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Second World War Tank Found After 62 Years
WW II Russian tank with German markings uncovered after 62 years.
WW II Buffs will find this interesting. Even after 62 years (and a little
tinkering), they were able to fire up the diesel engine!
A Komatsu D375A-2 bulldozer pulled the abandoned tank from its tomb
under the boggy bank of a lake near Johvi , Estonia . The Soviet-built
T34/76A tank had been resting at the bottom of the lake for 56 years.
According to its specifications, it’s a 27-ton machine with a top speed of
53km/hr.
From February to September 1944, heavy battles were fought in the
narrow, 50 km-wide, Narva front in the northeastern part of Estonia .
Over 100,000 men were killed and 300,000 men were wounded there.
During battles in the summer of 1944, the tank was captured from the
Soviet army and used by the German army.
(This is the reason that there are German markings painted on the tank’s
exterior.)
On 19th September, 1944, German troops began an organized retreat
along the Narva front. It is suspected that the tank was then purposefully
driven into the lake to conceal it when its captors left the area.
At that time, a local boy walking by the lake, Kurtna Matasjarv, noticed
tank tracks leading into the lake but not coming out anywhere. For two
months he saw air bubbles emerging from the lake. This gave him reason
to believe that there must be an armored vehicle at the lake’s bottom. A
few years ago, he told the story to the leader of the local war history club
‘Otsing’. Together with other club members, Mr. Igor Shedunov initiated
diving expeditions to the bottom of the lake about a year ago. At the
depth of 7 metres they discovered the tank resting under a 3 metre layer
of peat.
Enthusiasts from the club, under Mr Shedunov’s leadership, decided to
pull the tank out. In September of 2000 they turned to Mr. Aleksander
Borovkovthe, manager of the Narva open pit company AS Eesti Polevkivi,
to rent the company’s Komatsu D375A-2 bulldozer. (Currently used at
the pit, the Komatsu dozer was manufactured in 1995, and has recorded
19,000 operating hours without major repairs.)
The pulling operation began at 09:00 and was concluded at 15:00, with
several technical breaks. The weight of the tank, combined with the
travel incline, made for a pulling operation that required significant
muscle. The D375A-2 handled the operation with power and style. The
weight of the fully-armed tank was around 30 tons, so the active force
required to retrieve it was similar. A main requirement for the 68-ton
dozer was to have enough weight to prevent slippage while moving up
the hill.
After the tank surfaced, it turned out to be a “trophy tank” that had been
captured by the German army in the course of the battle at Sinimaed
(Blue Hills) about six weeks before it was sunk in the lake. Altogether,
116 shells were found on board. Remarkably, the tank was in good
condition, with NO RUST, and alll systems (except the engine) in working
condition. This is a very rare machine, especially considering that it
fought both on the Russian and the German sides. Plans are underway to
fully restore the tank. It will be displayed at a war history museum in the
Gorodenko village on the left bank of the River Narv.
WW II Russian tank with German markings uncovered after 62 years.
WW II Buffs will find this interesting. Even after 62 years (and a little
tinkering), they were able to fire up the diesel engine!
A Komatsu D375A-2 bulldozer pulled the abandoned tank from its tomb
under the boggy bank of a lake near Johvi , Estonia . The Soviet-built
T34/76A tank had been resting at the bottom of the lake for 56 years.
According to its specifications, it’s a 27-ton machine with a top speed of
53km/hr.
From February to September 1944, heavy battles were fought in the
narrow, 50 km-wide, Narva front in the northeastern part of Estonia .
Over 100,000 men were killed and 300,000 men were wounded there.
During battles in the summer of 1944, the tank was captured from the
Soviet army and used by the German army.
(This is the reason that there are German markings painted on the tank’s
exterior.)
On 19th September, 1944, German troops began an organized retreat
along the Narva front. It is suspected that the tank was then purposefully
driven into the lake to conceal it when its captors left the area.
At that time, a local boy walking by the lake, Kurtna Matasjarv, noticed
tank tracks leading into the lake but not coming out anywhere. For two
months he saw air bubbles emerging from the lake. This gave him reason
to believe that there must be an armored vehicle at the lake’s bottom. A
few years ago, he told the story to the leader of the local war history club
‘Otsing’. Together with other club members, Mr. Igor Shedunov initiated
diving expeditions to the bottom of the lake about a year ago. At the
depth of 7 metres they discovered the tank resting under a 3 metre layer
of peat.
Enthusiasts from the club, under Mr Shedunov’s leadership, decided to
pull the tank out. In September of 2000 they turned to Mr. Aleksander
Borovkovthe, manager of the Narva open pit company AS Eesti Polevkivi,
to rent the company’s Komatsu D375A-2 bulldozer. (Currently used at
the pit, the Komatsu dozer was manufactured in 1995, and has recorded
19,000 operating hours without major repairs.)
The pulling operation began at 09:00 and was concluded at 15:00, with
several technical breaks. The weight of the tank, combined with the
travel incline, made for a pulling operation that required significant
muscle. The D375A-2 handled the operation with power and style. The
weight of the fully-armed tank was around 30 tons, so the active force
required to retrieve it was similar. A main requirement for the 68-ton
dozer was to have enough weight to prevent slippage while moving up
the hill.
After the tank surfaced, it turned out to be a “trophy tank” that had been
captured by the German army in the course of the battle at Sinimaed
(Blue Hills) about six weeks before it was sunk in the lake. Altogether,
116 shells were found on board. Remarkably, the tank was in good
condition, with NO RUST, and alll systems (except the engine) in working
condition. This is a very rare machine, especially considering that it
fought both on the Russian and the German sides. Plans are underway to
fully restore the tank. It will be displayed at a war history museum in the
Gorodenko village on the left bank of the River Narv.
