Type 95 Ha-Go light tank

The Type 95 Ha-Go was a light tank accepted as the main japanese tank for mechanized infantry units in 1935 (2595 in the Japanese imperial year, from where it takes its type "95"), because their old Type 89 medium tank was too slow to keep the truck pace. It started to be produced in 1936 by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.

Type 95 Ha-Go light tank early model (commons.wikimedia.org).

Type 95's main gun was the Type 94 37 mm tank gun. It carried two types of 37 mm ammunition: armor-piercing and high-explosive, being the second the most common as the tanks were mostly used in an infantry support role. The tank also had two Type 97 light machine guns (Type 91 in the early models), one mounted on the front of the hull and the other in the rear right side of the turret (in a five o'clock position).

Type 95 Ha-Go view schematics (the-blueprints.com).

The Type 95 was manned by a crew of three: a commander, a hull machine gunner and a driver. The commander was the only one seated in the turret and was overloaded with the tasks of observation, loading, aiming and firing the main gun on top of commanding the crew and taking the decisions.

Type 95 Ha-Go, unknown location (pinterest).

Being a light fast tank, it was designed to be used for infantry support and to spearhead motorized attacks at truck speed, but it was not so effective against other tanks.

Type 95 riding in Bataan, Philippines 1942 (ww2live.com).

The Type 95 saw first action in China in 1937 during the Second Sino-Japanese War, but its first real challenge was during the Nomonhan Incident. The 4th Sensha Rentai (4th Tank Regiment), under command of Colonel Yoshio Tamada, fielded 35 Type 95 Ha-Go light tanks together with 8 Type 89 medium tanks and 3 Type 94 tankettes against Soviet BT-5 and BT-7 light but twice as heavy tanks,

Soviet units inspecting a captured Type 95 Ha-Go, Nomonhan 1939 (ww2db.com)

Type 95 was used throughout the pacific war. It proved to be very effective in jungle warfare during the Malaya and Burma invasions as well as in the invasion of the Philippines, as neither the British nor the Americans had many tanks available. From 1943 onward, the new Allied tanks such as the British Matilda and the Americans M4 Sherman medium tank and M5 Stuart light tank were to heavily armored to be damaged by the Type 95 which had become obsolete.

Type 95 Ha-Go in the jungles of Malaya (pinterest).

Up to 2300 units of the Type 95 tank were produced, being by far the most produced and used tank by the Japanese from 1939 to the end of the war.

Destroyed Type 95 at Leyte, Philippines (worldwarphotos.info).

Sources:

- Wikipedia

- Tank encyclopedia.