Type 1 Chi-He
| Type 1 Chi-He | |
|---|---|
Type 1 Chi-He |
|
| General properties | |
| crew | 5 |
| length | 5.50 m |
| width | 2.20 m |
| height | 2.38 m |
| Dimensions | 17 t |
| Armor and armament | |
| Armor | 8-50 mm |
| Main armament | 47mm Type 1 cannon |
| Secondary armament | 2 × 7.7 mm Type 97 MG (hull, turret rear) |
| agility | |
| drive | Mitsubishi Type 100 air-cooled V-12 diesel engine 240 PS (179 kW) from 21,700 cm³ at 2000 revolutions per minute |
| suspension | Angle lever suspension |
| Top speed | 44 km / h max. |
| Power / weight | |
| Range | 210 kilometers max. |
The Type 1 Chi-He ( Japanese 一 式 中 戦 車 チ へ , Ichi-shiki chūsensha chi-he ) was a medium tank used by the Japanese armed forces during World War II and the improved version of the Type 97 Chi-Ha with stronger armor and a more powerful one Engine.
development
After 1941, the Imperial Japanese Army discovered that the "Type 97 Chi-Ha" tank, dating from the 1930s and serving as the backbone of the armored forces, was massively inferior to the Allied tanks (for example the M4 Sherman ). The inefficient 57-mm cannon of the Type 97 was developed in 1938 only for infantry support and was not able to penetrate the armor of the Allied vehicles from the 1940s. At the same time, their own too thin armor offered little or no protection against anti-tank weapons of smaller caliber. For this reason, an improved version of the Type 97 was developed. The first vehicle of the new category Type 1 Chi-He appeared in 1941. However, the actual series production did not begin until 1943, as the Imperial Navy had priority in the steel allocation. A total of only 170 vehicles were made up to 1943, and it is not certain that they were ever used in combat.
description
The Type 1 Chi-He was larger than its predecessor. The front section was thicker than the Type 97 and welded, whereas the Type 97 was still riveted. The total weight increased by 1.5 tons. The Mitsubishi diesel engine type 100 with its 240 hp produced 70% more power than the engine in the type 97. This more than made up for the higher operating weight.
The 47 mm cannon had a barrel length of 2,250 m and a muzzle velocity of 810 m / s. This brought a penetration capacity of 55 mm at a distance of 100 meters and 30 mm at a distance of 1000 meters, which almost doubled the performance of the Type 97 cannon. A drive had to be installed for the vertical direction, as the gun had to be raised or lowered with the shoulder of the gunner on the Type 97. With this cannon one was able to confront the Allied tanks of the early 1940s.
The tower was given additional space for a loader . The elevation range of the cannon was between + 20 ° and −15 °. The turret was then built into the Type 97 Shinhoto ("New Tower") Chi-Ha tank and also used for the Type 3 Ka-Chi amphibious tank .
The Type 1 Chi-He was the first Japanese tank to have a radio, which made the signal flags that had been common up until then superfluous.
Calls
Most of the tanks were used to defend the main Japanese islands from an Allied invasion. It is unclear whether vehicles of this type were used outside of Japan; however, it could be that some were assigned to the Japanese 2nd Panzer Division during the Battle of Leyte . Despite all the improvements, the vehicle was still inferior to the M4 Sherman.
variants
- Type 1 anti-aircraft tank Ta-Ha
- A single prototype was built, which was equipped with two 37-mm anti-aircraft guns instead of the 47-mm tank cannon . Series production was not started.
literature
- Christopher Foss: Great Book of Tanks: The World's Most Important Tanks from World War I to the Present Day . Zenith Press, 2003, ISBN 0-7603-1475-6 .
- Christopher Foss: Tanks: The 500 . Crestline, 2003, ISBN 0-7603-1500-0 .
- Steven J. Zaloga: Japanese Tanks 1939-45 . Osprey, 2007, ISBN 978-1-84603-091-8 .
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ Foss: Great Book of Tanks.
- ↑ a b History of War.org website
- ↑ Zaloga: Japanese Tanks 1939–45.
- ↑ Zaloga: Japanese Tanks 1939–45.
- ↑ Steven Zaloga: Japanese Tanks 1939-45 (New Vanguard, Volume 137) . No. 137 . Osprey Publishing, 2007, ISBN 978-1-84603-091-8 .