T-23 tankette

The T-23 was a prototype tankette developed by the Soviet Union during the interwar period. Only five examples of the vehicle were produced.

T-23 tankette
Prototype T-23 Tankette
Type	Tankette
Place of origin	Soviet Union
Production history
Designer	S. Ivanov
Designed	1929-30
Produced	1930
No. built	5
Specifications (T-23)
Mass	3.2 to 3.4 t (3.1 to 3.3 long tons; 3.5 to 3.7 short tons)
Length	3.35 m (11.0 ft)
Width	1.62 m (5 ft 4 in)
Height	1.5 m (4 ft 11 in)
Crew	2
Armour	6-10 mm
Main armament	1 x 7.62 mm (0 in) DT machine gun
Engine	4 cylinder, air cooled MS-2 (petrol) 60 hp (45 kW)
Power/weight	18.9 hp/tonne
Suspension	sprung
Ground clearance	0.3 m (1 ft 0 in)
Operational range	190 km (120 mi)
Maximum speed	40 km/h (25 mph)

Design history

Side view of the T-23 showing the tail

The development of the T-23 began in 1929. The Red Army, now with experience from the earlier T-17 tankette, began development of the T-23. The design featured two crew members (placed on a row). The armour was made of riveted iron and was up to 10 mm thick on the front and sides of the vehicle. It was similar to the T-18 tank but lighter.^[1]

Many of the original design features of the tank were changed during the development. Originally the T-23 was to contain the same 35 hp four-cylinder engine as the T-18 light tank but this was eventually changed to a larger 60 hp version to enable it to reach speeds of up to 40 km/h (25 mph). The length of the tank was also increased by almost 30 cm (12 in) from original specifications.^[2] As built, the tank weighed between 3.2 and 3.4 t (3.1 and 3.3 long tons; 3.5 and 3.7 short tons), had a length of 283 cm (111 in), extending to 335 cm (132 in) with its tail. It was 162 cm (64 in) wide and 150 cm (59 in) high with a ground clearance of 30 cm (12 in). It had a range of between 100 and 190 km (62 and 118 mi).^[3] It was usually armed with a 7.62 mm (0 in) DT machine gun, although some examples were fitted with a 37 mm (1 in) anti-tank gun.^[2]

Production

The T-23 never proceeded past the stage of a prototype. The design changes introduced to the tankette caused the price of production to rival that of the T-18 light tank itself, which had a much more powerful armament and a rotating turret. There were only five examples produced before the project was scrapped in favour of licensing the Carden Loyd tankette from the United Kingdom in 1930.^[2] This design was subsequently modified into the T-27 tankette and began full production in 1931.^[4]