Type 94 tankette
| Type 94 Te-Ke (early) | |
|---|---|
 Type 94 Tankette on the engine deck of an M4 Sherman tank. | |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 3.4 tonnes |
| Length | 3.0 m |
| Width | 1.6 m |
| Height | 1.6 m |
| Crew | 2 (commander, driver) |
The Type 94 Te-Ke was a Japanese tankette which entered service in 1935. It was used as both a tractor for towing an ammunition trailer and as a light reconnaissance/patrol tank. The Type 94 arose from a requirement in the 1930s for an armoured vehicle that could tow a tracked trailer with supplies to forward areas. The design of the Type 94 was based on the British Carden-Loyd Mark VIb which Japan had purchased earlier. The engine was in the front with the driver to the right and the commander stood at the back with his own small (unpowered) turret. Like many armoured vehicles intended to operate in hot conditions it was given asbestos insulation to protect the occupants. The Type 94 led to the development of the Type 97 Light tank.
History
In the late 1920's, the Japanese purchased six British Carden-Loyd Mark machine-gun carriers, and two Mark Vlb carriers for testing. The Army imported two Carden Loyd Mk.VIs in 1930 and put them in the Army Infantry and Cavalry schools for evaluation. The schools tested them and reported that this sort of vehicle woulkd be useful as the support vehicle for transport, scout and communication.
According to this report, the Army decided to develop the same kind of vehicle as the Carden Loyd. The development was given to Tokyo Gas and Electric Industry (later known as Hino Motors) in 1933. The experimental model was finished in 1934. It was a small light tracked vehicle like the Carden Loyd, but it had a turret armed with one machine gun. For cargo transportation it pulled a trailer. It was given the name Tokushu Keninsha ("Special Tractor"), abridged to TK. After trials in both China and Japan it was standardized as the Type 94 tankette. Oddly, American sources have always referred to it as the Type 92 tankette while the official title was "Type 94 Light Armoured Car"
Design
The hull of the tankette was of riveted construction, with the engine and driver at the front and the small turret at the rear of the hull. A large door was provided in the rear of the hull through which stores could be loaded. The armament consisted of a single machine-gun in manual traversed turret. The suspension was a design by Major Tomio Hara and was similar to that in use on most Japanese tanks. It consisted of four bogies - two on each side. These were suspended by bell-cranks resisted by armoured compression springs placed horizontally, one each side of the hull, externally. Each bogie had two small rubber-tyred road wheels with the drive sprocket at the front and the idler at the rear. There were two track-return rollers.
In service the Type 94 was found to be very prone to throwing its tracks when it made a high speed turn. Further redesign work was carried out on the suspension and the small idler was replaced by a larger diameter idler wheel which was now in ground contact; it did not solve the problem. An air-cooled petrol motor that developed 35 hp (at 2,500 rpm) powered the tank. Initially the armament was a Type 91 6.5 mm machine gun, although in later model this was replaced by a single 7.7 mm machine gun.
A better suspension on a longer chassis appeared in later models of the Type 94. The design was also the basis for the Type 94 "Disinfecting Vehicle" and Type 94 "Gas Scattering Vehicle".
Service
Japan's relative lack of industrial capacity combined with the nature of war in Second Sino-Japanese War (launched by Japan in 1937) convinced the Imperial Japanese Army not to call for production of more advanced tanks.
Although designed as an ammunition tractor it was also used as tankette in China. The lightweight Type 94 was effective in China because the roads in China were very poor quality and the Chinese had virtually no tanks or anti-tank weapons. Although used in the reconnaissance role its armour was thin enough that it could be penetrated by ordinary rifle bullets.
The Type 94 was mainly deployed in "Independent Tankette Companies". In 1936, each Japanese Infantry Division had its own Tankette Company with six Type 94s for use in the reconnaissance role.
The Type 94 Tankette was the cheap vehicle to build at about half the price of Type 89 Medium Tank and so many could be built and put into service. Production ran to 300 in 1935, 246 in 1936 and 200 in 1937. The Imperial Japanese Army was therefore content to retain anobsolescent vehicles such as the Type 94
A number of Type 94 were issued to each Japanese infantry division, with a tracked trailer. They saw action during the Second World War in the Burma campaign. They were still in use until as late as 1945.
- Hebei, China - (1st Tank Battalion and 2nd Tank Battalion)
- Quhar Province, China - (1st Independent Mixed Brigade)
- Shanghai, China - (5th Tank Battalion)
- Taierchwang, China - (Special Tank Company of China Detachment Tank Unit)
- Hsuchou, China - (1st Tank Battalion and 5th Tank Battalion)
- Nomonhan, Manchuria - (3rd Tank Regiment and 4th Tank Regiment)
- Hsinking, Manchuria - (Manchu tank Unit of Imperial Manchu Army)
- Timor Island - (38th Division Tankette Company)
- Java Island - (Anai Tankette unit, 2nd, 3nd and 48th Recon Regiment, Sakaguchi Detachment, 56th Infantry Group Tankette Unit)
- Kwajalein Atoll - (2nd Battalion of Army 1st Sea-mobile Brigade)
External links
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