Type 2 Ke-To

Type 2 Ke-To

Type 2 Ke-To light tank
Place of origin Empire of Japan
Production history
Designed 1941
Produced 1944–1945[1]
Number built 34[2]
Specifications (Type 2 Ke-To[3])
Weight 7.20 tonnes
Length 4.11 meters
Width 2.12 meters
Height 1.82 meters
Crew 3
Armor 6–16 mm
Main
armament
 Type 1 37 mm gun
Secondary
armament
 7.7 mm machine gun
Engine Mitsubishi Type 100 air-cooled diesel
130 hp (97 kW)
Suspension Bell crank
Operational
range
 186 kilometers
Speed 50 km/h

The Type 2 Ke-To (二式軽戦車 ケト Nishiki keisensha Ke-To) was a light tank of World War II, produced in small numbers for the Imperial Japanese Army as an improvement of the existing Type 98 Ke-Ni. It was not used in combat.[4]

Design

The Type 2 Ke-To was based on the Type 98, using the same engine and bell crank suspension.[3][5] However, the gun turret was enlarged and the main armament was changed to the more powerful Type 1 37 mm gun,[5] with a muzzle velocity of 800 m/s.[4] The new 37 mm gun used gave the tank "slightly better performance".[5] The designation “Type 2” represented the year 1942, “Ke” represented “light”, and “To” represented the number seven.[4]

Production

Production commenced in 1944, with 34 units completed by the end of the war.[2][4] They were never used in combat.[4]

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Zaloga 2007, pp. 17, 18.
  2. 1 2 Zaloga 2007, p. 17.
  3. 1 2 World War II vehicles website
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 History of War: Type 98 Type 2 Ke-To Light Tank
  5. 1 2 3 Zaloga 2007, p. 18.

References

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