STALIN'S SECRET FREIGHTER (THE SECOND) - RED FRONT !

Stalin's second secret freighter from Leningrad has now disgorged its contents, to the great delight of Comrade Colonel Professor Winters and the Presteigne Soviet:

Heavy Katyusha Battery.
Lledo stake trucks, odd plastic missiles salvaged from the Bitzbox, Red Stars by WH Smith

The official history of the Katyusha is HERE. Although it is acknowledged that testing of rockets took place in the Soviet Union as early as 1928, with prototype truck mounted rockets being tested in June 1938, there is (strangely) no mention of the role played by Katyushas in the VBCW. This may very well be to camouflage the fact that, in 1938, truck mounted rockets were first used in battlefield conditions by the Ludlow Expeditionary Force ("LEF") at the Battle of Bredwardine Bridge, and thereby to avoid "an insult to Soviet science".

Whatever may be the case, there is no doubt that the Soviet nickname of "Katyusha" (trans. "Katie") for such truck mounted rocket batteries caught on, even in the VBCW, and that the Soviets then cornered the market in "rocket launchers and folk songs" (see WIKI on Katyusha song). Many variants of "Katyusha" have been recorded over the years, but we particularly enjoy this uber-kitsch 2008 version at the Russian equivalent of Glastonbury.

Anyway, enough of folk songs - on to the really heavy metal:

Armoured & Full Tracked "Big Guns" - introducing the KV-2 

Named after one of the two servile "Red Marshals" who survived the Red Army Purge of 1938 (KV = Kliment Voroshilov), the history of the KV series is HERE. Nevertheless, the above colourised photograph conclusively demonstrates that KV-2s were first developed for the Presteigne Soviet in 1938, rather than (as is commonly but erroneously believed) as a special conversion for the Russo-Finish War of 1939.

Stalin and Voroshilov salute a May Day parade in Red Square.
We understand that a loose translation of the slogan reads:
"Death to Fascists Wherever They May Be -
 Fraternal Aid to the Presteigne Soviet !"

The provision of such advanced heavy artillery has encouraged Comrade Colonel Professor Winters to form two "independent armoured brigades":

Presteigne Soviet First Armoured Brigade

Presteigne Soviet Second Armoured Brigade

With Stalin's delivery of such special heavy weapons, Christmas has come early

 for the Presteigne Soviet. Here is a Christmas Card of the time. We understand

that a somewhat loose translation of the card motto states:

 "All praise to all wise Comrade Stalin for his fraternal support

 of Comrade Professor Colonel Winters !" 

Notes:

The KV-2s are simple to put together "cartoon"/"box scale" tanks from Meng Models "World War Toons" series:

Meng World War Toon range. Worth looking at for VBCW tanks, although suitability varies.
These KV-2 kits (especially the Q version in the UK) can be found for as little as £5.00
if one scours the market diligently.