


Type 1 Chi-He/Type 3 Ka-Chi
Country | Japan |
Primary Role | Medium Tank |
Contributor: C. Peter Chen
ww2dbaseThe Japanese Army Type 1 Chi-He medium tank design was completed in 1941 and the first examples rolled off the production line in 1943. They were equipped with high velocity 47-millimeter guns that could penetrate 55-millimeter of armor at the range of 100 meters and 30-millimeter at 1,000 meters, thus they were significantly more lethal than their predecessors, though still unable to penetrate the armor of the American M4 Sherman medium tanks. They were the first Japanese tanks to carry radios as standard equipment. Between 1943 and 1944, 170 units were built, but none of them saw any combat as they were retained in the Japanese home islands to defend against the Allied invasion that never took place.
ww2dbaseIn 1943, the Japanese Navy extensively modified the Type 1 Chi-He medium tank design and developed the Type 3 Ka-Chi amphibious tank design. They had pontoons in the front and rear of the hulls to provide buoyancy, and they could be jettisoned by crews inside the tanks after they made landfall. They were equipped with similar armament as their Type 1 Chi-He predecessors. The commanders' cupolas and the diesel engine exhaust pipes were extended to ensure that they would be above water. 19 of these amphibious tanks entered service between late-1943 and the end of the war and first saw combat at Kwajalein Atoll of the Marshall Islands in early 1944, though overall Type 3 Ka-Chi amphibious tanks did not see significant combat.
ww2dbaseSource: Wikipedia.
Last Major Revision: Jul 2009
SPECIFICATIONS
Type 1 Chi-He
Machinery | One Mitsubishi Type 100 air-cooled V-12 diesel engine rated at 240hp |
Suspension | Bell crank |
Armament | 1x47mm Type 1 gun, 1x7.7mm coaxial Type 97 machine gun, 1x7.7mm hull Type 97 machine gun |
Armor | 8-50mm |
Crew | 5 |
Length | 5.50 m |
Width | 2.20 m |
Height | 2.38 m |
Weight | 17.0 t |
Speed | 44 km/h |
Range | 210 km |
Type 3 Ka-Chi
Machinery | One Mitsubishi Type 100 air-cooled V-12 diesel engine rated at 240hp |
Suspension | Bell crank |
Armament | 1x47mm Type 1 gun, 1x7.7mm coaxial Type 97 machine gun, 1x7.7mm hull Type 97 machine gun |
Armor | 10-50mm |
Crew | 5 |
Length | 10.30 m |
Width | 3.00 m |
Height | 3.82 m |
Weight | 28.2 t |
Speed | 32 km/h |
Range | 320 km |
Photographs
![]() | ![]() |
Did you enjoy this article or find this article helpful? If so, please consider supporting us on Patreon. Even $1 per month will go a long way! Thank you. Share this article with your friends: Stay updated with WW2DB: |
- » Looted Painting "Madonna with Child" Returned to Poland (2 Jun 2023)
- » Wreck of USS Mannert L. Abele Found (29 May 2023)
- » Wreck of Montevideo Maru Found (25 Apr 2023)
- » Detonation of a WW2-Era Naval Mine (21 Mar 2023)
- » Accidental Detonation of a WW2-Era Bomb in Great Yarmouth (10 Feb 2023)
- » See all news
![]() | ![]() |
- » 1,136 biographies
- » 336 events
- » 43,246 timeline entries
- » 1,233 ships
- » 349 aircraft models
- » 207 vehicle models
- » 372 weapon models
- » 123 historical documents
- » 258 facilities
- » 469 book reviews
- » 28,347 photos
- » 430 maps
Winston Churchill