Type 7-30 cm howitzer
| Type 7-30 cm howitzer | |
|---|---|
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|
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| General Information | |
| Military designation: | 七年 式 三十 糎 榴 弾 砲 |
| Manufacturer country: |
 Japan
|
| Development year: | 1918 |
| Production time: | 1918 to 1933 |
| Number of pieces: | Short pipe: 10 Long pipe: 20 |
| Weapon Category: | Howitzer Fortress Gun Siege Gun |
| Technical specifications | |
| Pipe length: | Short pipe: 5.015 m Long pipe: 7.22 m |
| Caliber : |
305 mm |
| Caliber length : | Short tube: L / 16 Long tube: L / 23 |
| Weight ready for use: | Short tube: 59,217 kg Long tube: 97,000 kg |
| Elevation range: | 2 to 73 degrees |
| Side straightening area: | 360 ° |
| Furnishing | |
| Closure Type : | Screw lock |
| Ammunition supply: | individually |
The type 7-30 cm cannon ( Japanese 七年 式 三十 糎 榴 弾 砲 , Shichi-nenshiki sanjū-senchi ryūdanhō ) was a howitzer that was used by the Imperial Japanese Army in the Second Sino-Japanese War , in the Japanese-Soviet Border conflict and was used during the Pacific War from 1918 to 1945. The designation Type 7 indicates the year the troops were introduced, the 7th year of Emperor Taishō's rule or 1918 according to the Gregorian calendar.
history
The Type 7 howitzer was introduced into the Imperial Japanese Army in 1918 and was used in coastal defense as a supplement to the 28 cm L / 10 howitzer . Although it was 305 mm in caliber , it was called the Type 7 30 cm howitzer . There were two variants of type 7: one with a 5.015 m long pipe, short tube called and one with a 7.22 m long pipe, long tube called. The variants had different ranges of 11,800 and 14,800 m. The different pipe lengths were particularly noticeable in terms of weight. The short tube weighed almost 60 tons, while the long tube weighed over 97 tons. The howitzer was mounted on a slewing ring that could be swiveled 360 ° and was positioned in an open firing position. The explosive force of the 399 kg grenades was strong enough that the Type 7 was also used as a siege gun .
In 1933 the Type 7 short tube was modified so that, dismantled into nine vehicles, it could be quickly loaded and transported. When loaded, the wagon train could move at a speed of 20 km / h.
A total of 10 short-barreled and 20 long- barreled howitzers were manufactured.
In 1944 the 4th Independent Heavy Artillery Battalion with Type 7 short-barreled howitzers was ordered to the Philippines in anticipation of the Allied landing . Above in the picture you can see a Type 7 that was captured by US soldiers of the 158th Regiment on Luzon . The gun emplacement shown was approx. 10 meters wide and approx. 2.5 meters deep. The howitzer was camouflaged by a house that, fitted on rails, could be pushed back just before firing. A garden of banana trees was planted around the position to increase the camouflage effect.
In February 1940, two Type 7-long tube howitzers were in Manchuria to the fortress Koto (Ch. Hutou , Hulin moved) to the Japanese defense in case of a Soviet strengthen attack. The Japanese army had eight fortresses built along the border with the Soviet Union, of which the Kotō fortress on the Ussuri River was the strongest. Large-scale fortifications, similar to the Maginot Line , were guarded by the 4th Border Guard Unit. The 1,400-strong crew had two batteries of field guns and howitzers, the 90-240 mm railway gun and the 41 cm experimental howitzer . When the Soviets attacked the Japanese positions around the Kotō fortress in August 1945 in Operation August Storm , the entire fortress garrison was destroyed and all artillery was lost.
Four Type 7s were used for coastal defense on Honshū in 1945 .
Technical specifications
| Type 7 short tube | Type 7 long tube | |
|---|---|---|
| caliber | 305 mm | |
| Caliber length | L / 16 | L / 23 |
| Pipe length | 5.02 m | 7.22 m |
| Elevation range | 2 ° to + 73 ° | |
| Side straightening area | 360 ° | |
| Gun weight | 59,200 kg | 97,700 kg |
| Bullet weight | 399 kg | |
| Muzzle velocity V 0 | 400 m / s | 500 m / s |
| Maximum range | 11,800 m | 14,800 m |
literature
- Clayton Chun: The Fall of the Philippines 1941-42 (= Osprey Military Campaign Series. 243). Osprey Publishing, Oxford et al. 2012, ISBN 978-1-84908-609-7 .
- Steve J. Zaloga: Defense of Japan, 1945 (= Fortress. 99). Osprey Publishing, Oxford et al. 2010, ISBN 978-1-84603-687-3 .
Web links
- Type 7 30cm Howitzer. Taki's homepage, accessed January 14, 2015 .
- 300mm Short Howitzer, Type 7. LoneSentry.com, accessed January 14, 2015 .
Individual evidence
- ↑ 300mm Short Howitzer, Type 7. LoneSentry.com, accessed January 14, 2015 .
- ↑ THE HISTORY OF BATTLES OF IMPERIAL JAPANESE ARTILLERY FORCES. Taki's homepage, accessed January 14, 2015 .
- ↑ Zaloga, p. 11