"State Committee of Defense decree #1221ss
January 30th, 1941
On improving mobility of KV tanks
To improve mobility of KV tanks, the State Committee of Defense decrees that:
- The People's Commissar of Tank Production (comrade Malyshev) and director of the Kirov factory comrade Zaltsman must:
- Improve the KV tank's draught pull by 20-25% by means of:
- Increasing the engine power of the V-2K diesel engine from 600 to 650 hp.
- Changing the gear ratio of the final drive.
- Changing the number of teeth on the drive sprocket.
- Begin production of such tanks as of February 15th of this year.
- The People's Commissariat of Tank Production (Kirov factory) is permitted to produce two experimental KV tanks with new 8-speed gearboxes and a diesel engine supercharged to 700 hp.Trials of the tank are to be conducted jointly with the GABTU and a report on the rationality of producing KV tanks with a new gearbox is to be sent to the GKO by March 25th.
[handwritten] "Approved - I. Stalin
Copies to: Malyshev, Zaltsman, Fedorenko, Malenkov"