NKL-26 armoured aerosan

An aerosan (Russian: aэросани, aerosani, literally 'aerosled') is a type of propeller-powered snowmobile, running on skis, used for communications, mail deliveries, and border patrolling in northern Russia, as well as for recreation. Aerosans were used by the Soviet Red Army during the Winter War and the Second World War. Image File history File links Sani8. ... Image File history File links Sani8. ... A snowmobile tour at Yellowstone National Park, note the snowdust in the air (NPS Photo) A snowmobile (or snow scooter, often referred to by enthusiasts as a sled and in the Canadian north and Alaska as a snowmachine) is a land vehicle propelled by one or two rubber tracks, with... The short forms Red Army and RKKA refer to the Workers and Peasants Red Army, (in Russian: Рабоче-Крестьянская Красная Армия - Raboche-Krestyanskaya Krasnaya Armiya), the armed forces first organised by the Bolsheviks during the Russian Civil War in 1918. ... Combatants Finland Soviet Union Commanders Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim Kliment Voroshilov, later Semyon Timoshenko Strength 180,000 450,000 Casualties 22,830 dead 43,600 wounded 1,000 captured 127,000+ dead or missing 265,000 wounded 3,100 captured, 2000+ tanks The Winter War (also known as the Soviet... Combatants Allied Powers Axis Powers Commanders {{{commander1}}} {{{commander2}}} Strength {{{strength1}}} {{{strength2}}} Casualties 17 million military deaths 7 million military deaths {{{notes}}} World War II, also known as the Second World War (sometimes WW2 or WWII or World War Two), was a mid-20th century conflict that engulfed much of the...

The first aerosans may have been built by young Igor Sikorsky in 1909–10, before he built multi-engine airplanes and helicopters. They were very light plywood vehicles on skis, propelled by old airplane engines and propellers. Igor Sikorsky Igor Ivanovich Sikorsky (Игорь Иванович Сикорский; 25 May 1889 – 26 October 1972) was a Russian-American pioneer of aviation who designed the first four-engine aeroplanes and the first successful helicopter of the most common configuration (single main rotor with tail rotor). ... ...

Military use of the aerosan goes back to at least the 1920s. During the 1939–40 Winter War against Finland, some were equipped with a machine-gun ring mount on the roof. They could carry four to five men, and tow four more on skis. The aerosans were initially used for transport, liaison, and medical evacuation in deep snow, and mostly used in open country and on frozen lakes and rivers because of their poor hill-climbing ability and limited manoeuvrability on winding forest roads. M2 machine gun surrounded by spent shell casings. ... A Beech KingAir of the Australian Royal Flying Doctor Service. ...

During WWII, aerosans were found to be useful for reconnaissance and light raiding in northern areas, thanks to their high mobility in deep snow (25–35 km/h, where many vehicles couldn't move at all). Responsibility for aerosans was transferred to the Soviet Armoured Forces (GABTU) and orders were submitted for design and fabrication of lightly-armoured versions, protected by ten millimetres of steel plate on front. They were organized into transport or combat battalions of 45 vehicles, in three companies, often employed in co-operation with ski infantry. Troops were usually carried or towed by transport aerosans, while fire support was provided by the heavier machine gun-armed, armoured models. Aerosans were not used for direct assault because of their vulnerability to explosives such as mortar rounds. Mixed reconnaissance patrol of the Polish Home Army and the Soviet Red Army during Operation Tempest, 1944 Reconnaissance is the military term for the active gathering of information about an enemy, or other conditions, by physical observation. ... The Main Directorate of Armoured Forces (Russian: ) was the body in charge of the Soviet Red Armys mechanized forces in the Second World War. ... Military vehicles are commonly armoured to withstand the impact of shrapnel, bullets or shells, protecting the soldiers inside from enemy fire. ... Symbol of the Austrian 14th Armoured Battalion in NATO code In military terminology, a battalion consists of two to six companies typically commanded by a lieutenant colonel. ... Finnish sissi troops on skis. ... US soldier firing an M224 60-mm mortar. ...

The first military aerosans used in Finland, the KM-5 and OSGA-6 (later called NKL-6), were initially built at the Narkomles Factory in Moscow. During WWII, improved NKL-16/41 and NKL-16/42 models were built, and production started at the ZiS and GAZ car factories, and at smaller industries such as the Stalingrad Bekietovskiy Wood Works. In 1941 the armoured NKL-26, designed by M. Andreyev, started production at Narkomles. The following year, Gorki Narkorechflota developed the smaller, unarmoured GAZ-98, or RF-8, powered by a GAZ-M1 truck engine and durable metal propeller. Other models included the ANT-IV and ASD-400. Moscow (Russian: Москва́, Moskva, IPA: â–¶ (help· info)) is the capital of Russia, located on the river Moskva. ... Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... Gaz can refer to: GAZ, the Russian automobile manufacturer Gaz, a character from the television series, Invader Zim Gaz, a Mughal measurement of length, often translated as yard. This is a disambiguation page—a list of articles associated with the same title. ... Stalingrad is the former name of two cities: Volgograd, Russia Karviná-Nové Město, near Ostrava, Czech Republic Other uses: The Battle of Stalingrad (a major turning-point of World War II and arguably the bloodiest battle in human history) Stalingrad (German film set during the above battle) Stalingrad (metro station... Categories: | | ... Categories: | | ... Categories: | | ...

See also

• Air boat
• Armoured fighting vehicle

Airboat. ... An armoured fighting vehicle (AFV) is a military vehicle, equipped with protection against hostile attacks and often mounted weapons. ...

References

• Zaloga, Steven J., James Grandsen (1984). Soviet Tanks and Combat Vehicles of World War Two, pp. 185–87, London: Arms and Armour Press. ISBN 0-85368-606-8.

External links

• The Propeller-Driven Sleigh
• At the Russian Battlefield:
  • Soviet Combat Snowmobiles
  • RF-8-GAZ-98 Snowmobile
  • NKL-26 Snowmobile
  • ANT-IV Snowmobile
• Боевые аэросани 'Combat Aerosans' at Brone-Sayt (Russian language)
• Aerosani-amfibiya AS-2, a modern amphibious recreational vehicle from aircraft manufacturer Tupolev (Russian language)