Type 3 Ka-Chi

Type 3 Ka-Chi

Type 3 Ka-Chi
Place of origin Empire of Japan
Production history
Designed 1942–1943
Specifications
Weight 28.7 tons (with pontoons)[1]
Length 10.3 meters (with pontoons)[1]
Width 3 meters[1]
Height 3.82 meters[1]
Crew 7[1]
Armor 10–50 mm[1]
Main
armament
 1x Type 1 47 mm tank gun[1]
Secondary
armament
 2× Type 97 7.7 mm machine gun[1]
Engine Mitsubishi Type 100 air cooled
V-12 diesel
240 hp (179 kW)[1]
Suspension Bell crank
Operational
range
 320 kilometers[1]
Speed 32 km/h on land and 10 km/h in water[1]

The Special Type 3 Launch Ka-Chi (特三式内火艇 カチ Toku-san-shiki uchibitei Ka-Chi) was an amphibious medium tank developed by the Imperial Japanese Navy in World War II. The Type 3 Ka-Chi was based on an extensively modified Imperial Japanese Army Type 1 Chi-He tank (it had 2 more wheels on each side) and was a larger and more capable version of the earlier Type 2 Ka-Mi amphibious tank.

History and development

The success of the Type 2 Ka-Mi design pleased the planners in the Imperial Japanese Navy General Staff, and it was determined that a larger version with stronger armor and armament would be useful in future amphibious warfare operations.[2] The Type 3 Ka-Chi prototype was completed in late 1943 and the first units entered service that same year.[3][2]

However, only 19 Type 3 Ka-Chi's were built from 1943 to 1945.[4] The main priorities of the Navy were in warship and aircraft production, and lacking in any definite plans for additional amphibious operations, production of the Type 3 Ka-Chi remained a very low priority.[2]

Design

The Type 3 Ka-Chi was based a heavily modified version of the chassis of the Army's Type 1 Chi-He medium tank, and thus featured considerably better armored protection and firepower than the earlier Type 2 Ka-Mi.[5] It had smooth sides that faired into front and rear flotation pontoons made of sheet-metal.[3] The front pontoon had a curved 'bow' shape and both pontoons could be jettisoned from inside the tank once the tank had landed. However, in practice, the pontoons were usually retained, as they provided some marginal additional protection against enemy fire. The undercarriage used the Hara system, as did the Type 1 Chi-He, with the addition of 2 more road-wheels and two more return rollers on each side. The hull was welded and water-proofed "with rubber seals and gaskets".[3] The water propulsion was provided by twin-screws and it had two steering screws. The Type 3 Ka-Chi also had a distinctive large snorkel behind the turret for aerating the diesel engine more efficiently and keeping the exhaust free of water.[3][6]

The main gun of Type 3 Ka-Chi was the Type 1 47 mm tank gun with barrel length of 2.250 meters (L/48), EL angle of fire by −15 to +20 degrees, AZ angle of fire of 20 degrees, muzzle velocity by 810 m/s and penetration of 55 mm/100 m, 30 mm/1,000 m.[7] This was the same 47 mm gun used on the army's Type 97-Shinhoto Chi-Ha. Secondary armament was a coaxial Type 97 heavy tank machine gun and a hull mounted weapon of the same type.[3] The gun turret was designed with an extended circular cupola to keep the hatch above water. The vehicle required a crew of seven, one of whom (as with the Type 2 Ka-Mi) served as on-board mechanic.[8]

Service record

The Type 3 Ka-Chi was produced in very limited numbers, but proved useful due to its capacity to be submarine launched, which enabled it to accommodate the increasingly difficult task of daytime reinforcement for isolated island garrisons in the South Pacific and in Southeast Asia. The Type 3 Ka-Chi was deployed only in the Japan homeland and did not see combat.[3]

See also

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Tomczyk 2003, p. 33.
  2. 1 2 3 Zaloga 2007, p. 24.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Tomczyk 2003, p. 32.
  4. ↑ Taki's Imperial Japanese Army: "Type 3 Amphibious Tank Ka-Chi"
  5. ↑ Tomczyk 2003, pp. 32, 33.
  6. ↑ Japanese Armored Vehicles of the Second World War
  7. ↑ Taki's Imperial Japanese Army: "Tank Guns"
  8. ↑ Tomczyk 2003, pp. 22, 32.

References

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