Experimental tank No. 1
| Experimental tank No. 1 | |
|---|---|
|
|
| General properties | |
| crew | 5 |
| length | 6.03 m |
| width | 2.40 m |
| height | 2.78 m (with observation dome) |
| Dimensions | 18 t |
| Armor and armament | |
| Armor | 6-17 mm |
| Main armament | 57 mm KwK |
| Secondary armament | 2 × Type 97 7.7 mm machine gun |
| agility | |
| drive | air-cooled Mitsubishi V8-cylinder gasoline engine 103 kW (140 PS) |
| Top speed | 26 km / h |
| Power / weight | approx. 5.6 kW / t (7.7 PS / t) |
| Range | 170 km |
The experimental tank No. 1 ( Japanese 試製 一号 戦 車 , Shisei 1-gō sensha ) was a prototype of a Japanese tank that was tested by the Imperial Japanese Army in 1927 . It was the first tank developed and produced in the Japanese Empire.
history
After the First World War , the command of the Imperial Japanese Army was aware that their infantry needed tank support. A British Mark IV was acquired in October 1918 to test the new branch of arms . In 1919 six British Mark A and 13 French Renault FT tanks followed. Five of the latter vehicles made up the first Japanese Panzer Division, which was assigned to the 12th Division as the 1st Panzer Division in 1925 .
For the expansion of the Japanese tank weapon, the army command relied on further European tank purchases and sent a commission to Europe to purchase the latest British, French and American models. When the Japanese Commission announced interest in the latest British model, the Vickers Medium Mk II , the British High Command refused to sell on the grounds that the British Army itself was not yet adequately equipped with the latest model and therefore had priority. The British attitude triggered the discussion in the Japanese army command about the general procurement of the latest tanks, whereupon the technical office of the Imperial Japanese Army, responsible for the development of weapons and equipment, campaigned for the in-house development of a tank to be manufactured in Japan. Although there was skepticism as to whether the technical office could master this task with the Japanese industrial possibilities available at the time, the application was granted.
The development of the first tank to be produced in Japan began in 1925. The first tank to be designed was a medium-weight battle tank . The technical office of the Imperial Japanese Army had the following requirements for the combat vehicle:
- Combating strong field fortifications
- Mobility on the road
- High firepower with all-round protection from a 57 mm KwK and two machine guns, one directed forward and one rearward
- Armor must withstand hits from 37 mm anti-tank guns
- Road speed must be around 25 km / h
- Crossing trenches 2.5 m wide
- 5 man crew
- Width and height must be within the rail transportability
- Driver must have full driving control (in contrast to the Mark IV)
- Operating time of at least 10 hours
- Maximum weight of 15 tons
Although not specified as a requirement, the production time of the first draft was limited to 21 months due to the budget. Under this time pressure, work on the design in the technical office began in June 1925 under the direction of Major Tomio Hara. Since there were no plans for a previous model, every production part, from the nut to the screw, had to be redesigned and drawn by the engineers. Over 10,000 plan drawings were made for the construction of the first Japanese tank.
In May 1926, the planning was completed and the prototype was to be produced in the Osaka arsenal . The Osaka Arsenal had a long tradition in the manufacture of various artillery equipment and had excellent engineering knowledge, but the industrial prerequisites for the manufacture of tanks were lacking. To compensate for this, nearby shipyards and railway production facilities were included in the production of individual components, with assembly being carried out in the Osaka arsenal. Due to the variety of manufacturing companies involved in the manufacture of the first Japanese tank, the completion process turned out to be difficult. The production of armor plates could not be delivered on the desired date, so structural steel was used.
The completion of the prototype in February 1927 made big headlines in the Japanese Empire. Several high-ranking army officers requested to be present at the first demonstration of the prototype. The test demonstration took place on June 21, 1927 at the Fuji test site , with a large number of high-ranking officers from the Army Headquarters present. After the first day of the demonstration, the reactions to the prototype were consistently positive. The following day, the prototype successfully completed off-road drives and crossed ditches and obstacles.
The tests were a complete success and the tank met all requirements - except for one: instead of a maximum weight of 15 tons, the experimental tank No. 1 achieved 18 tons. For this reason it stayed with the prototype. However, the successful test had shown that the Japanese Empire was able to produce armored vehicles in its own country, and it did so from that point on. The next prototype was worked on a lighter tank, which led to the development of the Type 89 I-Gō . The experimental tank No. 1 later served as a template for the heavy tank Type 95 .
Technical specifications
- Weight: 18 t
- Length: 6.03 m
- Width: 2.40 m
- height
- with observation dome: 2.78 m
- without observation dome: 2.43 m
- Ability to cross: 2.5 m
- Climbing ability: 100 cm
- Drive: air-cooled Mitsubishi V8 gasoline engine with 103 kW (140 PS)
- Speed (road): 20 km / h
- Driving range: 170 km
- Armament:
- 1 × 57 mm cannon with 110 rounds
- 2 × 7.7 mm MG Type 97 with 5000 rounds
- Armor: 6-17 mm
- Crew: 5
See also
literature
- Steven J Zaloga: Japanese Tanks 1939–45. Osprey Publishing, 2007, ISBN 978-1-84603-091-8 .
- Andrzej Tomczyk: Japanese Armor Vol. 1. AJ Press, 2002, ISBN 83-7237-097-4 .
- Tomio Hara: Japanese Medium Tanks. AFV Weapons Profiles No. 49. Profile Publications Limited, 1972.
Web links
- Type 91 & Type 95 Heavy. tanks-encyclopedia.com, accessed November 18, 2017 .