Jungle Tank

The Japanese Type 97 Chi Ha "Medium Tank" was their main battle tank in the Pacific Theater of World War Two. The firepower of its 57mm (2.24 inch) and two 7.7mm (.303 cal.) was always appreciated by the infantry. 

With a weight of 15 tons, only 8 to 25mm (.31 to .98 inches) of amour and armed with a low velocity 57mm cannon, the Chi Ha would be rated a light tank in European Armies. Its advantages to the Japanese military were a low cost, its superiority to Chinese tanks (before American Lend Lease gave China access to Sherman tanks) and an easier ability to ship such a light tank. The latter was an important consideration for a military that needed to transport them to the many islands of the vast Japanese Empire.

Their relatively low silhouette, they were only 2.71m (7ft 3in) tall, and narrow width of 2.33m (7ft 8in) were considered a bonus for jungle combat both on islands and mainland areas such as the Burma Front. With only 1162 built during the war and their outdated design, compared to Allied tanks, meant that they were rarely enough of them to greatly influence battles after 1942.

This Type 97 Chi Ha is a plastic and metal piece from Warlord Games that I built and painted in 2019.