"Soviet Heavy Tank Regiments of the 1960's" Topic

Has anyone got any information on the organisation of the Heavy Tank Regiments of the GSFG Heavy Tank Divisions during the 1960's ?

Found one reference in the US Military Liaison Mission annual reports of ISU-152 being reported, and wondered if the heavy tank regiments of the heavy divisions were "pure" tank or a mix of heavy tank and SU ?

Heavy Tank Battalion x 3
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Bttn HQ: 1x Is-III or T-10 or T-10M, 1x ISU-T ARV, 1x BTR-50PU
3 Companies@ CHQ: 1x Is-III or T-10 or T-10M 3 platoons@ 3x Is-III or T-10 or T-10M

Ref MicroMark

Early 1960's medium tank and MR regiments had an ISU battery. The heavy tank regiments were all T-10 or IS-3M. The old SPI boardgame "Red Star- White Star" still had them in use in the early 1970's.

Hello, Formerly 298TYR!

Heavy Tank Division (1957 pattern) – 3 tank regiment (65 tanks T-10, IS-3 or IS-2) and a separate tank battalion training (5 tanks). Artillery in heavy tank divisions absent until 1962-1963.
ISU – in separate tank battalions, which receives the T-10 after the disbanding of heavy armored divisions.

Some of the references I've seen mention 5 x heavy tanks per unit (not sure if they called them platoons, or companies), and perhaps several of those in a group, e.g. 10 total tanks, IIRC, for the T-10s.

Perhaps there were a couple of those in the unit for 20 – 21 per organization (battalion, IIRC), like back in WWII.

Thanks for the replies everyone, especially UsmanK again !

If I am reading that correctly the Heavy Tank Divisions of the 1960's would have had 3 x Tank Regiments, maybe a Motor-Rifle Regiment and a Separate/Independent ISU Battalion ?

Hello, Formerly 298TYR!

According to Kolomiets (Top Secret T-10: last Stalin's supertank, M.:2016), after reorganisation (in 1960-1963)Heavy Tank division had 3 TR, 1 Motorised rifle bataillon, 1 artillery (may be SPG or towed) bat., 1 rocket (probably Luna) bat. and 1 MLRS battery.

About tank regiments with ISU – he named as "Heavy tank-SPG regiments" (2 bat of heavy tanks (21 per bat), 1 bat of SPG (21 per bat) + 2 heavy tanks in HQ), and were part of the standart mechanised and tank divisions in 1940-1960s.
Plus in 1961 begin formation of the separate tank battalions of the army subordination (2 SPG comp and 1 tank comp). They have outdated IS tanks, ISU SPG and T-10 (after disbanding of Heavy TD).

UsmanK, many thanks once again for your input. The US Military Liaison Mission annual report of 1968 mentions seeing an ISU-152 in the Prenzlau area. I was trying to figure out what unit would have operated that equipment so late in the 1960's.

That led me to think maybe a unit of 25 Tank Heavy Tank Division, but that reverted to a standard tank division in 1967 I think.

If it was from a separate tank battalion of army subordination this would make sense – and these I believe were later joined to form the Army-level Independent Tank Regiments.

There is information available on line for up to Divisional level organisations for the 1960's but very little available for Army and Group level.

Hello, Formerly 298TYR!

25th Heavy TD reverted to a standard tank division only in march-noviember 1968.
And about ISU – a lot of options here. It could be not considered SPG (but still in unit), or ARV on the basis of the ISU-152 (I personally saw one of this somewhere in 2005 on the railway – it is still working; from combat vehicle differs only in the absence of guns). In addition, it could be the SPG from the training units – there were very long time (100% were in the 97th training tank regiment in Altengrabow in the late 1970s).

Again, many thanks for the quick reply and information UsmanK. Wish I could find out more regarding the organisation in the early – mid 1960's for GSFG at Army level. It is like trying to piece together a huge jigsaw. Do you know how many of these Separate Tank Battalions there were per Army. It seems more than 1 due to the number of them hinted in publications and web sites.

Hello, Formerly 298TYR!

Separate battalions by the end of 1960s there were more than 20. By the way, according to other sources, by the end of 1960s in these battalions were 4 tank companies and 70 tanks per BN.
In general, it is worth remembering one important thing – the unification in the Soviet Army meant a large number of variants of units that from the outside it looks like a mess.