Together with the Ha-Go, the Chi-Ha made up the bulk of Japan's armored land forces.
They were the Japanese tanks most frequently encountered by the Allies throughout the conflict. They were widely deployed in China after the second invasion of 1937.
During the Pacific campaign, many Type 97s were stationed on strategic islands and engaged in desperate defensive actions. Their most notable intervention took place during the combined offensive of Colonel Takashi Goto's 9th Tank Regiment and Colonel Yukimatsu Ogawa's 136th Infantry Regiment, bringing together nearly sixty Chi-Ha and Ha-Go tanks, as well as numerous tankettes, at Saipan, against the American 6th Marine Regiment. They were smashed by a hellish fire from land, sea and air. This was the last and most important Japanese offensive involving such tanks during the conflict. On many other islands, Chi-Ha tanks were simply buried halfway into the ground as defensive positions, as their armour proved far inferior to the M4 Sherman and most of the Allied tanks sent into the area. Numerical inferiority proved an all-too-frequent problem. At Peleliu, Iwo Jima and Okinawa, the few remaining Type 97s outnumbered them by up to ten to one, and a single infantry battalion had several bazooka operators, all deadly against the Chi-Ha.
Specifications:
Dimensions 5.5 x 2.34 x 2.33 m (18 x 7.6 x 7.5 ft)
Total weight, combat-ready 15 tonnes/16.5 tonnes for the Kai
Crew 4
Propulsion Mitsubishi Type 97 diesel, V12, 170 hp (127 kW)@2000 rpm
Speed 38 km/h (24 mph)
Armor 12 mm (0.15 in) roof and bottom, 25 mm (0.47 in) glacis and sides
Armament 47 mm (1.85 in)
3 x 7.7 mm (0.3 in) type 92 machine guns
Range (road) 210 km (165 miles)
Total production 1162 + 930 Kai
