Existing comment:
IS III (heavy tank), Soviet Union.
Initial production 1945.
The IS III was named after Soviet dictator Josef Stalin, but Red Army troops nicknamed it "Pike" for its pointed bow armor. The IS III was armed with the same 122mm main gun as the IS II, a 7.62mm coaxial machine-gun, and a 12.7mm antiaircraft machine-gun. Even though the weight of the IS III remained the same as the IS II, its armor protection increased significantly. By carefully redesigning the hull and turret armor, the IS III not only had better shot deflection than the IS II, it also had a lower silhouette. The IS III had a maximum road speed of 23 mph and a cruising range of 85 miles. The IS III was released too late to see combat in World War II, but it served in the postwar armies of the Soviet Union, the Warsaw Pact, China, Egypt, and Syria. |