Design Overview & Tactical Role
Distinguished by its towering, barn-sized box turret and massive 152 mm M-10T howitzer, the KV-2 was originally conceived as a bunker-buster to demolish fortified concrete pillboxes of the Finnish Mannerheim Line during the 1939-1940 Winter War. Firing colossal 40 kg concrete-piercing and high-explosive shells, the mere concussion of a KV-2 blast could flip light tanks or incapacitate enemy crews without penetrating.
Combat History & Battle Records
During early battles on the Eastern Front in 1941, lone KV-2s caused utter havoc among advancing German columns. While mechanically cumbersome and top-heavy (the turret could only rotate on relatively level ground), its terrifying visual presence and sheer destructive firepower secured its place in armor history.
Related Armored Vehicles (World War II)
Cold War
1948
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1961
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1964
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1973