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I thought it might be a good idea to start a thread related to a topic i see pop up from time to time, and thats one to post questions (or answers, links, etc) about unit organization.
I (as i have a neverending supply of questions) have one to start off as well. I am attempting to build my first actual "unit" for gaming, a Russian armored batallion Circa 1942-1943 ish. Now, my question is, were all types of tanks the same in Russian units, or would 2 companies of T-34s operate in the same batallion with, say, one company of KV-1s or T-70s? Also, were the Russian Tank Destroyers in their own units, or did they get mixed in with "normal" types of armor, like T-34s? and lastly, how many infantry would normally operate with 3 companies of tanks? I tried searching, but all the info i could find on Russian unit organization was 1946 or later. Thanks, Azure

Hi Azure, I recenlty looked into the TO&Es of the Russian to make some diagrams.
I made some pdfs of these. They can be downloaded from links from my home page.
http://www.panzer-war.com/
The are included in the Armor TO&E file.

In a nutshell July of 1942 the Russians light tank battalion had 10 light tanks and 10 T-34 tanks and one command tank. At that time the medium tank battalion became two companies of 10 T-34s each plus a command tank.

Why Thank you Mobius! Lots of good stuff there!

Hi Azure

Another good source that I used is Red Army Handbook, 1939-1945 from Steven J. Zaloga and Leland S. Ness. This is a great source for showing the evolution of various Red Army organizations including armored formations during the course of the war. 1942 was a year of transition for the Red armored forces so you might want to consider which 1942 organization you are modeling.
Starting in December a typical tank battalion would have 8 T-60 light tanks in 1 company, 10 T-34's in another company and then 5 KV-1's made up the 3rd heavy company.
Starting in July 1942 this organization changed. The new organization had 1 battalion of T-34's with 3 companies of 10 tanks each plus a T-34 for the battalion HQ. Also in the brigade was a light tank battalion of 2 companies of T-60's or T-70's(both were available at this time) with 10 tanks each plus a T-60 or T-70 for the battalion HQ. There was also a T-34 for the brigade HQ as well. The KV-1s were combined into separate regiments at this time as their slow speed did not allow them to keep up with the rest of the battalion.
This is a good source book for all the combat branches and I have found it a great tool in creating my 1942 Russian units.

Pete - Binpicker, Out!