Type 94 (anti-tank gun)

The 37 mm Type 94 gun was adopted in 1936 . The gun is an improved version of the regimental 37 mm Type 11 gun , which was also used as a primitive anti-tank gun ^[1] . However, due to the short barrel , low initial velocity of the projectile , the short firing range and slow reloading made the Type 11 ineffective against enemy tanks . Replacement development began in July 1933 and was completed a year later. Initial testing showed that trained calculation can produce up to 30 rounds per minute; however, the army leadership believed that the original version was too difficult. The modified sample was tested in 1935 , and the actual production began in 1936, while the gun retained its original name “Type 94” (imperial year 2594 = Gregorian 1934). About 3400 units were produced. Based on it, an anti-tank gun of Type 1 was created. ^[2] Based on it, an anti-tank gun of Type 1 will be created.

Like most other Japanese guns, the Type 94 had a very low profile. The guns were equipped with shatterproof shields, and sliding beds with openers contributed to a significant angle of horizontal shelling of the gun and its stability during firing. The shutter is horizontal, wedge-shaped. The sight is direct, telescopic. The gun could fire armor-piercing and fragmentation shells. ^[3]

The gun had an unsprung move either with wooden, iron-studded wheels or perforated metal. The whole structure was divided into four parts, each of which weighed less than 100 kilograms, which allowed for transportation on four horse packs.

Typically, for each infantry regiment there were four Type 94 guns. Each gun was equipped with a crew of 11 and was in touch with the regiment headquarters, which was carried out using a field telephone or a messenger. The Type 94 gun armor-piercing shell from a distance of 900 m pierced armor 24 mm thick, and from a distance of 460 m - 43 mm. ^[4] The Army Technical Bureau continued to experiment with ways to increase the initial velocity of an armor-piercing projectile until 1941 . ^[five]

Type 94 was effective against Soviet BT light tanks during the battles at Khalkhin Gol ^[6] , but by the beginning of the Pacific War it was already outdated and was completely useless against the M4 Sherman tanks. However, Type 94 remained in the service of the Japanese army until the end of the war due to the lack of a better replacement. ^{[7] The} more advanced 47-mm Type 1 anti-tank gun began to enter the army from the beginning of 1942 , but due to the smaller number of samples produced (2,300 against 3,400), the Type 94 remained the most massive anti-tank weapon of the Japanese army until the end of the war.

• Bishop, Chris (eds) The Encyclopedia of Weapons of World War II . Barnes & Nobel. 1998. ISBN 0-7607-1022-8
• 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 .
• Nakanishi, Ritta Japanese Infantry Arms in World War II , Dainipponkaiga Company 1991, ISBN 4-499-22690-2
• US Department of War, TM 30-480, Handbook on Japanese Military Forces , Louisiana State University Press, 1994. ISBN 0-8071-2013-8
• War Department TM-E-30-480 Handbook on Japanese Military Forces September 1944

• Taki's imperial japanese army
• US Technical Manual E 30-480