Soviet Orfey class destroyer Engels

Soviet Orfey class destroyer Engels armed with a 305mm recoilless gun, fitted for testing in 1934.

The designer of the gun, Leonid Kurchevsky, had many other gun designs that all mostly had irreparable defects, and thus was arrested, charged with designing poor weapons, and sentenced to death in 1937. The exact date of his execution is still uncertain: various sources claim it to be either November 26, 1937, or January 12, 1939.