In October 2012, military vehicle collector Jacek Kopczynski led a successful recovery operation to pull a rare World War II Valentine Mk X (IX/X) infantry tank from the backwaters of the Warta River in western Poland.

Submerged in mud and water since January 1945, the tank is believed to have broken through ice covering a tributary of the Warta River while advancing toward Berlin as part of the Soviet Red Army’s offensive against German defenses. Delivered to the USSR under Western military aid (Lend-Lease), the vehicle’s brass data plate confirmed a 1943 build date. Following its extraction, historians noted it as a rare find—marking the only complete Soviet Lend-Lease Valentine with combat history known to survive in such well-preserved condition.

1. Tactical Incident & Recovery Breakdown

• Date of Sinking: January 1945
• Date of Recovery: October 2012
• Location: Warta River backwaters / tributary, Western Poland
• Vehicle Type: Valentine Mk X / IX Infantry Tank (Lend-Lease Program)
• Manufacturing Year: 1943 (Verified via brass data plate)
• Recovery Lead: Jacek Kopczynski (Military vehicle collector from Lodz and founder of the Veteran Vehicles Bazaar)
• Operation Challenges: Initial recovery attempts failed on the first day; divers utilized high-pressure water jets through thick mud and clay to free the chassis on the second day.
• Preservation Status: Remarkably well-preserved due to being submerged in river silt; restoration experts estimated the vehicle could potentially be restored to driving condition within two to three years.

2. Historical Sequence & Recovery Dynamics

[Soviet Red Army Advance (January 1945)] ──► [Ice Collapse & Submergence in Warta River] ──► [Decades Submerged in Silt] ──► [2012 Discovery & Dive Assessment] ──► [High-Pressure Water Extraction] ──► [Surface Break & Restoration Planning]

• The 1945 Sinking: As Soviet forces pushed westward toward Berlin in the harsh winter of January 1945, the Lend-Lease tank attempted to cross an iced-over tributary of the Warta River. The ice failed, plunging the heavy armor into the freezing waters.
• The Lend-Lease Context: Approximately 2,000 Valentine tanks were delivered to the Soviet Union as part of Western military assistance. Prior to this recovery, only three Lend-Lease Valentines were known to exist globally, with no complete combat-surviving specimens recorded in Poland.
• The 2012 Operation: Facing difficult extraction conditions, divers deployed high-pressure water jets to clear compacted river mud from around the chassis. After overcoming initial setbacks on the first day, the team successfully hoisted the tank to the surface, drawing large crowds of onlookers and intense interest from military historians such as Janusz Zbit.

3. Technical Profile & Rarity Assessment