

The Soviets did not simply replicate the Vickers Six-Ton.^[15] Like its British counterpart, the T-26 Model 1931 had a twin-turret configuration and was designed to carry two machine guns — one in each turret. A major difference between the Soviet T-26 and the British Six-Ton was the rectangular firing ports for Degtyarev machine guns, as opposed to the round ports used by the original design.^[16]

After problems experienced with precipitation and snow getting into the engine compartment, a special bonnet was installed after March 1932, and was later made integral with the design of the air intake unit. The tank was also fitted with a higher turret with an observation slit, while the driver was given a vision port.^[16] Around 1,627 T-26 tanks with twin turrets were produced between 1931 and 1933; of these, 450 were armed with the 37 mm PS-1 in one of the turrets.^[17]

In 1933 the Soviets unveiled the T-26 Model 1933, with a single cylindrical turret which carried a single 37 mm cannon and a single 7.62 mm machine gun.^[18] Ultimately, this 37 mm primary cannon was replaced by the better known 45 mm, which was based on the German Pak 35/36 cannon acquired in 1930.^[18] The T-26 could carry up to three secondary DT 7.62 mm machine guns, in coaxial, rear, and antiaircraft mounts. The majority of T-26 built were of the T-26 Model 1933 model. The original purpose of the upgraded firepower was to increase lethal range to defeat dedicated anti-tank teams, as the original machine gun armament was found insufficient.^[19]. The turret rear ball mounting for the additional DT tank machine gun was installed on the T-26 tanks since the end 1935 till 1939.

Interior of T-26 mod. 1933 turret. Left-side ammunition stowage. Note also the side observation device and the porthole for revolver closed with the plug.^[20] Parola Tank Museum in Finland.

Interior of T-26 mod. 1933 turret, looking forward at the 45 mm 20K tank gun breech. Note the TOP-1 telescopic sight to the left, coaxial DT tank machine gun and PT-K commander panoramic sight to the right.^[20] Parola Tank Museum in Finland.

The T-26 Model 1933 carried 122 rounds of 45 mm ammunition, firing armour-piercing 45 mm rounds with a muzzle velocity of 820 m/s (2,700 ft/s), or lower-velocity high-explosive munitions.^[4] The tank was powered by a T-26 90 horsepower (67 kW) 4-cylinder gasoline air-cooled engine which gave it a top speed of almost 31 km/h (19 mph).

The T-26 could cross 0.75 m high vertical obstacles and 2.1 m wide trenches, ford 0.80 m deep water obstacles, cut 33 cm thick trees and climb 25-40° gradients^[2]

The hull had a maximum armor thickness of 15 mm, which was sufficient to stop artillery HE fragments and light machine gun ammunition, including German 7.92 mm armour-piercing rounds, but would later prove to be too light against newer German anti-tank weapons in 1941. In 1938 the T-26 was upgraded to the model 1938 version which had conical turret but the same welded hull as the T-26 mod. 1933 produced in 1935-1936.^[21] This still proved to be insufficient against better anti-tank weapons, and the tank was upgraded one more time in the middle 1939 (after the Battle of Lake Khasan took place in 1938), having turret box with sloped (23^O) 20 mm side armoured plates. The turret featured an increase to 20 mm at 18 degrees sloping.^[22] This time it was designated T-26-1 (more known as T-26 mod. 1939 in modern sources). There would be subsequent attempts to thicken the front plate, but ultimately T-26 production would end in favor of newer and superior tank designs, such as the T-34.

Beginning in 1937, there was an effort to equip many tanks with anti-aircraft machine guns, as well as the addition of two searchlights, a new VKU-3 command system and a TPU-3 intercom. Ammunition stowage was also improved from 122 rounds to 147 for the main gun.^[23] In 1938 the cylindrical turret was replaced with a conical turret, with the same 45 mm model 1934 gun.^[24]

When compared to the Vickers Six-Ton tank, the T-26 had superior maximum armour protection - 15 mm (0.59 in) as compared to 13 mm (0.51 in). Although the Vickers Six-Ton B would have its armour increased to a maximum of 17 mm (0.67 in), this was not much superior to the 16 mm (0.63 in) of the T-26 Model 1933. Furthermore, the T-26 would later see its armour improved.

Concerning respective armaments, the Soviet 45 mm gun which equipped the majority of the T-26s produced was superior to the low velocity, short-barrelled, 47 mm gun which equipped the Vickers Six-Ton B. However, the Vickers Six-Ton was slightly lighter and slightly faster than the T-26.^[25]

Based on experience in the Spanish Civil War, the Red Army planned to replace the T-26 and BT tanks with a new generation of tanks such as the T-34 and T-50. These plans were just beginning to be executed on the eve of Operation Barbarossa. Production of the T-26 was halted; readiness and maintenance standards fell, which put the Red Army at a disadvantage during the German invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941.

Series production

Service and combat history

T-26 mod. 1931 light tanks in pre-war Soviet markings (the colours of an upper solid line and a lower dash line stand for a battalion and a company numbers, correspondingly). Tank unit of 1^st mechanized brigade on tactical exercises. Moscow Military District, 1933.

The first tank unit equipped with the T-26 tanks was 1^st mechanized brigade named after K.B. Kalinovsky (Moscow Military District), 11^th mechanized brigade (Leningrad Military District) and 6^th mechanized brigade (Special Red Banner Far Eastern Army) received the T-26 tanks in 1931 also. Tanks delivered to the Red Army till the end of 1931 were unarmed and intended for training, and the T-26 entered active service in 1932. New mechanized brigades, each equipped with 178 T-26 tanks, were also organized at that time. Early T-26 tanks often suffered from engine and transmission failures due to poor production standards, and appropriate training for attending personnel was also poor. Military exercises demonstrated that the T-26 mod. 1931 had a somewhat worse cross-country ability in comparison with old tanks used in the RKKA that time, but its speed was superior. Twin-turreted T-26 tanks were used also for anti-tank training of infantry battalions during military exercises of Leningrad Military District in 1934-1935.^[27]

The RKKA Staff decided to form larger tank units based on experience gained in military exercises of 1931-1932: so mechanized corps were created in Moscow, Ukrainian and Leningrad Military Districts since autumn 1932. Each mechanized corps consisted of two mechanized brigades (one equipped with the T-26 and another - with the BT). Since 1935, all mechanized corps were equipped with the BT tanks only. When a series production of the T-26 mod. 1933 started, each tank platoon consisted of three vehicles at first (one single-turreted mod. 1933 and two twin-turreted mod. 1931 tanks). Later twin-turreted T-26 tanks were given to combat training depots and to tank battalions of rifle divisions (in the beginning of 1935 tank battalion of rifle division consisted of 3 companies, 15 T-26 tanks in each). In august 1938 mechanized corps, brigades and regiments were reorganized into corresponding tank units. In the end of 1938 the Red Army had 17 light tank brigades (267 T-26 tanks in each) and 3 chemical tank brigades (equipped with flame-throwing tanks based on the T-26 chassis).^[28]

Spanish Civil War

Republican T-26 mod. 1933 in the street of Madrid. Note a welded hull and a turret, a pressed gun mask, a new audible warning device near a hinged headlight armoured cover, road wheels with removable bands and an anti-aircraft DT tank machine gun on P-40 ring mounting. These are altogether features of tanks produced in the end of 1936-1937.

The Spanish Civil War was the first conflict in which the T-26 participated. At request of the Spanish Republican Government, the Soviet Government decided to sell weapons and military equipment to Spain as well as to provide military advisers (including tankmen) within the framework of Operation "X". The first shipment of tanks to Spanish republicans was delivered on 13 October 1936, at the Spanish port city of Cartagena - those were 50 T-26 light tanks with spare parts, ammunition, fuel, and around 80 volunteers under the command of colonel Semyon Krivoshein, the commander of 8^th separate mechanized brigade. The first German delivery of armoured vehicles to Franco's insurgent Nationalist forces (Panzer I light tanks for Condor Legion) arrived only week later; the Italians began to provide Nationalists with CV-33 tankettes earlier, since August 1936.

Republican and Nationalist tanks would see their first combat during the advance of Franco's major forces towards Madrid and during the Siege of Madrid proper where the Nationalist Panzer I and CV-33 tankettes suffered heavy losses from Republican tanks armed with 45 mm guns. The first Soviet T-26 tanks delivered to Cartagena were intended for Republican tankmen training in Archena training center (90 km of Cartagena), but the situation around Madrid became complicated and 15 tanks formed a tank company under the command of Soviet captain Paul Arman. The company engaged in battle on 29 October 1936 already (near Seseña, 30 km south-west of Madrid) - 12 T-26 tanks advanced at 35 km during the ten-hour raid and inflicted significant losses to Francoists (around two squadrons of Moroccan cavalry and two infantry battalions were defeated; 12 75 mm field guns, 4 CV-33 tankettes and 20-30 trucks with cargos were destroyed or damaged) with the loss of 3 T-26 tanks to gasolene bombs and artillery fire. The first known instance of ramming in tank warfare was made that day - the T-26 tank of platoon commander lieutenant Semyon Osadchy encountered two Italian CV-33 tankettes from the Nationalist 1^st tank company near Esquivias village and overturned one of them into a small gorge (crewmembers of another tankette were killed by tank machine-gun fire after they abandoned their vehicle). The T-26 of captain P. Arman was fired by gasoline bomb but wounded P. Arman continued to lead the tank company (the Arman's T-26 destroyed one and damaged two CV-33 tankettes by tank gun fire); on December 31, 1936 he was awarded with the Hero of the Soviet Union gold star medal for that tank raid and active participation in the defense of Madrid. On 17 November 1936 Arman's company had five T-26 tanks in operable condition.^[29][30][31] The remaining part of Krivoshein's tank group (consisted of 23 T-26 tanks and 9 armoured cars) attacked Francoists on 1 November 1936 supporting the main Republican column retreating to Madrid.^[31] The Krivoshein's tank group took part in the fighting for Torrejón de Velasco and Valdemoro on 4-5 November 1936, the counterattack in the suburb of Cerro de los Ángeles on 13 November 1936 and in continuous fighting inside Madrid itself through the middle of December 1936. Soviet military personnel of Krivoshein's group returned back to the USSR in the end of November 1936 (except some tankmen from Pogodin's company, mechanics from Alcalá de Henares tank repair base and military instructors from Archena training center).^[32][2]

T-26 mod. 1933 of 11^th international brigade advancing during the Battle of Belchite. September 1937.

The organization of the 1^st Republican tank brigade (consisted of tank battalion, Spanish motorcycle company and transport battalion at the beginning) started since the December 1936 on the basis of delivered ~100 tanks and military personnel under the command of Soviet brigade commander Dmitry Pavlov in Archena training center. The Soviet volunteers (tank commanders and drivers) sent to Spain were from the best tank units of the Red Army: mechanized brigade named after V. Volodarsky from Peterhof, 4^th separate mechanized brigade from Babruysk (commander - D. Pavlov), 1^st mechanized corps named after K.B. Kalinovsky from Naro-Fominsk. The tank gunners were usually Spanish. The 1^st Republican tank brigade (1.^a Brigada Blindada) saw its first action near Las Rosas and Majadahonda (north-west of Madrid) in the beginning of January, 1937 supporting 12^th and 14^th International brigades - when the second Nationalist assault to Madrid was broken up. There were around 70 T-26 tanks in the Republican Army in the beginning of 1937. In February 1937 company-sized detachments of the tank brigade participated in Battle of Jarama, on 14 February 1937 the tank brigade in a counterattack together with the 24^th infantry brigade overcame a major Nationalist force, leading to the loss of about a thousand Nationalist troops killed or wounded. On 27 February 1937 the tank brigade launched 5 attacks on Nationalist positions alone, but took heavy losses from anti-tank guns (nearly 35-40% tanks in some attacks). Nevertheless, the Republican T-26 light tanks were used with great success during the Battle of Guadalajara in March 1937 when the 1^st tank brigade was formed finally (its HQ was in Alcalá de Henares): for example, platoon of two T-26 tanks under the command of Spanish tankman E. Ferrera destroyed or damaged 25 Italian tankettes on 10 March 1937. In September-October 1937 the Republican 1^st tank brigade was disbanded (some volunteers returned back to the USSR, some joined with the International tank regiment under the command of Soviet major S.A. Kondratiev).^[32][33]

Since autumn 1937, all crewmembers of the T-26 tanks were Spanish. In summer 1938 the Republican Army had two armoured divisions, formed with the Soviet help.^[34] Turrets from irreparable T-26, BT-5 tanks and BA-6 armoured cars were mounted on some Chevrolet 1937 and other armoured cars developed and produced by the Republicans. It should be noted that Republican armour and infantry often suffered from cooperation problems throughout the war. T-26 tanks often attacked enemy trenches or defense positions in the narrow streets of Spanish towns without support, where they met strong resistance (Nationalist infantry, especially the Moroccans, defended courageously despite heavy casualties, throwing hand grenades and gasolene bombs dangerous for tank engines).^[31][35][36]

Ultimately, the Soviet Union provided a total of 281 T-26 mod. 1933 tanks which were used by the Republicans in almost all battles of the Spanish Civil War (very many sources state that a total of 297 T-26 tanks were delivered to Spain but this amount most probably includes the first planned delivery of 15 T-26 on 26 September 1936).^[37]

Approximately 40% of T-26 light tanks would fall into Nationalist hands by the end of the war and, especially, after the defeat of the Republicans. In March 1937, a tank company of captured T-26 tanks was included into Panzergruppe Drohne (tank unit of the German Condor Legion in Spain). The Nationalists prized the Soviet tanks going so far as to offer a bounty of 500 pesetas for each tank captured intact. In August 1937 a reforming of Drohne group into the Spanish unit started, which resulted in formation of Bandera de Carros de Combate de la Legion (a part of Spanish Foreign Legion) in March 1938. The Bandera consisted of two battalions (1. and 2. Agrupacione de Carros): one was equipped with Panzer I tanks and the second - with captured T-26 tanks; toward 1939 both battalions had similar organization with their third companies equipped with T-26 tanks. The Nationalists used captured T-26 tanks in Battle of Teruel, Battle of Brunete, Battle of Bilbao, Battle of the Ebro and Catalonia Offensive. The Nationalists developed their own light tank prototype (Verdeja) during the war with the wide use of elements from Panzer I and T-26 especially. Later, T-26 light tanks formed the base of the Spanish Brunete armoured division, serving until 1953.^[39]

The T-26 was the most widely used tank of the Spanish Civil War in both armies and has been referred to "the tank of the Spanish Civil War" in the title of one of Lucas Molina Franco's articles.^[40] "Out-gunned, out-manoeuvred, and hard-pressed, the Spanish had no effective answer to the tank", sparking several interesting developments within the context of tank design and anti-tank tactics.^[41] This was especially true regarding the T-26, given that there was no other tank in the field able to knock it out. Despite the T-26's armament full superiority over the German Panzer I light tank and the Italian CV-33 tankette which were armed with machine guns only, the Spanish Civil War discovered a main disadvantage of the T-26 light tank (and all other tanks with antibullet armour) - weak armoured protection (even a front armour of the T-26 was penetrated by German and Italian anti-tank guns easily)^[35][42]. But not all Soviet military commanders recognized the T-26 light infantry tank's obsolescence in the mid-1930s. Work to design tanks with cannonproof armour went slowly in the USSR that time.

Soviet-Japanese border wars 1938-1939

The first military operation of the RKKA in which T-26 light tanks participated was the Soviet-Japanese border conflict, Battle of Lake Khasan in July 1938. Soviet tank force consisted of 2^nd mechanized brigade and two separate tank battalions (32^nd and 40^th): 257 T-26 tanks (including 10 KhT-26 flame-throwing tanks), 3 ST-26 bridge-laying tanks, 81 BT-7 tanks (in reconnaissance battalion of the 2^nd mechanized brigade), and 13 SU-5-2 self-propelled guns. The 2^nd mechanized brigade had new command staff as 99% of its previous command staff (including brigade commander A.P. Panfilov) were arrested as "enemies of the nation" three days before marching off. That had adverse effect on brigade actions during the conflict (for example, tanks of the brigade spent 11 hours to finish 45-km march because of bad organization of traffic and ignorance of march route). During the assault of the Japanese-occupied Bezymyannaya and Zaozernaya bald mountains, Soviet tanks met with a well-organized antitank defense. As a result, 85 T-26 tanks were lost (9 of them burnt). After the end of combat operations 39 of these tanks were restored in tank units, while others were repaired in workshop conditions.^[43]

There were only 33 T-26 light tanks, 18 KhT-26 flame-throwing tanks and 6 artillery tractors based on T-26 chassis in tank units of 57^th Special corps on 1 February 1939 (for comparison, the corps had 219 BT tanks). The situation with the T-26 remained as before in July 1939 – the 1^st army group which participated in Battle of Khalkhin Gol in Mongolia had 14 T-26 light tanks (in 82^nd rifle division) and 10 KhT-26 flame-throwing tanks (in 11^th tank brigade). The amount of T-26 tanks (flame-throwing variants mainly) increased a little bit toward August combat actions but they always numbered a small percent from all tanks participated in the conflict. Nevertheless, the T-26 tanks were used in action quite intensively. The T-26 proved to be a very good tank during the Battle of Khalkhin Gol according to army reports: its cross-country capability in desert conditions was excellent and, despite of thin armour (which was penetrated by Japanese 37 mm guns easily^[44]), the T-26 exhibited high survivability - some T-26 tanks continued to fight after several 37 mm hits and did not catch fire as happened with BT tanks more often.^[45]

Second World War

Soviet invasion of Poland

Soviet T-26 light tanks (mod. 1931 and mod. 1933) on the march in Poland. 17 September 1939.

On the eve of World War II, the Red Army had around 8,500 T-26 light tanks of all variants, which served mainly in separate light tank brigades attached to rifle corps or all-arms armies (each brigade had 256-267 T-26 light tanks in four battalions, including 10-11 flame-throwing tanks) and in separate tank battalions of some rifle divisions (one company of T-26 - 10-15 tanks). Such types of tank units participated in the Soviet invasion of Poland (or as it is called in Russian historiography - "the liberation march" to West Ukraine and West Belarus), sixteen days after the beginning of the German Invasion of Poland (1939).^[46]

On 17 September 1939 the Polish border was crossed by 878 T-26 tanks of Belorussian Front (from 22^nd, 25^th, 29^th and 32^nd tank brigades) and 797 T-26 tanks of Ukrainian Front (from 26^th, 36^th and 38^th tank brigades). Losses during battle actions in Poland were very insignificant, amounting to only 15 T-26 tanks. However, 302 T-26 tanks were rendered inoperative by technical failures on the march.^[47]

The Winter War

Soviet T-26 light tanks (mod. 1939 and mod. 1933), GAZ-M1 car and GAZ-AA trucks of the 7^th Army during its advance on the Karelian Isthmus. 2 December 1939.

The following tank units, equipped mainly with T-26 light tanks, participated in the war with Finland: 35^th light tank brigade, 39^th light tank brigade, 40^th light tank brigade, several separate tank battalions (OTB) of rifle divisions of the 8^th Army and the 14^th Army. In the course of the war, 29^th light tank brigade, tank units of 28^th rifle corps (4 tank regiments, several OTBs of rifle divisions), and several OTBs included into the 9^th Army were arrived to the front. The T-26 park of Soviet tank units participated in the Winter War was very diversified - light tank brigades were equipped with twin-turreted and single-turreted T-26 tanks produced from 1931 to 1939; separate tank battalions of rifle divisions had old tanks mainly, produced in 1931-1936. But some units were equipped with new just produced T-26 tanks. A total of 848 T-26 light tanks were in tank units of Leningrad Military District by the beginning of the war. The T-26 was extensively used in combat operations, participating together with other models of tanks (BT, T-28) as the main striking force during the breakthrough of the Mannerheim Line (tanks shelled antitank teeth and other fortifications, fired directly at embrasures of Finnish pillboxes and machine-gun nests).^[48]

The war experience forced change in the structure of Soviet tank units. T-37 and T-38 small amphibious tanks which completed two tank companies in separate tank battalions of rifle divisions (a third company had T-26 tanks) proved to be useless in conditions of north theatre of military operations. So according to the letter order of the General Military Council of the RKKA from 1 January 1940 each rifle division should have a tank battalion consisting of 54 T-26 tanks (including 15 flame-throwing tanks) and a rifle regiment should have a tank company of 17 T-26 tanks (24 such companies were formed during the war). The organization of seven tank regiments (164 T-26 tanks in each) for motor rifle and light motorized divisions began at that time also, but only two light motorized (motor cavalry) divisions were formed - 24^th and 25^th.^[49][50]

Heavier Soviet tanks, like the T-28 often broke through the Finnish defences on the open fields on the Karelian Isthmus in places where anti-tank obstacles weren't yet built, as the Finns lacked effective means of stopping them. However, lighter tanks and supporting infantry were often stopped by determined defences.^[51] Later on, heavier tanks were found to be vulnerable to Molotov cocktails, which also work equally well on light and medium tanks.

Old twin-turreted T-26 tanks were used during the Winter War also, mainly in separate tank battalions (OTB) of rifle divisions. For example, there were 2 tanks with gun-machine gun armament and 4 tanks with machine gun armament in 369^th OTB; 2 tanks with gun-machine gun armament and 5 tanks with machine gun armament in 100^th OTB; 1 tank with gun-machine gun armament and 5 tanks with machine gun armament in 317^th OTB; 5 tanks with gun-machine gun armament and 7 tanks with machine gun armament in 368^th OTB; 9 tanks with machine gun armament in 442^nd OTB. These tanks did not participate in active combat operations but they were very suitable for protecting of communication lines and use in signal service.^[52] Nevertheless, some T-26 mod. 1931 were used in combat on the Karelian Isthmus - for example, 377^th OTB of 97^th rifle division arrived to the front on 28 January 1940 with its 31 T-26 light tanks (including 11 twin-turreted) and 6 KhT-26 flame-throwing tanks; the combat losses of the battalion during the war were 5 T-26 and 2 KhT-26, technical losses - 13 T-26 and 4 KhT-26.^[53]

Finnish soldiers inspecting an abandoned Soviet T-26 mod. 1933 at Raate. January 1940.

At the Battle of Tolvajärvi, the Finns managed to capture or destroy nearly 16 T-26 tanks during the defeat of 75^th rifle division (for example, on 19 December 1940 6 T-26 tanks with 50 infantrymen were sent by divisional HQ to attack the enemy, tanks were drawn into ambush on their way and destroyed by the Finns).^[54][55] At the battles of Suomussalmi and Raate, the Soviet 44^th rifle division was encircled and lost all armour of its 312^th OTB, including 14 T-26 tanks.^[56][57] At Pelkosenniemi and Ilomantsi the Finns would capture a further 10 tanks.^[58] Altogether, the Finns could capture and evacuate rearward almost 70 damaged T-26 tanks of different models including KhT-26 and KhT-130 flame-throwing tanks during the Winter War, a number equal to the entire pre-war Finnish armoured force.^[59]

Soviet T-26 mod. 1939 of the 40^th light tank brigade in winter camouflage on the way to battlefront. Note a small fascine for trench crossing, a canvas stowage and a tactical marking "00" on turret side. Karelian Isthmus. February 1940.

In polar region (Murmansk direction) the 14^th Army had the following tank units equipped with the T-26 tanks: 411^th OTB arrived with its worn tanks (15 T-26, 15 T-38) from Belorussian Military District and 349^th OTB equipped with tanks (12 T-26, 19 T-37/T-38) from training regiment of Leningrad armour technical school. Frontal strip was very narrow there which allowed the use only 2-3 T-26 tanks in co-operation with rifle company or battalion. Tanks of 411^th OTB attached to the 52^nd rifle division were used the most actively, the 349^th OTB concentrated in Petsamo on 13 December 1940 where it joined the 104^th rifle division. The losses of T-26 tanks of 14^th Army diring the Winter War were small: 3 tanks were knocked out by artillery fire, 2 tanks exploded on landmines and 2 tanks drowned.^[60]

The combat and technical losses of the 7^th Army during the battle action on the Karelian Isthmus from 30 November 1939 till 13 March 1940 were 930 T-26 tanks of all variants (463 of them were repaired during the war), the combat losses of the 8^th Army (fought north of Lake Ladoga) were 65 T-26 tanks during the war, the 9^th Army (Repola, Kandalaksha and Suomussalmi directions) lost 30 T-26 tanks^[61] So the losses of T-26 tanks during the whole period of battle actions exceeded their amount in the beginning of the war. But the total amount of the T-26 at the front did not decrease because of reinforcements received from factory and tank workshops, also new tank units arrived to the front (there were 1,331 T-26, BT and T-28 tanks at the North-West Front in the beginning of February 1940, their number increased to 1,740 tanks on 28 February 1940 when the breakthrough of the second Finnish line of defense began).^[62] For example, 29^th light tank brigade with 256 T-26 tanks was redeployed from Brest to the Karelian Isthmus in February 1940.^[63]

The Great Patriotic War

A T-26 mod. 1933 crewmember surrenders to advancing German forces. Army Group Centre, August 1941.

Knocked out Soviet T-26 mod. 1933 light tank and abandoned KV-1 heavy tank with additional appliqué armour in the background. Summer 1941.

The T-26 formed the backbone of the Red Army's tank force during the first months of the German invasion of the Soviet Union during the Second World War. The Red Army was equipped with 10,268 T-26 tanks of all models on June 1, 1941.^[64] This and the lack of coordination between different units of the Red Army resulted in very poor performance of the Red Army against the Germans between June and August 1941. Even in instances where Soviet commanders showed initiative, such as Soviet General Kirponos counterstroke in the southwest, Soviet forces were simply not coordinated enough to stall the German advance, nor were their tanks comparable to the newer generation of German armour, such as the Panzer III and Panzer IV.^[65] By the end of fighting along the central axis in August 1941, in preparation for the end of German operations around Kiev and Leningrad, the majority of the Red Army's armour had been destroyed or captured. Although the Germans themselves fielded various obsolete designs, such as the Panzer I and Panzer II, their heavier armour was packed together to provide enough mass to punch through Soviet front lines and exploit any breakthroughs achieved. In instances where Soviet heavy and medium armour was available, the German offensive was often stalled, as in the Soviet counterattack in front of Raseiniai, Lithuania, on June 24, 1941, which was able to overrun an advance reconnaissance detachment of the German 6th Panzer Division, forcing the divergence of the 1st Panzer Division and stalling the offensive for a day.^[66] By the end of the year most surviving units of the T-26 had been reverted to other duties, including logistics, and were often used as chassis for new tank surrogates.^[64]

T-26 mod. 1938 with conical turret and its crew before battle. Probably 1942.

However, despite the fact that the majority of the Red Army's T-26 tanks had been lost in the first summer months of the war with the Third Reich, T-26 tanks still saw combat around Moscow, Stalingrad, North Caucasus and Leningrad (until at least the beginning of 1944 in the last case). Some number of T-26 light tanks were used in the Soviet-Japanese War in August 1945.^[67]

Many T-26s were captured by the Germans during the offensive, most without serious damage, a testament to preexisting mechanical problems within the tank. In German service, the T-26 was found to have severe clutch problems, a hot steering apparatus, and seized bearings. The T-26, redesignated as the T-26B 738(r.) was used extensively by the German Army. Many T-26s were also used on the Eastern Front during the war by the Germans. Many light tanks were used as tractors to carry Pak guns and artillery guns, and there were also instances where German T-26s were used to support infantry operations as well—these vehicles were renamed the T-26 C740(r).^[68]

The Red Army's planned replacement for the T-26 was the T-50, adopted for the Red Army in February 1941. The sophisticated T-50 encountered production problems, however, and this led to the design of the T-60 light tank. ^[69]

Soviet-Japanese War 1945

The Soviet invasion of Manchuria (1945) was the last military operation in which the Soviet T-26 light tanks were used. The Red Army had 1,461 T-26 tanks in the far east on 5 August 1945; 1,272 of them were in operable condition.^[70] There were many old tanks (T-26 and BT-7 mainly) in far eastern separate tank brigades, which had remained on the Manchurian border during the entire Great Patriotic War. To increase the combat effectiveness of these tank units, 670 new T-34-85 tanks were issued to one battalion of each brigade in summer 1945, leaving the other two battalions with their T-26 or BT-7 light tanks as before. For example, the 1^st Far Eastern Front had 11 separate tank brigades (80-85 tanks in each, half T-26 or BT) at that time. There was also some amount of T-26 tanks in 2 tank divisions and 5 tank brigades of Transbaikal Front. Such tank units participated in the defeat of the Japanese Kwantung Army in August 1945.^[71] T-26 light tanks often demonstrated better cross-country ability in the far eastern theater of operation than much heavier T-34-85 and Lend-Lease M4 Sherman medium tanks. Also, the T-26's performance was still sufficient to fight with Japanese armoured targets quite successfully. T-26 tanks participated in the victory over Japan parade in Harbin in September 1945.

Outside the Red Army

T-26 mod. 1933 displayed in Parola Tank Museum. This captured tank was used by the Finns during the Continuation War. The vehicle has been restored to drivable condition. Note the construction of driver's hatch.

The Finns captured and evacuated nearly 70 T-26 tanks of different models (including KhT-26 and KhT-130 flame-throwing tanks) during the Winter War. Of these, 10 T-26 mod. 1931, 20 T-26 mod. 1933, 2 T-26 mod. 1938/1939, 2 KhT-26 and 4 KhT-130 were repaired at the Varkaus tank workshop (created on the A. Ahlstrom LTD Machine Factory basis) and put into service till June 1941. The Finns also rearmed their Vickers 6-Ton tanks with the Soviet 45 mm 20K tank guns and DT tank machine guns; these were re-designated as T-26E tanks and used by the Finnish Army during the Continuation War. Seventy-five T-26s and 19 rebuilt Vickers tanks continued in service after the end of the Second World War.^[72] During the offensive phase of the Continuation War in summer-autumn 1941 the Finns captured more than 100 T-26 tanks of different modifications. Of these, 35 were fully repaired and sent to the armoured units, 21 were stored for later refurbishment, while others were scrapped. There were 102 T-26 tanks in the Finnish Army on 1 July 1942 (twin-turreted and flame-throwing tanks were used as training vehicles mainly). The T-26 remained the main tank of the Finnish Armoured Division throughout the war, although it was started to be replaced by German StuG IIIs from 1943. As noted above, 94 T-26 tanks remained in service with the Finnish Army by 1945. Peak numbers in Finnish service occurred during the summer of 1944, when the Finns kept up to 126 various T-26 tanks, including 22 T-26E, 2 T-26 mod. 1931, 1 KhT-26, 63 T-26 mod. 1933, 32 T-26 mod. 1938/1939, and 1 T-26T. Some of these tanks were kept as training tanks until 1959, when they were finally phased out and replaced by newer British and Soviet tanks (the last Finnish T-26 was retired officially in 1961).^[73][74]

After the end of the Spanish Civil War, Spain received additional T-26 tanks from France which had been taken from retreating Popular forces and interned in French warehouses. In 1942, the Spanish Army had 139 T-26s in service.^[75] After the end of the Second World War Spain had at least 116 T-26s in active service, along with 20 Panzer IVs, 93 Panzer Is, 10 StuG IIIs, 60 CV-33s and another 80 assorted machine gun carriers.^[76] The T-26s were organized into two battalions of 30 tanks each, along with a single Panzer I command tank, six other Panzer I Ausf. As and a CV-33 for reconnaissance in each battalion. The T-26 were not be replaced until 1953 when Spain and the United States signed an agreement for open shipments of new military matériel to Spain. The first twelve M47 Patton tanks, dedicated to replace the T-26, arrived at Cartagena in February 1954.^[77]

Turkey purchased 63 T-26 mod. 1933 (T-26B) light tanks in 1935 (also at least one twin-turreted T-26 mod. 1931 was presented to Turkish government in 1933-1934), along with about 60 BA-6 armoured cars to form the 1^st tank battalion of the 2^nd Cavalry Division at Lüleburgaz.^[78] Armoured Brigade of the Turkish Army in the end of 1937 had 102^nd and 103^rd companies armed with the T-26 mod. 1933 tanks (four platoons in a company, five tanks in platoon), the reserve group of the brigade had 21 T-26 also. In the beginning of 1940 the Turkish Army had an armoured brigade in Istanbul belonged to the 1^st Army (9 BA-6 armoured cars, 16 Mk VIB, 48 T-26 mod. 1933 and 98 Renault R35 light tanks) and the 1st tank battalion belonged to the 3^rd Army (16 BA-6 armoured cars and 16 T-26 mod. 1933 light tanks). Turkish T-26 tanks were taken out of service in 1942.^[79][80]

It is probable that 2 twin-turreted T-26 mod. 1931 light tanks were sold to Afghanistan^[64][81] in 1935 but this information is unconfirmed.

Chinese NRA T-26 mod. 1933 tanks at Hunan.

In November 1937, Ji Yang, the official delegate of Chinese government negotiated with Stalin to try for military aid for the War of China's Resistance Against Japan (1937-1945). The Soviet Union sold about 88 T-26 (1933 model) tanks and additional 20 BT-5 or BA-series combat vehicles to China, as the part of totalling some $250 million of credits in munitions and supplies. These tanks and vehicles were shipped to Guangzhou harbour in the Spring of 1938, and used to set up the 200th Infantry Division of the National Revolutionary Army of China. The 200th Infantry Division was actually a mechanized division consisting of four regiments, including the combat vehicle regiment equipped with 70 or 80 T-26 tanks, the armoured vehicle regiment equipped with 50 BA-series armoured cars, the motorized infantry regiment equipped with trucks, and the artillery regiment with 122 mm howitzers, 45 mm anti-tank guns, 76 mm field guns. This equipment was manufactured in the Soviet Union. Chinese T-26s were used in the Battle of Lanfeng in 1938, the Battle of Kunlun Pass in 1939, and the Battle of Yunnan-Burma Road in the Burma campaign in 1942.^[82] After World War II, the remaining Chinese T-26 tanks equipped the First Armoured Regiment of the Army of the Chinese Kuomingtang government, which saw service in East China during the Chinese Civil War (1946-1950). Finally, several T-26s were destroyed or captured by the People's Liberation Army during the Huaihai Campaign in 1949.^[83]

Around 40 captured T-26 of different models were used by the German Wehrmacht under the designation Panzerkampfwagen T-26 737(r)/738(r)/740(r) depending of the model. OT-130 light flame-throwing tanks had German designation Flammenwerfer Panzerkampfwagen T-26B 739(r). Only a very small number of captured T-26 tanks were repaired by German army workshops by the end of 1941; hundreds of Soviet tanks abandoned in summer 1941 were badly damaged in combat or had technical failures which were impossible to repair because of the absence of spare parts, and Germany's own tanks required maintenance. A small number of German T-26 tanks participated in the Battle of Smolensk (1941), the Battle of Moscow, Battles of Rzhev, combat near Leningrad, Bryansk, Minsk, Warsaw even. In autumn 1943 ten T-26 were reequipped by the Germans into self-propelled guns (the turrets were removed and ex-French 7.5 cm guns Pak 97/38(f) with shields were installed instead). Those 7,5 cm Pak 97/98(f) auf Pz.740(r) self-propelled guns served in the 3^rd company of 563^rd anti-tank battalion (3 Kp. Pz.Jg.Abt. 563) but all of them were replaced soon with Marder III on March 1, 1944.^[84] Also German police tank companies (Polizei-Panzer-Kompanien) used a very few amount of captured T-26 light tanks including twin-turreted T-26 mod. 1931 in Soviet and Polish occupied territories (for example, 1 T-26 served in 9 Pol.Pz.Ko and at least 1 T-26 - in 12 Pol.Pz.Ko).

The Royal Romanian Army had 33 captured T-26 tanks of different models on November 1, 1942. But the Romanians had no possibility to repair the majority of captured Soviet vehicles so not all of them were used in combats (for example, the 1^st tank division had only 2 T-26 light tanks in September 1942).^[85] The Hungarian Army used a small amount of captured T-26 light tanks also.

Outside the Soviet Union, the T-26 served with Afghanistan (probably, 2 T-26 mod. 1931 were delivered but the information about existence of Afghan T-26 tanks is not exactly confirmed yet), the Republic of China (82 or 88 T-26 mod. 1933 were delivered from USSR), Finland (38 captured and repaired T-26 of different variants on May 31, 1941; 104 captured and repaired T-26 of different variants on June 1, 1944), Germany, Hungary, Romania (33 captured T-26 on November 1, 1942), Spain (116 T-26 mod. 1933; a total of 281 T-26 mod. 1933 were delivered to Republican Spain from USSR), and Turkey (60 T-26 mod. 1931 and mod. 1933 were delivered from USSR).

Variants

For armoured combat vehicles (flame-throwing tanks, artillery tractors, radio-controlled tanks, combat engineer vehicles, self-propelled guns, armoured transport vehicles) based on the T-26 chassis see the main article: T-26 variants.

• T-26 model 1931 (designated T-26A by German intelligence) — twin-turreted version armed with machine guns. Tanks produced in 1931 - beginning of 1932 had riveted turrets, an exhaust muffler was fixed with two clamps, there was no cover over an air outlet window. 1,177 T-26 mod. 1931 armed with machine guns were produced, the Red Army had 1,015 such twin-turreted tanks on April 1, 1933.
• T-26 model 1931 with gun-machine gun armament^[86][87] — twin-turreted version with a 37 mm gun in a right turret (some modern sources mention this tank as T-26 model 1932). There were two models of 37 mm guns in the USSR suitable for mounting in light tanks that time - Hotchkiss gun (or its Soviet improved variant PS-1) and more powerful PS-2 gun developed by P. Syachentov. The last one had much better specifications but only experimental models existed. So the first 10 pre-production T-26 light tanks were equipped with the 37 mm Hotchkiss (PS-1) gun in a right turret to increase the fire power in comparison with the machine gun Vickers 6-ton design (which could not destroy enemy firing-points at long range and defended agaist enemy tanks). The experimental PS-2 gun was mounted on three T-26 tanks, the right turrets of which were replaced with small gun turrets from T-35-1 (prototype of the T-35 heavy tank); tests performed on Artillery Research Test Site (ANIOP) in spring 1932 demonstrated satisfactory results.

As the series production of the PS-2 gun still delayed, the Main Artillery Agency of the RKKA (GAU RKKA) gave preferences to a new gun (development of the Artillery Design Office of the Bolshevik Factory) - it represented a tipping part of the purchased German 37 mm anti-tank gun developed by Rheinmetall mounted on a gun-stock from the PS-2 gun. That system was successfully tested and the Artillery Factory No. 8 named after M. Kalinin started its series production under the designator B-3 (5K). The B-3 gun had less recoil and smaller size of a breech ring in comparison with the PS-2, so it could be easily mounted in a standard machine gun turret of the T-26. The first twin-turreted T-26 was armed with the B-3 gun in a right turret in autumn 1931. But series production of the B-3 gun went very slowly because of ineffective manufacturing method (none of 225 guns produced in 1931 was accepted by army representatives, the order from autumn 1931 for 300 guns was accomplished in summer 1933 only), also all produced B-3 guns should be mounted on BT-2 light tanks since summer 1932. So old 37 mm Hotchkiss (PS-1) guns were installed in right turrets of twin-turreted T-26 light tanks since spring 1932 again (as the series production of PS-1 guns was phased out that time already, some guns were taken from military supply depots and written-off MS-1(T-18) tanks).

It was planned to arm every fifth T-26 light tank with the 37 mm gun in a right turret, though in practice these were somewhat more common. Around 450 twin-turreted T-26 mod. 1931 tanks with the 37 mm gun in a right turret were produced in 1931-1933 (including only 20-30 tanks with the B-3 gun). There were 392 T-26 mod. 1931 tanks with gun-machine gun armament in the Red Army on 1 April 1933.

Twin-turreted T-26 armed with the 76.2 mm recoilless gun designed by L.V. Kurchevsky in the right turret. 1934.

• T-26 (BPK)^[88][89] (BPK stands for batal'onnaya pushka Kurchevskogo - battalion gun by Kurchevsky) - twin-turreted version with a 76.2 mm recoilless gun (as it was called at that time - "dynamic reaction gun") in a right turret. In the end of 1933 M. Tukhachevsky suggested to equip some amount of T-26 mod. 1931 tanks with the 76.2 mm BPK recoilless gun designed by L.V. Kurchevsky in a right turret to increase a fire power. One prototype of such a tank was built in 1934. BPK had muzzle velocity 500 m/s (1,640 ft/s) and gun range 4 km (2.5 mi), tank ammunition consisted of 62 rounds (4-kg armour-piercing and standard for 76.2 mm divisional gun mod. 1902). The test performed on 9 March 1934 demonstrated significant increase of tank fire power indeed but several essential disadvantages of the vehicle were found also, such as unhandiness to load the recoilless gun on the move and strong jet blast during a shot which could strike infantrymen moving behind a tank. The design of the recoilless gun itself was far from perfection also. So the planned rearmament of twin-turreted T-26 tanks with recoilless guns did not take place.

Twin-turreted T-26 (with the 37 mm Hotchkiss gun in the right turret), equipped with the radio station No. 7N and the hand-rail frame antenna on the hull. Military exercises, 1934.

• T-26TU^[90] (TU stands for tank upravleniya - command tank) - twin-turreted version with a simplex radio station No. 7N (communication range - 10 km) and a hand-rail frame antenna on the hull, antenna lead located in front part of underturret box roof between turrets. The vehicle was intended for platoon (and higher) commanders. 3 such tanks were successfully tested in September 1932 and 7 more radio stations were delivered to the Factory named after K.E. Voroshilov but it is unknown were they mounted on twin-turreted T-26 tanks also or not. It was planned to start the series production of twin-turreted command radio tanks since 1 January 1933 but this did not happen because of unavailability of series-produced radio stations No. 7N and passing into service a single turreted T-26 with a radio station 71-TK-1.

It should be mentioned also that one twin-turreted T-26 was given to the Research Institute of Communication in March 1932 to develop special tank communication devices - it was planned to equip each tank with a keyphone; a tank of platoon commander should be equipped with a telephone switch for 6 subscribers (4 tanks in platoon, communication lines with infantry and higher headquarters). A special terminal block was mounted on tank rear for connection of communication wires. That work remained experimental.

• T-26 model 1933 (T-26B) — single turret version with 45 mm gun. Most numerous variant.
• T-26 model 1938 (T-26C) — new semi-conical turret with sloped armour. Welded construction.
• T-26 model 1939 (T-26S) — semi-conical turret, increased armour with sloped hull sides and welded construction.
• T-26A artillery support tank — mounting enlarged turret with 76.2 mm howitzer Model 27/32. The chassis was overloaded, and few were built.
• T-26E — during the Interim Peace (1940–41), the Finns re-armed their remaining Vickers 6-Ton tanks with captured Soviet long 45 mm guns and the coaxial machine guns of the T-26s. The new tanks were renamed T-26E. They were used in combat in 1941–44 and remained in service until 1959.

Preserved T-26

T-26 mod. 1931. Central Museum of the Great Patriotic War, Moscow. 2008.

T-26 mod. 1933 with the hand-rail radio antenna. Central Museum of the Great Patriotic War, Moscow. 2008.

There are around 45 T-26 light infantry and flame-throwing tanks preserved in different museums and military schools (Russian, Spanish and Finnish mainly).^[91][92]

• Twin-turreted T-26 mod. 1931 in the Central Museum of the Great Patriotic War in Moscow (Russia) - this tank from 115^th infantry division with shell holes was raised from a river bottom at Nevsky Pyatachok in July 1989 by "Katran" diving club. The vehicle was restored in Pyarnu training tank regiment of the Leningrad Military District, it was donated to the museum in February 1998.
• Twin-turreted T-26 mod. 1931 in the Verkhnyaya Pyshma Military Museum in Sverdlovsk Oblast (Russia).
• Twin-turreted T-26 mod. 1931 armed with a 37 mm gun in the Kubinka Tank Museum in Moscow Oblast (Russia).
• T-26 mod. 1933 in the Central Armed Forces Museum in Moscow (Russia) - this tank was transferred from Kubinka Tank Museum in 1980s.
• T-26 mod. 1933 in the Central Museum of the Great Patriotic War, Moscow (Russia) - this tank was found near Volgograd by "Ekipazh" search party in 2004 and restored in Kubinka using the hull bottom from a Polish C7P artillery tractor (it was captured and used by the Germans during the World War II)^[93] and a turret from a BT-7 light tank (which can be distinguished from the T-26 turret by the construction of revolver porthole); an upper part of the hull, a gun and a chassis are remakes.
• T-26 mod. 1933 in the Lenino-Snegiri Military Historical Museum in Snegiri, Moscow Oblast (Russia) - this tank was found by "Ekipazh" search party near Myasnoiy Bor (Novgorod Oblast) in April 1989 and restored in Kubinka.
• T-26 mod. 1933 in the Museum-diorama "Breaching of the Blockade of the Leningrad" in Mar'ino village near Kirovsk, Leningrad Oblast (Russia) - this tank with a large shell hole on the right side was raised from a river bottom at Nevsky Pyatachok in May 2003. The turret was found near the same place later. The tank is displayed in the museum since January 2005.
• T-26 mod. 1933 on the Victory Prospect in Vyborg, Leningrad Oblast (Russia) - city memorial to Soviet tankmen participated in assault of Viipuri (Vyborg) in winter 1940. The tank was raised from the Gulf of Finland bottom near Vyborg in March 2005, it sank with its crew in March 1940 after explosion on landmine during supporting the attack of Soviet 70^th infantry division near Vilanjoki. Restored by Vyborg Dockyard.
• T-26 mod. 1933 in the Museum of Northwestern Front in Staraya Russa, Novgorod Oblast (Russia) - this tank was raised from the Lovat River bottom in 1980s and became a monument to Soviet tankmen in Korovitchino village (Novgorod Oblast). The vehicle with strange tracks was given to the museum in May 2004.
• T-26 mod. 1933 in the Verkhnyaya Pyshma Military Museum in Sverdlovsk Oblast (Russia) - this tank is displayed with a turret from a BT tank.
• T-26 mod. 1933 in the Pitkyaranta, Republic of Karelia (Russia) - a monument (built in 2005) to the Red Army, the tank appears to be a dummy. The original T-26 mod. 1939 tank (see below) which was found in 1998 near the town, is now located in France (ASPHM collection).
• T-26 mod. 1933 in the Krasnoyarskoe village of Donetsk Oblast (Ukraine) - this tank was found in the private vegetable garden in 2004, the turret was raised at first.
• T-26 mod. 1933 in the Bovington Tank Museum in Dorset (Great Britain) - this tank was used in the Winter War, damaged and captured by the Finns and used then by the Finnish Army. Later its engine was removed and the tank buried, up to its turret, as part of the fixed defences of the Mannerheim Line. The tank is displayed in the museum in Finnish markings.

T-26 mod. 1933. El Goloso Museum in Madrid, Spain. 2007.

• T-26 mod. 1933 in the El Goloso Museum in Madrid (Spain) - the tank (Spanish tactical number 135) in Nationalist Spanish markings is armed with Hotchkiss machine gun instead of DT machine gun, the anti-aircraft machine gun and the hand-rain radio antenna are dummies.
• T-26 mod. 1933 in the El Goloso Museum in Madrid (Spain) - the tank (Spanish tactical number 1311) is displayed in Spanish markings of 1940s-1950s.
• T-26 mod. 1933 in the El Goloso Museum in Madrid (Spain) - the tank (Spanish tactical number 210) is displayed in Nationalist Spanish markings.
• T-26 mod. 1933 in the Military Historical Museum in Valencia (Spain)
• T-26 mod. 1933 in the Artillery Museum in Cartagena (Spain)
• T-26 mod. 1933 in the Academia General Básica de Suboficiales (AGBS, a training school of the Spanish Army) in Talarn (Spain).
• T-26 mod. 1933 in the Academia de Infanteria in Toledo (Spain).
• T-26 mod. 1933 in the Academia de Infanteria in Toledo (Spain).
• T-26 mod. 1933 in the Academia de Infanteria in Toledo (Spain).
• T-26 mod. 1933 in the El Empecinado military base in Cabezón de Pisuerga (Spain) - the tank has a Spanish tactical number 3412.
• T-26 mod. 1933 in the General Menacho military base in Badajoz (Spain) - the tank has a Spanish tactical number 1314.
• T-26 mod. 1933 in the Academia General Militar (AGM) in Zaragoza (Spain) - the tank has been restored to drivable condition.
• T-26 mod. 1933 in the Academia General Militar (AGM) in Zaragoza (Spain).
• T-26 mod. 1933 in the Academia General Militar (AGM) in Zaragoza (Spain).
• T-26 mod. 1933 in the General Alvarez de Castro military base in Girona (Spain).
• T-26 mod. 1933 in the Parque y Centro de Mantenimiento de Armamento y Material de Artillería (PCMAYMA) in Valladolid (Spain).
• T-26 mod. 1933 in Vilanova de la Barca (Spain) - the hull, not restored.
• T-26 mod. 1933 in the Tank Museum in Ankara Etimesgut (Turkey).

T-26 mod. 1933. Parola Tank Museum, Finland. 2006.

• T-26 mod. 1933 in the Parola Tank Museum, (Finland) - Finnish tactical number Ps 163-33, in drivable condition.
• T-26 mod. 1933 in the Parola Tank Museum, (Finland) - the Finnish war-time modernization (Finnish tactical number Ps 163-28) of a hull from KhT-26 flame-throwing tank with a mounted turret from the BT-5/BT-7 light tank.
• T-26 mod. 1933 in the Parola Tank Museum, (Finland) - this tank is described in many sources as early version of T-26 mod. 1933. But in reality this is also the Finnish war-time modernization (Finnish tactical number Ps 163-16) of a hull from KhT-26 flame-throwing tank (which can be identified by rivets for a burning mixture tank, rivets for hinges of a filling hatch on the left side and a welded drain port on the right side behind a front track bogie) with a mounted turret with a small rear niche from the early BT-5 light tank.^[74]
• T-26 mod. 1933 in the Parola Tank Museum, (Finland) - this tank is a Finnish war-time modernization (Finnish tactical number Ps 164-34) of the KhT-133 flame-throwing tank with an installed turret from the T-26 mod. 1938/1939 and a ball mount for the DT tank machine gun in a front plate. The unarmed vehicle (not restored) is in the museum vault.
• T-26 mod. 1933 in Kuhmo (Finland) - this tank (Finnish tactical number Ps 163-45) was used by the Finnish armoured forces in the Continuation War 1941 - 1944.
• T-26 mod. 1939 in the Kubinka Tank Museum, Moscow Oblast (Russia) - this tank is in drivable condition (the engine GAZ-41 from the BRDM-2 was installed in 2005).
• T-26 mod. 1939 in the military unit in Priozersk, Leningrad Oblast (Russia) - this tank (without a gun and a turret roof) was raised from the lake bottom by "Ladoga" search party in June 1994, under repair.
• T-26 mod. 1939 in the Association pour la Sauvegarde du Patrimoine Historique et Militaire (ASPHM) in La Wantzenau (France) - this tank which participated in battles near Leningrad in 1941-1942 was raised from the Ladoga Lake bottom near Pitkyaranta by St. Petersburg search party in 1998, not restored and sold to ASPHM collection.
• T-26 mod. 1939 in the Parola Tank Museum, (Finland) - this tank was captured during the Winter War, not restored.
• T-26 mod. 1939 in the Parola Tank Museum, (Finland) - this tank is a Finnish war-time modernization (Finnish tactical number Ps 164-7): a hull of the KhT-133 flame-throwing tank with a mounted turret from the T-26 mod. 1938/1939 and a ball mount for the DT tank machine gun in a front plate.
• T-26 mod. 1939 in the Parola Tank Museum, (Finland) - this tank is also a Finnish war-time (and postwar) modernization of the KhT-133 flame-throwing tank (Finnish tactical number Ps 164-32) with an installed turret from the T-26 mod. 1938/1939. The tank was used by the Finns during the Continuation War 1941-1944 and after the war for training. In drivable condition.
• T-26 mod. 1939 in the Savo Brigade garrison in Mikkeli (Finland) - this tank is a Finnish war-time modernization.
• T-26 mod. 1939 in the Hanko Military Museum, Finland.
• T-26 mod. 1939 near Suomussalmi (Finland) at the forest road - this tank is a Finnish war-time modernization of the KhT-133 flame-throwing tank with an installed turret from the T-26 mod. 1938/1939 and a ball mount for the DT tank machine gun in a front plate. The tank was shot up by Soviet troops in 1944, in destroyed condition.
• KhT-130 flame-throwing tank in the Kubinka Tank Museum, Moscow Oblast (Russia) - in reality this is a control tank TU-26 with a dummy flame-thrower.
• KhT-130 flame-throwing tank in the military unit No. 05776 in Borzya, Chita Oblast (Russia) - monument (since 1995) with an incomplete chassis (one track bogie is lacking, tracks and driving wheels were taken from the M3 Stuart American light tank). Before 1990 the vehicle stood in the territory of one of military units of Soviet 39^th Army (located in Mongolia) of Transbaikal Military District.

Also turrets from T-26 mod. 1933 light tanks are displayed in Peremyshl, Kaluga Oblast (Russia); in the Belarusian Great Patriotic War Museum in Minsk (Belarus); in the "Stalin Line" Museum in Zaslavl, Minsk Province (Belarus); in the Academia General Militar in Zaragoza (Spain).

Notes

References

Published sources

Websites

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: T-26

• T-26 histrical photos
• T-26 mod. 1931,photos of twin-turreted T-26
• T-26 mod. 1933, photos of T-26 mod. 1931
• T-26 mod. 1938/39, photos of T-26 mod. 1938 and mod. 1939
• Light tank T-26, combat use of T-26 (in Russian), many photos of T-26
• T-26 light tank, a lot of information (in Russian) and photos of T-26
• Foreign tanks in Finnish service, Axis History Factbook, Axis History
• Russia's T-26 Light Tanks, WWII Vehicles.com
• T-26: Development History and combat employment, short info about T-26
• Ferris, Dave (2000–2003). "Russian/Soviet Section I (1915 to 1944) Russian/Soviet Section I (1915 to 1944)", in The Book of Tanks: A Wargamer's Portable Guide to Tanks, Self-Propelled Guns, Armoured Cars, and Personnel Carriers from World War I through the 1990s. Self-published, URL accessed 2006-11-10.
• T-26 tanks, T-26 tanks in museums and monuments