Mikhail Koshkin: Creator of the best Soviet tank in World War II

"Small in stature, but possessing enormous inner strength, this outstanding man was passionate about his work and led others to his goals," was how contemporaries described the creator of the legendary T-34 medium tank.

From caramels to tanks

From childhood, Koshkin dreamed not of designing combat vehicles, but of… making candy. At 11, he became an apprentice in a caramel shop and, by 26, was heading an entire confectionery factory in the city of Vyatka.

However, the state was short on technical specialists, so Koshkin was sent for retraining. In 1934, he graduated with honors from the Leningrad Polytechnic Institute as a design engineer and, in just a few years, he rose from a simple specialist to deputy chief designer at the Kirov plant in Leningrad.

In 1936, he was awarded the ‘Order of the Red Star’ "for outstanding work in mechanical engineering". That same year, another significant event occurred: he became head of the tank design bureau at the Kharkov plant. It was there that the T-34 would be created.

Birth of the T-34

Koshkin successfully modernized the BT-7 wheeled-tracked tank, after which he was tasked with developing a new tank of the same type.

However, he understood that the era of wheeled-tracked tanks was gone forever. Although fast, they could not withstand modern artillery fire. And strengthening the armor increased the vehicle's weight, which, in turn, adversely affected the chassis. 

The designer intended to develop a fast, maneuverable and powerful tracked tank. He traveled to Moscow and obtained Stalin's permission to work on both tank types simultaneously.

In mid-1939, the A-20 wheeled/tracked tank and the A-32 tracked tank underwent joint testing. However, the A-20 was inferior in maneuverability and cross-country ability and it was impossible to upgrade it with armor and armament. On December 19, the A-32 was accepted into service under the designation T-34.

Aborted flight

In March 1940, command ordered two prototypes to be flown to Moscow for inspection. Koshkin decided to transport them under his own supervision, driving one of the vehicles himself.

But the journey from Kharkov to the capital and back, through difficult off-road conditions and freezing temperatures, undermined the designer's health. He contracted pneumonia and died on September 26, 1940, at the age of just 41.

In the war against Nazi Germany that began nine months later, the T-34 performed admirably, turning out to be a very unpleasant surprise for the Germans. For its development, Koshkin was posthumously awarded the ‘Stalin Prize’, First Class, in 1942.