Comparing: KV-5 vs. IS-3

Development was started in June 1941 at the Leningrad Kirov Plant and completed by August, but the German invasion prevented development from progressing to the prototype stage. The KV-5 was expected to share some components with the KV-1. A new turret was designed, incorporating the 107-mm ZIS-6 gun. Early plans called for a new 1,200 hp diesel engine, but later adjustments, recognizing wartime disruptions, replaced this with two V-2K engines.

Mass production of the vehicle started in May 1945. On September 7,1945, IS-3 tanks took part in the Allied Victory Parade through Berlin. A total of 1170 vehicles were manufactured by the end of 1946, when production was canceled. From 1948 through the late 1950s, the tanks underwent a number of modernization refits.