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TL;DR: A KV-1 fitted with a hull-mounted flamethrower captured by Germany.
History:
The most common type of enemy a tank can face will always be infantry which, while generally not as dangerous as dedicated anti-tank units, can pose serious issues for any advancing tank, especially if equipped with man-portable anti-tank weapons. As such, it is important for tanks to have ways of dealing with this kind of enemy. Coaxial/hull mounted machine guns as well as high explosive rounds work wonders against exposed or lightly protected infantry but struggle against infantry who have hidden themselves in more fortified structures like concrete buildings or bunkers. Sure, a tank could pelt such fortifications with HE rounds until they collapsed, however, doing so would a lot of time and a lot of shells, both of which could be put to more effective use elsewhere. For situations like these, flamethrowers are much more effective, however, man-portable flamethrowers are very dangerous to their wearers and result in near certain death when hit by enemy fire. Still, their effectiveness for flushing out fortifications was still very much needed. This need would result in the advent of the flame tank. Early Soviet flame tanks would be based on T-26s and T-27s, however, as the war and German firepower progressed, it was clear that much more protected flame tanks were needed, which would eventually lead to multiple KV-1-based flame tanks, the most notable of which were the KV-8 and KV-8S, based on the KV-1 and KV-1S respectively. However, there existed another KV-1-based flame tank, the existence of which has been obscured by an internet meme, commonly called the KV-6 (Note: The validity of this name is up in the air, however, I will continue to use it for simplicity). Unlike the KV-8 and KV-8S, the KV-6 would feature a hull-mounted flamethrower and retain its 76mm cannon. 8 to 10 KV-6s would be produced by Leningrad Plant No.174, however, due to increased demand for KV-1s as well as the Siege of Leningrad, only 4 of them would receive ATO-41 flamethrowers with 110-liter fuel tanks, with the rest being sent out with a characteristic “patch” over the flamethrower port as well as additional armor. All of them would be pressed into immediate service. During fighting, the Germans managed to capture at least 2 serviceable KV-6s, 1 with a flamethrower and 1 with a patch. The KV-6 with a flamethrower would be captured missing a second roadwheel on the left side. It would later be repaired, repainted white, and tested under the designation Pz.Kpfw. KV-1A 753 (r) Flamm.
Place In War Thunder:
Despite Germany being one of the Big Three, it actually still lacks in real-life options when it comes to one of War Thunder’s newest vehicle types: flame tanks that retain an anti-tank armament. Germany has countless flame tanks based on their own platforms, however, all of them were built with the intention of acting as purely anti-infantry, meaning that they would not retain their anti-tank capabilities. Save for a captured and domestically modified B1 Bis, the main cannon of which leaves a lot to be desired, Germany’s only other option is this rare KV-1 variant. Playstyle wouldn’t be anything too crazy aside from being capable to instantly delete any open-topped vehicle within 50 meters of the front of your hull. You have the same trusty F-32 gun as the KV-1B but none of the additional armor. As such, you’ll be more vulnerable to allied guns. On top of that, the flamethrower port introduces a new weakspot. Best placement for this vehicle would be as either a battlepass vehicle, like the Churchill Crocodile, or a standard GE premium.
Specifications:
Armament: 76mm F-32 cannon, 2x 7.62mm MGs, and 1x ATO-41 flamethrower
Dimensions: 6.68m, 3.32m, 2.71m (L,W,H)
Weight: 46000~kg
Armor: Same as KV-1 (L-11) in-game
Crew: 5
Ammunition: Same as KV-1E/B in-game
Speed: 35kph
Horsepower: 600hp
Pictures:
Side View:Front View:Same tank as above next to a “patched” KV-6:After Repainting:
Sources:
https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/КВ-6
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КВ-6 из 124тбр. попавший к немцам
KV-6 (Object 226) : Soviet Union (SOV)
PzKpfw KV-1A 753 (r) "Flamm" — Каропка.ру — стендовые модели, военная миниатюра