Since the Red Army received their first armoured fighting vehicles and throughout the Second World War transportation of tanks was carried out nearly exclusively via railroad transport or with the tanks running on their own tracks. Development of heavy wheeled vehicles to carry such loads was seen to be an inefficient waste of industrial resources – why build trucks when one can build tanks instead? To cope with that tank-types such as the BT-series were fitted with driven roadwheel stations to run on wheels once the track was removed to reduce wear and tear both to the tracks and the automotive components. The first real heavy duty trucks suitable for tank transport reached the Soviet Union under the Lend-Lease contract during which the US-manufactured tractor trucks REO 28XS 6×4 (approx. 230 units) and Diamond-T 980 6×4 (approx. 620 units) together with semi-trailers 20-ton Trailmobile and 45-ton Rogers from 1942 onwards. The tankers in the Red Army were however – as official reports claim – not quite satisfied with the REO and the Diamond-T. Combat experiences with both vehicles remained limited.
Military Machine 
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