Type 98 Ke-Ni

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Type 98 Ke-Ni
Specifications
Weight 17
Length 5.5
Width 2.2
Height 2.38
Crew 3
Armor 6-16
Primary
armament		 37 mm Type 100 gun
Secondary
armament		 1 x 7.7 mm Type 97 gun
(hull)
Engine Mitsubishi Type 100 air-cooled
V-12 diesel
130 hp (97 kW)
Suspension Bell crank
Operational
range		 300

The Type 98 Ke-Ni was designed to replace the Imperial Japanese Army's Type 95 Ha-Go light tank, Japan's most numerous armoured fighting vehicle during the Second World War. Although developed in 1938 only 113 Type 98's where built between 1942 to 1943 by Hino and Mitsubishi. This can be attributed to the adequate performance of the aging Type 95 in China against ill-equipped Nationalist Chinese forces, because of this, the Type 98 was seen as 'unnecessary'. Furthermore the bulk of Japan's steel went to shipbuilding rather than armoured fighting vehicles and Allied bombing disrupted Japanese supply chains and destroyed factories. The Type 98 possessed thicker, welded armour of improved shape and the tank's main armament was the Type 100 37 mm tank gun, a small but stable gun with a muzzle velocity of 700 m/s. There where two versions of the Type 98 (both called Ke-Ni) and one variant.

[edit] Variants

  • Type 98-A The production model of the Type 98 with three pairs of bogies.
  • Type 98-B The experimental model of the Type 98 with a five-wheel Christie-type suspension. The Type 98-B never entered production.
  • Type 2 Ke-To An improved Type 98-B with a more powerful Type 1 37 mm gun with a muzzle velocity of 810 m/s. Production of the Type 2 Ke-To only began in 1944 and only 29 were built.

[edit] External links

[edit] See also


Japanese armoured fighting vehicles of World War II
Tankettes
Type 92 Jyu-Sokosha | Type 94 Te-Ke | Type 97 Te-Ke
Light Tanks
Type 95 Ha-Go | Type 98 Ke-Ni/Type 2 Ke-To
Amphibious Tanks
Type 2 Ka-Mi | Type 3 Ka-Chi
Medium Tanks
Type 89 Chi-Ro | Type 97 Chi-Ha | Type 1 Chi-He | Type 2 Ho-I | Type 3 Chi-Nu
APCs
Type 1 Ho-Ha | Type 1 Ho-Ki | Type 98 So-Da | Type 4 Ka-Tsu
Self-propelled artillery (including AA guns)
Type 98 20 mm | Type 98 20 mm AA Half-Track | Type 1 Ho-Ni I
Type 3 Ho-Ni III | Type 4 Ho-Ro
Japanese armoured fighting vehicle production during World War II