Zaloga cites "Combat Potential of the Armament and Combat Equipment of the Ground Forces and Aviation of the USSR and of the Armies of the Probable Enemy" several times in his books, but one particular citations has left me perplexed.
Here is the context (Chapter 8 of Armored Champion)
The paragraph:
In the postwar years, the Soviet Army developed a computer modeling program to assess relative combat performance of various types. Some historical examples were also run. The table below shows the Soviet assessment of major types in 1944, using the PzKpfw III with 50mm L/60 gun as the baseline tank.
The ciation for that table:
The Central Intelligence Agency obtained a copy of one of the Soviet army studies in 1980; it was declassified under the Freedom of Information Act in 2012. “Combat Potential of the Armament and Combat Equipment of the Ground Forces and Aviation of the USSR and of the Armies of the Probable Enemy,” CIA Memorandum from Deputy Director of Operations John McMahon, 25 August 1980.
I have found the document here, but it says absolutely nothing about the 1944 tanks and it is the T-55 that is used as baseline, not the Panzer III. There is actually no mention of the Panzer III.
I've been over this with two reddiors already, even on /r/TankPorn, and no explanation for this has been found. Does anyone here know what exactly is Zaloga getting his information from?
Why don't you e-mail Zaloga to ask? His e-mail is listed here as szaloga@tealgroup.com.
