Type 98 20 mm AA machine cannon

The Type 98 20 mm AA machine cannon was the most common light anti-aircraft gun of the Imperial Japanese Army. It entered service in 1938 and was used until the end of World War II. After World War II this gun was used by the Indonesian Army in the Indonesian National Revolution and North Vietnam in First Indochina War.

Type 98 20 mm anti-aircraft machine cannon
A Type 98 20 mm cannon at the China People's Revolution Military Museum. Note the gun has no magazine fitted.
TypeAutocannon
Place of origin Empire of Japan
Service history
In service1938–1945[1]
Used byJapan, Indonesia
WarsWorld War II
Indonesian National Revolution
First Indochina War
Production history
Designed1933-1938
No. built2,500[1]
Specifications
Mass373 kg (822 lb)[1]
Barrel length1.4 m (4 ft 7 in) L/70[1]
Shell20×142 mm
Shell weight.14 kg (4.9 oz)
Caliber20 mm (0.79 in)
ActionGas operated
CarriageTwo wheeled split trail.
Elevation-5° to +85°[1]
Traverse360°[1]
Rate of fire300 rpm (cyclic)
120 rpm (practical)[1]
Muzzle velocity830 m/s (2,700 ft/s)[2]
Maximum firing range5.5 km (3.4 mi) (horizontal)
3.5 km (11,000 ft) (ceiling)[1]
Feed system20 round box
A drawing of a Type 98 20 mm gun from a US Army field manual

Design and use

The Type 98 20 mm AA machine cannon was the most common light anti-aircraft gun of the Japanese military.[1] The Type 98 designation was given to this gun as it was accepted in the year 2598 of the Japanese calendar (1938).[3] It entered service that same year and first saw combat in Nomonhan. It was used until the end of World War II.[1] About 80% of the Imperial Japanese Army light AA guns were Type 98s.[1] The gun could be emplaced in about three minutes by an experienced crew or fired inaccurately from its wheels.

This weapon and its variants were based on the French design of the 13.2 mm Hotchkiss machine gun of the 1930s, which the Japanese forces had bought and further developed at home. The Type 98 was also one of the two armament options for the IJA's Submersible Gun Mount Model 1.

Ammunition
  • Type 100 armour piercing tracer. Weight 162 g projectile and 431 g complete round.
  • Type 100 high-explosive tracer (with self-destruct). Weight 136 g projectile and 405 g complete round with 890 m/s.

Variant

Two of the guns mounted together formed a variant known as the Type 4 20 mm twin AA machine cannon. Approximately 500 of these guns were produced.[4]

See also

References
  1. Taki's Imperial Japanese Army: Type 98 20mm AA Machine Cannon
  2. Johnson, Melvin M., Jr. (1944). Rifles and Machine Guns. William Morrow and Company. p. 385.
  3. War Department TM-E-30-480 Handbook on Japanese Military Forces. September 1944, p. 400.
  4. Taki's Imperial Japanese Army: Type 4 20 mm twin AA Machine Cannon

Bibliography
  • War Department TM-E-30-480 Handbook on Japanese Military Forces. September 1944.
  • US Army field manual at hyperwar.org
  • Intelligence briefing at lonesentry.com
  • Japanese Artillery Weapons and Tactics, Donald B. McLean, ISBN 0-87947-157-3
  • Ogata Katsuichi technological general manager of army "Matter of 13mm "Hotchkiss-type" anti-aircraft gun semi-adopted types enactment" 1934 Japan Center for Asian Historical Record Ref.C01001317200
  • Army technological headquarters "Examination report of type 98 anti-aircraft gun and dummy cartridge" 1940 Japan Center for Asian Historical Record Ref.A03032139400
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