Type 38 15 cm howitzer
| Type 38 15 cm Howitzer | ||
|---|---|---|
Breech Interrupted screw | | |
| Recoil | Hydro-spring | |
| Carriage | Box trail | |
| Elevation | 0° to +42° 30' | |
| Traverse | 5° | |
| Muzzle velocity | 290 m/s (951 ft/s) | |
| Maximum firing range | 7,200 m (7,900 yd) | |
| Sights | Panoramic | |
The Type 38 15 cm Howitzer (三八式十五糎榴弾砲, Sanhachi-shiki Jyūgo-senchi Ryūdanhō) was a 1905 German design that was purchased by the Empire of Japan as the standard heavy howitzer of the Imperial Japanese Army at the end of the Russo-Japanese War. The Type 38 designation was given to this gun as it was accepted in the 38th year of Emperor Meiji's reign (1905).[1]
History and development
As Japan's priority lay in her navy, the Imperial Army was given a back seat to new land warfare designs, as well as the raw material (steel) needed to build them. Thus, like the US who purchased French Renault tanks (Model 1917s) for its first tank units, the planners at the
After World War I, these weapons were considered largely obsolete and efforts were made to replace it with the Type 4 15 cm howitzer. However, it was still found in front line heavy artillery regiments.[3]
Design
The Type 38 150mm Howitzer was a conventional design for its day, complete with crew seats on the
The Type 38 150mm field gun (improved) was capable of firing High-explosive, shrapnel, incendiary, smoke and illumination and gas shells.[4]
Surplus weapons were mounted on the modified chassis of the
Combat record
Although obsolete, the Type 38 150mm field gun was found in theatres of operation in the
Gallery
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Type 38 15-cm-howitzer during an exercise in 1922 -
Type 38 15-cm-howitzer during an exercise 1922; the recoil forces were too large for the recoil system
Notes
- ^ War Department Special Series No 25 Japanese Field Artillery October 1944
- ^ Meyer, The Rise and Fall of Imperial Japan, p. 97.
- ^ a b US Department of War. TM 30-480, Handbook on Japanese Military Forces
- ^ Bishop. The Encyclopedia of Weapons of World War II
- ^ Zaloga, Japanese Tanks 1939-45, p. 20.
- ^ Chant, Artillery of World War II
- ^ a b "Finnish Artillery pieces in the Winter War, guns with recoil system, part 2". winterwar.com. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
References
- Bishop, Chris (ed.). The Encyclopedia of Weapons of World War II. Barnes & Noble. 1998. ISBN 0-7607-1022-8.
- Chamberlain, Peter and Gander, Terry. Heavy Artillery. Macdonald and Jane's, 1975. ISBN 0-668-03898-5.
- Chant, Chris. Artillery of World War II. Zenith Press, 2001. ISBN 0-7603-1172-2.
- McLean, Donald B. Japanese Artillery; Weapons and Tactics. Wickenburg, Ariz.: Normount Technical Publications, 1973. ISBN 0-87947-157-3.
- Mayer, S.L. The Rise and Fall of Imperial Japan. The Military Press, 1984. ISBN 0-517-42313-8.
- US War Department Special Series No 25 Japanese Field Artillery. October 1944
- US Department of War. TM 30-480, Handbook on Japanese Military Forces. Louisiana State University Press, 1994. ISBN 0-8071-2013-8.
- Zaloga, Steven J. Japanese Tanks 1939–45. Osprey, 2007. ISBN 1-84603-091-9.
External links
Media related to Type 38 15cm Howitzer at Wikimedia Commons
- Type 38 on Taki's Imperial Japanese Army page
- US Technical Manual E 30-480
- Type 38 Walkaround on Dishmodels.ru
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