Burnt Soviet BT-7 Light Tank — Destroyed on the Eastern Front, 1941

July 24, 2025 - Reading time: 7 minutes

A burnt Soviet BT-7 light tank, destroyed on the Eastern Front in 1941. This tank was part of the Red Army's early losses during the Nazi invasion.

This harrowing image shows a burnt Soviet BT-7 light tank, a fast-moving vehicle of the Red Army, destroyed during the early stages of the Nazi invasion in 1941. The BT-7, which stands for "Bystrokhodny Tank" (High-speed Tank), was one of the most advanced light tanks of the late 1930s. The BT-7 was designed to perform rapid breakthrough operations, moving swiftly across the battlefield to support offensive maneuvers. Its ability to switch between tracked and wheeled movement gave it exceptional speed for a tank, with a top speed of 73 km/h on tracks and 93 km/h on wheels.

Despite its mobility, the BT-7 was lightly armored, with 22mm armor on the front and 13mm on the sides and rear, making it vulnerable to modern German anti-tank weapons. The 45mm 20K gun and 7.62mm DT machine guns allowed the BT-7 to engage infantry and light armor, but it struggled against heavier German tanks. This image of a destroyed BT-7 tank highlights the devastating losses faced by the Soviet tank forces in the early months of the war, as 85% of the BT fleet was lost by the winter of 1941.

The BT-7 was a symbol of Soviet ambition in armored warfare, and despite its early shortcomings, it played an important role in the initial stages of the war. The tank’s mobility was particularly valuable in Soviet tactics, but its weaknesses, especially in armor and crew training, contributed to its eventual replacement by heavier tanks such as the T-34.

Technical photo data:
📝 Source of information: Unknown
📍 Location: USSR
📅 Date of photo: 1941
📷 Photographer: Unknown

• BT-7 Soviet tank

• Soviet armored vehicles WWII

• Soviet tank losses 1941

• Nazi invasion USSR

• Soviet tanks early war

• German tank superiority

• T-34 replacement

• BT-7 mobility

• Eastern Front WWII

• Soviet tank destruction

• Red Army armored units