The was a light tank used by the Empire of Japan during the Second Sino-Japanese War, at the Battles of Khalkhin Gol against the Soviet Union, and in the Second World War. It proved sufficient against infantry but was not effective against other tanks. Approximately 2,300 were produced, making it the most numerous Japanese armoured fighting vehicle of the Second World War.
History and development
From early 1930s, the Japanese army began experimenting with a mechanized warfare unit combining infantry with tanks. However, the Type 89 Medium tank could not keep pace with the motorized infantry, which could move at by truck. For transport, tanks could be loaded on train platforms like in any other army of the time. To solve this problem, Tomio Hara of the Army Technical Bureau proposed a new light tank capable of 40 km/h speed and started development of it in 1933.Taki's Imperial Japanese Army: The Development of Imperial Japanese Tanks: "Type 95 Light Tank"
The prototype of the tank was completed in June 1934 at the Army's Sagami Arsenal. Initial tests were positive, but it was too heavy at 7.5 tons and was reworked to bring the weight down to 6.5 tons. Due to doubts by the infantry as to its capability for infantry support it was tested in Manchuria in the winter of 1934–1935. The reports were favourable and a second prototype built, which was started in June and completed in November 1935.
In 1935, at a meeting in the Army Technical Bureau, the Type 95 was proposed as the main tank for mechanized infantry units. The infantry had concerns that the armor was insufficient but the cavalry indicated that the improved speed and armament compensated for thin armor. The infantry eventually agreed, as the Type 95 was still superior to the alternatives of the Type 92 cavalry tank and Type 94 tankette.Report on Type 92 from September 1945 issue of Intelligence Bulletin
The name Type 95 was based on the year since the beginning of the Empire that the tank was produced (2595); with only the last two digits of the year being used. Sometimes a surname was used to supplement or replace the naming ideograms used for Japanese armored fighting vehicles. The Type 95 had the surname "Ha-Go" (third model) that was given by the designer of the tank, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. Mitsubishi Heavy Industries started production of the tank in 1936. Mass production began in 1938 with the tank and parts made by several companies; besides Mitsubishi, that included, Niigata Tekkoshō, Dowa Jido Shō, Sagami Arsenal, and Kokura Rikugun Jiohei Shō, as the main contributors.
Design
The Type 95 Ha-Go had a complement of three crewmen: a commander, a hull machine gunner, and a driver. Only the commander was seated in the turret, hence he was responsible for observation, loading, aiming, firing the main gun, as well as decision-making and commanding the crew.
The primary armament of the initially produced version was a Type 94 (1934) 37 mm tank gun (not to be confused with the Type 94 37 mm anti-tank gun introduced two years later) with a barrel length of 46.1 calibers. It elevated between −15 and +20 degrees. The tank carried two types of 37 mm ammunition, the high-explosive and armor-piercing. For the latter, muzzle velocity was and armor penetration was at a distance of .
In 1937, the tank was re-armed with a longer barrel 37 mm tank gun, and the original secondary armament of two 6.5 mm Type 91 machine guns were replaced with two 7.7 mm Type 97 light machine guns, one mounted in the hull front and the other in the back of the turret, facing to the rear right (that is, in the five-o-clock direction). The new main gun had greater firepower given its higher muzzle velocity of 675 m/s. The changes in armament caused the weight of the tank to increase to 7.4 tons.
The most characteristic feature of the Type 95 tank was its simple suspension system. Army officer Tomio Hara designed the bellcrank scissors system. This suspension system became standard on the majority of the subsequently designed Japanese tanks. For the Type 95, two paired bogie wheels per side were each suspended on a single bellcrank and connected to a coil spring mounted horizontally outside the hull. The tracks were driven through the front sprockets and there were two return roller wheels on each side. The suspension had troubles early on, with a tendency to pitch on rough ground, and so it was modified with a brace to connect the pairs of bogies. Despite this, the tank continued to give its users a rough ride across any uneven ground. It was provided with an interior layer of asbestos padding separated from the hull with an air gap, to isolate the crew from the sun-heated armor plates, and to protect the crew from injury when the tank moved across rough terrain.U.S. War Department "Japanese Light Tank" Tactical and Technical Trends, No. 31, August 12, 1943.
The Type 95 was fitted with a 120 hp (89.5 kW) Mitsubishi A6120VDe air-cooled 6-cylinder diesel engine. It was located in the rear compartment on the right side. The power unit gave it good mobility. Some tanks were fitted with two reflectors in the front of the vehicle for night operations.
Variants
Type 95 Ha-Go (early production) An early production version differed from the most produced model by using less powerful armament: the main gun was 37 mm Type 94 with a barrel length of 36.7 calibers, muzzle velocity of 575 (1900 fps)History of War: Type 95 Ha-Go Light Tank-600 m/s (2200 fps), and armor penetration of 45 mm at 300 m (1.48 inches at 300 yards). Secondary armament consisted of two Type 91 6.5 mm machine guns. Produced until 1937 with less than 100 made. Used in Manchukuo and China. Of this variant, the very first production tanks used the older 110 hp (82 kW) Mitsubishi engine (as used in the Type 89 I-Go medium tank) and had a top speed of 25 mph (40 km/h). Type 95 Ha-Go (Hokuman version) Due to issues in Manchukuo with sorghum grass in fields getting trapped in the suspension/wheels, the wheel and suspension components were inverted with the addition of small wheels fitted to the bell-crank axis so the tanks could move freely through the grass. This modified version was used in the Battle for Nomohan. It is sometimes informally referred to as the "Manchurian model". Type 95 Ha-Go (later production) Among other improvements to the engine, a longer barrel 37 mm main gun with a muzzle velocity of 675 m/s was introduced, and the secondary armament was changed to two Type 97 7.7 mm machine guns, one in the rear section of the turret and one in the front hull. Type 95 Ri-Ki crane vehicle The Type 95 Ri-Ki was a tracked engineering vehicle. At the rear of the chassis, it had a 3-ton 4.5 meter "boomed crane".Taki’s Imperial Japanese Army: Type 95 Crane Vehicle "Ri-Ki" Type 95 So-Ki armored railroad car
The Type 95 So-Ki was an armored railroad car designed to a requirement of the Kwantung Army for patrolling and guarding remote narrow gauge railway lines. It was fitted with a retractable wheel arrangement underneath to enable it to run on rails. Between 121 and 138 units were manufactured between 1935 and 1943, which operated in both China and Burma.Taki’s Imperial Japanese Army: Type 95 Armored Railroad Car "So-Ki" Type 2 Ka-Mi amphibious tank
This was the first amphibious tank produced in Japan and was intended for use by the Japanese Special Naval Landing Forces. The chassis was based on the Type 95 Ha-Go and its main armament was the same, a 37 mm tank gun. The pontoons were attached by a system of "small clips" with a release inside the tank, to be engaged once it landed for ground combat operations. The Type 2 Ka-Mi was first used in combat on Guadalcanal in late 1942. Later they were encountered by the United States Marine Corps in the Marshall Islands and Mariana Islands, particularly on Saipan. They were also used during the fighting on the Philippine island of Leyte in late 1944. They were produced from 1942–1944, with only 182 to 184 completed.Taki's Imperial Japanese Army: Type 2 Amphibious Vehicle "Ka-Mi" Type 3 Ke-Ri prototype This was a proposed model with a Type 97 57 mm tank gun as the main armament in a slightly modified Type 95 Ha-Go turret. The chassis was the same as the Type 95 Ha-Go. The light tank had a weight of 7.4 tons and a crew of 3 men. It was determined that the turret was too cramped for the crewmen, once the main gun was installed. A small number of prototypes were produced, however, the design never got past the field-testing stage.History of War: Type 3 Ke-Ri
Type 4 Ke-Nu conversion
A conversion that replaced the existing Type 95 Ha-Go turret with the larger turret of the Type 97 Chi-Ha, armed with the low-velocity 57 mm tank gun. The conversions were done late in the war, with several estimates stating that approximately 100 units were completed.History of War: Type 4 Ke-Nu An exact number of the tanks converted is not known.
Type 4 Ho-To prototype The Ho-To was a self-propelled gun on a modified Ha-Go chassis. It mounted a Type 38 12 cm howitzer in an open casemate with frontal and side armour. One prototype was completed. Type 5 Ho-Ru prototype The Ho-Ru was a light tank destroyer similar to the German Hetzer, but armed with the weaker 47 mm main gun in a semi-enclosed casemate. The Type 5 Ho-Ru utilized the chassis of the Type 95 Ha-Go, but its suspension was enlarged to 350 mm track link width. There were two set rows of wheel guide pins, holding a road wheel between them. The sprocket of the driving wheel was the grating type to gear with the wheel guide pins like on the Soviet T-34. Development of the Type 5 Ho-Ru started in February 1945 with only one prototype being completed before the end of the war.Taki’s Imperial Japanese Army: Type 5 47mm SP Gun "Ho-Ru"
Combat history
The tank was considered one of the best of its type in 1935, being armed with a 37 mm cannon, and powered by a diesel engine, a fuel considered by some to be superior due to its low volatility.War Department, TM-E 30-480 pp. IX-183, 184Goldman p. 123 As with most armies in the 1930s the tank, and the light tank in particular, were used primarily to support infantry or serve as cavalry reconnaissance and to a lesser extent, as raiding vehicles. Its speed was about cross country, which was comparable to the M3 Stuart's nearly six years later in 1941. In armor, road speed, and weaponry, the Type 95 was far inferior to the (five years younger) American M3 Stuart light tanks, but the environment of the Philippines (where roads were sparse and tank engagements took place at near point blank range) largely minimized these disadvantages and allowed the Type 95 to be competitive, as its off-road speed and turret rotation were comparable.
Type 95 proved sufficient against opposing infantry in campaigns in Manchuria and China, as the Chinese National Revolutionary Army had only three tank battalions consisting of Vickers export tanks, German PzKpfw I light tanks, and Italian CV33 tankettes to oppose them. However, the Type 95, like the US M3 Stuart, was not designed to fight other tanks, but for infantry support. Due to the IJN's priority in receiving new technology and steel for warship construction, tanks for the IJA and the IJN's SNLF detachments were relegated to receiving what was left. By 1942, Japanese armor remained largely the same as it did in the 1930s, and new tank development was "stymied."
Khalkhin Gol (Nomonhan) 1939