The Matilda transmission had a servomechanism for ease of shifting. But in the forested swamps of Russia the mud packed into the space between the tracks and these side skirts. These skirts worked well in the desert-the sand passed through the rectangular slots in them. The tank was developed primarily for operations in the desert. Some fool in the General Staff planned an operation and sent our corps to the area of Yelnya, Smolensk, and Roslavl. In general, the Matilda was an unbelievably worthless tank! I will tell you about one of the Matilda's deficiencies that caused us a great deal of trouble.
Wasn't there a period when your corps had a mixture of tanks, both American and British? Were there any problems associated with the presence of such a broad variety of vehicles from different countries? For example, with supply and maintenance? But the British tanks were not withdrawn from service, so they fought until they were gone. Yes, we had Shermans in our brigade at the end of 1943. A tank corps had three tank brigades and one mechanized brigade. Our mechanized corps had three mechanized brigades and one tank brigade, in which I fought. I missed to tell you that every corps consisted of four brigades. After the Kishinev Operation our corps became the 9th Guards Mechanized Corps. My unit switched over to American Shermans at the end of 1943. Its armor was streamlined but more importantly, it featured a long-barreled 57mm main gun. Of these three British tanks, the best was the Valentine produced in Canada. per ton of weight at a time when good tanks had 18-20 h.p. After 1943 we largely declined British tanks because they had significant deficiencies. For the first time this corps had British Matildas, Valentines, and Churchills. I briefly remind you that the army consisted of two corps: 5th Guards Tank Stalingrad Corps on our own T-34s and 5th Mechanized Corps, in which I fought. Then they rushed us to the Far East and we fought against Japan. We ended the war for us in Czechoslovakia. Our 6th Guards Tank Army (yes, we had six of them) fought in Ukraine, Romania, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, and Austria. Dmitriy Fedorovich, did you have just American tanks in your unit? When someone says to me that this was a bad tank, I respond, "Excuse me!" One cannot say that this was a bad tank. Overall, this was a good vehicle but, as with any tank, it had its pluses and minuses. On the front slope armor there was a travel lock for securing the barrel during road marches. Initially they had the short main gun, and later they began to arrive with the long gun and muzzle brake. Afghanistan, American Samoa, Anguilla, Argentina, Azerbaijan Republic, Bahamas, Bahrain, Barbados, Belarus, Bermuda, Bolivia, Botswana, Brazil, Cayman Islands, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile, China, Comoros, Cuba, Republic of, Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast), Djibouti, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas), French Polynesia, Gambia, Grenada, Guernsey, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Iraq, Ireland, Israel, Jamaica, Jersey, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kiribati, Korea, North, Kuwait, Libya, Macedonia, Madagascar, Malawi, Maldives, Marshall Islands, Mauritius, Mayotte, Mexico, Moldova, Mongolia, Morocco, Nauru, Nepal, Nicaragua, Palau, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Puerto Rico, Reunion, Russian Federation, Rwanda, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, San Marino, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Suriname, Svalbard and Jan Mayen, Swaziland, Syria, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Tuvalu, Uruguay, Venezuela, Virgin Islands (U.S.- Dmitriy Fedorovich, on which American tanks did you fight?
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