Chapter 577 The Powerful Soviet Union

April 22, 1942, today is the 72nd anniversary of the birth of Comrade Lenin, a famous Marxist, proletarian revolutionary, politician, theorist, thinker, and the late great leader of the Soviet people.

As in previous years, the Soviet Party and government will hold various memorials and commemorations for their late great leader, and the working people of all walks of life in the Soviet Union will present their latest and most successful labor achievements on this day to pay tribute to the late great leader.

What is different this year is that the commemoration of Comrade Lenin’s birthday is not only unprecedentedly large-scale, but also a bit more gunpowder.

First of all, the Soviet Bolshevik Party gave Comrade Lenin a crown that had never existed before - the great forerunner of the world revolution.

All those who understand the political life of the Soviet Union know that this is not a title that can be used casually!

World revolution means that the proletariat of the world will unite to overthrow the bourgeoisie with violence and establish a proletarian regime throughout the world!

In the past ten years, the Soviet Union has been busy building socialism in one country. World revolution and so on... those are the things that Trotskyists talk about all day long to deceive people - at least in the Soviet Union, there is little content about world revolution in the official Soviet public opinion.

But this time, taking advantage of Lenin's birthday, the word world revolution appeared in Soviet newspapers and magazines almost overnight.

Moreover, this year, 1942, is the final year of the Soviet Union's third five-year plan. Unlike the previous two five-year plans that focused on basic and heavy industries, the third five-year plan focuses on national defense and military industries, which is to prepare for the future world revolution.

According to the plan, the Soviet Union will vigorously develop the three major industries of aviation, shipbuilding and machinery in the five years from 1938 to 1942.

Among them, the aviation industry mainly serves the Red Air Force. Large-scale aviation industrial bases were built along the Volga River and the Ural Mountains. In 1938, the total aircraft production doubled compared with 1937, reaching 7,500, ranking first in the world. By 1939, the year when the World War broke out, the Soviet Union's aircraft production reached as high as 10,000, and then steadily increased year by year, always ranking first or second in the world. In addition, it has made great progress in technology, producing a series of world-leading fighters and bombers such as MiG-3, La-Major-8, MiG-5, Yak-7 and Il-2, which greatly enhanced the strength of the Red Air Force.

The key service objects of the machinery industry are the mechanized forces of the Soviet Red Army. In the Third Five-Year Plan, the Soviet machinery industry not only produced tanks and vehicles with excellent performance such as BT-7, T-34 tanks, KV-1, and KV-2, but also built a large-scale tank production base, making the Soviet Union's tank production far exceed the total of European countries led by Germany, and comparable to the tank production of the United States, which was fully prepared for war.

The shipbuilding industry, which has always been the shortcoming of the Soviet industry, has also achieved remarkable achievements in the third five-year plan. On this special day of April 22, 1942, the Soviet shipbuilding industry produced the most important achievement of their years of hard work - the Soviet battleship!

Next to the dock of the Ordzhonikidze Baltic Shipyard in Leningrad, named after Lenin, a steel behemoth with a total length of 269.4 meters, a maximum width of 38.9 meters, a full-load draft of 10.4 meters, and three triple-mounted 406mm main guns is showing its mighty body to the leaders of the Soviet Party and the country who came to visit - it is the Soviet battleship, with a standard displacement of 59,150 tons and a full-load displacement of 65,150 tons, known as the world's second most powerful battleship!

"Comrade General Secretary, according to your instructions, the First Central Special Ship Design Bureau and the Fourth Design Bureau of the Baltic Shipyard, as well as the comrades of the Ordzhonikidze Baltic Shipyard, have worked hard for four years and finally completed the design and construction of the Soviet battleship in one year."

On the bow deck of the Soviet battleship, Kuznetsov, People's Commissar and Commander-in-Chief of the Soviet Red Navy, said to Stalin with a proud tone: "Our Soviet battleship is currently the second largest battleship in the world in terms of displacement, second only to the Japanese 80,000-ton battleship, and the largest battleship in Europe. Even the German Hindenburg class cannot compare with us."

The only thing that cannot be compared is the tonnage. In terms of protection capability, the Soviet class is not as good as the Hindenburg class. The thickness of the main armor belts of the two sides is similar, and the deck armor thickness of the Hindenburg class is not as good as that of the Soviet class, but the quality of German armored steel is much better than that of the Soviet Union, and the Hindenburg class also has a dome armor protection system, and the underwater protection is also better than that of the Soviet Union.

As for the main gun firepower, the Soviet class is stronger, because the main guns of the Soviet class and the Hindenburg class are exactly the same, both are underpowered 52-caliber 406mm SKC/34 type guns - these cannons were exported to the Soviet Union by Germany when the Soviet-German relationship was good (Germany had to pay a price for taking so many Soviet resources, and the Soviet class that could not be built originally was now built at the expense of Germany). The Soviet Union has a cannon, one more than the Hindenburg class, and of course the firepower is stronger. However, the Soviet class does not have a fire control radar, and the optical sight is not as good as the German one. If they really fight on the battlefield, I am afraid they will not be able to take advantage of the Hindenburg class.

However, the Soviet-class power is really more powerful than the Hindenburg-class. The Hindenburg-class power system is the same as the Bismarck-class, with 12 boilers and 3 steam turbines. The Soviet class has 16 boilers and 4 steam turbines. The boilers and steam turbines are also imported from Germany. The brand and model are the same as those used by the Bismarck. Therefore, the output horsepower is one-third greater than that of the Bismarck, exceeding 200,000 horses. However, due to the hull shape, the maximum speed of the Soviet class can only reach 28.5 knots, not much faster than the Hindenburg class.

But in any case, it is still a huge improvement for the Soviet Union's first-class self-built battleship (with help from Germany and Italy during the construction process) to reach such a level.

Wearing a crisp green uniform and looking energetic, Stalin nodded with satisfaction: "Very good. It is a great achievement to complete the USSR one year ahead of schedule (it is also part of the plan to be ahead of schedule. According to the original plan) The battleship planned to be built in 1938 was not completed until 1943). However, this was not enough. Soviet shipbuilders should continue their efforts and complete the construction of another three Soviet-class and two Kronshtadt-class battlecruisers as soon as possible. As long as there are 4 Soviet-class battleships and 2 Kronshtadt-class battlecruisers, the Soviet state has nothing to fear, whether at sea or on land.”

The Soviet-class battleships and Kronshtadt-class battlecruisers were the most important projects of the Soviet shipbuilding industry in the Third Five-Year Plan. Construction of the No. 1 Kronshtadt-class battlecruiser also started at the Ordzhonikidze Baltic Shipyard in Leningrad. This large battlecruiser with a standard displacement of 32,700 tons and a full load displacement of 40,835 tons uses the same power system as the Soviet class, so its maximum speed can reach 32-34 knots.

The layout of the main gun system is the same as that of the German Barbarossa class. It uses three twin 380mm turrets. The 52-caliber SKC/34 artillery used is also imported from Germany and is the same as the main gun of the Bismarck class.

"Reporting to Comrade General Secretary, the No. 2 Soviet-class ship is currently being outfitted at Plant 190 (A. Marty Shipyard) and will be completed next month. The battlecruiser Kronstadt is at Plant 189 (Orzhong) Nikize Baltic Shipyard) Outfitting.”

Kuznetsov raised an arm and pointed to another dock about 3,000 meters away. He only saw a large battleship that was basically completed and was sitting there, as if a giant beast was waiting to attack.

"What about the other two No. 2 ships of the Soviet-class and Kronshtadt-class battlecruisers?"

“They are all built at Plant 402 (Northern Shipyard) in Molotovsk,” Kuznetsov said. “Because Plant 402 is a new plant and therefore lacks experience, the project progress is slow and may have to be delayed until early 1943. Only then can it be completed.”

Because Ukraine on the right bank once belonged to Poland, the Soviet Union in this time and space did not have three major shipbuilding centers, and there was one missing Nikolayev Shipbuilding Center. However, the construction of the Northern Shipyards was advanced. At the end of the Second Five-Year Plan, the construction of Plant 402 was completed, so the construction of two Soviet-class ships and one Kronstadt-class ship started in Molotovsk (Severodvinsk).

However, the construction of these three large surface ships by the Northern 402 Factory will be beneficial to the Soviet Red Navy. Because the Mediterranean is now completely controlled by the European Community Navy, once a war begins, the Soviet Black Sea Fleet will not be able to leave the Black Sea, and it will not even be considered an existing fleet. On the other hand, the Soviet Union's Northern Fleet has great potential and can attack the North Atlantic to fight the German Navy.

According to the "Thunderstorm Plan" formulated by the People's Commissariat of Defense of the Soviet Union and the General Staff of the Red Army, before the Soviet Red Army launches an offensive, the main ships of the Baltic Fleet will go to Molotovsk in batches to join the Northern Fleet.

After the war breaks out, they will wait for an opportunity to attack from Molotovsk, and together with the British and American navies, they will fight against the European Combined Fleet to seize sea power in the North Atlantic.

But when he thought about the current strength of the European combined fleet headed by Germany, Stalin couldn't help but frown a little. He was not too worried about matters on land. The Red Army had powerful armored forces and air force. It was very sure to attack Germany when it attacked the British mainland. Even if it could not attack Berlin directly, it could at least severely inflict heavy damage on the German army and regain the Baltic Sea region, Western Ukraine and Poland.

The sea was originally the most certain place. The combined naval strength of Britain, the United States and the Soviet Union could completely overwhelm Germany, Italy and France. But now... the sea has become the most uncertain place. This is why Comrade Stalin chose to celebrate Lenin's birthday. And the main reason to visit the shipyard in Leningrad.