| Type 89 I-Go (Chi-Ro) | |
|---|---|
 A restored Type 89 I-Go at Tsuchiura GSDF Base open day |
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| Place of origin |  Empire of Japan |
| Specifications | |
| Weight | 12.79 metric tons (14.10 short tons) |
| Length | 5.73 m (18 ft 10 in) |
| Width | 2.13 m (7 ft 0 in) |
| Height | 2.56 m (8 ft 5 in) |
| Crew | 4 |
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| Armor | 6–17 mm (0.24–0.67 in) |
| Primary armament |
57 mm Type 90 gun 100 rounds |
| Secondary armament |
2 x 6.5 mm Type 91 gun (hull, coaxial) 2,745 rounds |
| Engine | Mitsubishi A6120VD 6-cylinder air-cooled petrol diesel 120 hp (90 kW) |
| Suspension | leaf spring |
| Operational range |
170 km (110 mi) |
| Speed | 26 km/h (16 mph) |
The Type 89 I-Go (八九式中戦車 イ号 Hachikyūshiki chūsensha I-gō) was a medium tank used by the Imperial Japanese Army from 1932 to 1942 in combat operations of the Second Sino-Japanese War and the Second World War. The tank was armed with a short-barrel 57-mm cannon for knocking out pillboxes and stone and masonry fortifications, and proved effective in campaigns in Manchuria and China, as the Chinese National Revolutionary Army had very few tanks or anti-tank weapons to oppose them. However, the Type 89 lacked the armor or armament of contemporary western tanks, and was regarded as obsolete by the start of World War II. [1] The code designation "I-Go" comes from the katakana letter [イ] for “first” and the kanji [号] for “number”.[2] The designation is sometimes transliterated “Yi-Go”[3]
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History and development
The Type 89 evolved from Japan's first domestic light tank project initiated by the Japanese Army's Osaka Technical Arsenal in 1925. However, the growing weight of the initial prototype and its low speed did not impress the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office, and a new requirement was issued to for a lighter tank, with a nominal 10-short-ton (9.1-metric-ton) weight.
The new design was modeled closely after the Vickers Medium Mark C tanks, several samples of which had been obtained by the Japanese Army in 1927. By April 1929, the new light tank design was finished and designated as the Type 89. Later, the Type 89 was re-classified as a "medium tank" because the weight increased to over 10 tons due to several improvements.[4]
As the Army's Sagami Arsenal lacked the capacity for mass production, a contract was awarded to Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, which built a new factory next to the Sagami Arsenal specifically to produce this model. [5] Production of the Type 89 began in 1931 and it soon became the main battle tank of the Imperial Japanese Army.
Although the Type 89 was well regarded by the Japanese army, there were several small problems to be rectified, notably a gap under the mantlet on early models that allowed rifle fire to enter the turret. Work continued on improving the Type 89 after the production started, and as a result many variants were developed. [6]
Design
The Type 89 required a crew of four (commander/gunner, loader, driver and hull gunner).
The design of the Type 89 was relatively conventional with a forward-mounted gun turret carrying the main armament, a Type 90 57 mm gun that was complemented by two Type 91 6.5 mm machine guns. One was placed in the turret and pointed towards the rear, a practice followed with most Japanese tanks, and one was located in the hull. The Type 90 57 mm Tank Gun had a barrel length of 0.85 metres (33 in) (L14.9) el angle of fire of −15 to +20 degrees, AZ angle of fire of 20 degrees, muzzle velocity of 380 m/s (1,200 ft/s), and penetration of 20 mm/500 m (0.8 in/550 yd).
Rather than using iron armor, as on the earlier Type 87, the designers chose to use steel plate armor developed by the Nihon Seikosho Company (JSW). The type of armor was referred to as 'Niseko steel', an abbreviation of Nihonseikosho.
The Type 89 was driven through the rear drive sprocket and featured nine bogies, mounted in pairs on each side, with the forward bogie on an independent suspension. Five smaller return wheels were mounted along a girder. Some vehicles were provided with two searchligths for night operations and Type 94 Mk 4 Hei (1934 model) radio communication device with range of 0.6 miles and weight of 198 lb, linked with a radio antenna of 29' 6" in a reverse L shape.
Variants
- Type 89A I-Go Kō (八九式中戦車（甲型）)
The initial production model had a gasoline engine and mounted a machine gun on the right side of the hull. This design could only attain 15.5 km/h, and was also limited by the severe winter climate in northern China. A total of 220 units were produced.
- Type 89B I-Go Otsu (八九式中戦車（乙型）)
The Ko was superseded in production from 1934 by the model Otsu with an air-cooled Mitsubishi A6120VD 120 hp diesel engine. The improved model had a new gun turret design complete with a cupola for the commander, and with the machine gun relocated to the left side of the hull. The multiple armor plates of the front hull were replaced by a single shallow-sloped frontal armor plate which provided more protection for the driver. However, the major difference between the versions was the Mitsubishi air-cooled 6-cylinder diesel engine, which had several advantages, notably reduced vulnerability to fire and better fuel economy. A diesel engine was also preferred by the Japanese Army because more diesel fuel than gasoline could be produced per barrel of oil. A total of 189 Otsu units were produced. It is noteworthy that the Type 89B Otsu version was the first diesel-powered tank to be mass-produced in the world. [7]
Combat history
The Type 89 was deployed for infantry support operations in the Second Sino-Japanese War. It was present with Japanese infantry divisions during the Manchurian Incident and also during the First Battle of Shanghai in 1932 as part of the Imperial Japanese Navy Special Naval Landing Force. The short-barreled 57 mm gun was effective at destroying machine gun nests and its 15 mm (0.59 in) armor, although thin, was enough to stop small arms fire. The relatively low speed of 25 km/h (16 mph) was not an issue in these types of operations. [8]
The following year, the Japanese Army formed its first independent armor force, by creating three regiments armed with the Type 89 I-Go, each consisting of two companies with ten tanks each. Three more regiments were formed in 1934.
Type 89s were used widely in various campaigns throughout China after 1937. They were also used against Soviet forces at the Battle of Nomonhan in the Soviet-Japanese War of 1939.
By 1942 the Type 89 was gradually being withdrawn from front-line combat service, but many units saw action in the Battle of the Philippines, Battle of Malaya, and Burma campaign, and continued to be used in China. They were also often used in static defense positions in the Japanese-occupied islands of the Netherlands East Indies and in the South Pacific Mandate, but with their weak armor and small main gun were a poor match for the American M4 Sherman.[9]
WWII Japanese units equipped with the Type 89 Tank
- 1st Independent Mixed Brigade
- 3rd Tank Regiment
- 4th Tank Regiment
- 7th Tank Regiment
- 2nd Independent Tank Company
- 1st Special Tank Company
- 1st Tank Battalion
- 2nd Tank Battalion
- 5th Tank Battalion
- Special Tank Company of China Detachment Tank Unit
- 7th Tank Regiment
- 8th Independent Tank Company
- 9th Independent Tank Company
- 2nd Tank Division
- Shanghai SNLF Tank Company
- SNLF Tank School at Tateyama IJN Ordnance
Survivors
- The United States Army Ordnance Museum at Aberdeen, Maryland (where it is labelled as a "Type 89 Chi-Ro").
- The Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force base at Tsuchiura, Ibaraki, Japan.
- Sinbudai Old Weapon Museum, Camp Asaka, Japan
References
- Foss, Christopher (2003). Great Book of Tanks: The World's Most Important Tanks from World War I to the Present Day. Zenith Press. ISBN 0760314756.
- Foss, Christopher (2003). Tanks: The 500. Crestline. ISBN 0760315000.
- Zaloga, Steven J. (2007). Japanese Tanks 1939–45. Osprey. ISBN 1-84603-091-8.
External links
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Type 89 Chi-Ro |
- WWII vehicles
- OnWar.com: Type 89A Type 89B
- Photo gallery at military.cz
- Japanese Type 89 CHI-RO Medium Tank at howstuffworks.com
- Taki's Imperial Japanese Army Page
- TANKS! Refer to "Vickers Medium Mark C" that is the prototype of "Type 89" here. Do not misidentify it to "Medium C Hornet".
Notes
- ^ Foss. The Great Book of Tanks
- ^ http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/weapons_japanese_tank_designations_WWII.html
- ^ Zaloga, Japanese Tanks 1939–45, p. 90.
- ^ Zaloga, Japanese Tanks 1939–45, p. 90.
- ^ Zaloga, Japanese Tanks 1939–45, p. 90.
- ^ Foss. The Great Book of Tanks
- ^ Zaloga, Japanese Tanks 1939–45, p. 90.
- ^ Taki's Imperial Japanese Army
- ^ Foss. The Great Book of Tanks
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