T-38

The T-38 was a Soviet amphibious light tank that saw service in World War II. Developed as a modernized version of the earlier T-37A light tank, the T-38 proved to be only a moderate improvement over its predecessor, and was eventually replaced in 1940 by the T-40.

History
Early trials of the T-37A revealed many deficiencies in its design, including limited range, sub-par buoyancy, and an unreliable transmission and running gear that could cause its tracks to fall off while on the move.

Development of an improved version of the tank that would fix these flaws was begun in late 1934 at Factory No. 37 in Moscow, under the direction of Chief Designer N. Astrov and Chief Engineer N. Kozyrev.

The redesign proved to be so extensive that the project was given the independent designation T-38, and a prototype was completed by June 1935.

Design
The T-38 retained many design features of the T-37A, including its repurposed GAZ-AA engine and hand-operated turret.

The turret was moved from the right to the left-hand side of the tank, switching the driver and commander positions compared to the T-37A.

The T-38 also had a slightly wider and lower profile than its predecessor, providing an advantage in buoyancy that made the cork buoys used on the T-37A unnecessary.

While the production-model T-38 was only armed with a 7.62mm DT machine gun, the initial prototype vehicle also included a 20mm ShVAK cannon mounted on the driver's position. This was removed after it was determined the additional cannon impaired the driver's ability to control the tank.

Variants

 * T-38RT - version equipped with radio and turret-mounted 20mm ShVAK cannon.
 * OT-38 - flamethrower-equipped version.
 * T-38M1 - prototype with superior planetary transmission, considered too complex for production.
 * T-38M2 - modification improving the gearbox and replacing the engine with GAZ M1
 * T-38TU - command version
 * SU-45 - experimental 45 mm self-propelled gun
 * T-38TT - experimental remotely controlled tank