| Type 4 40 cm rocket launcher | |
|---|---|
 Type 4 40 cm rocket | |
| Type | Rocket artillery |
| Place of origin |  Empire of Japan |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1943–1945 |
| Used by |  Imperial Japanese Army |
| Wars | World War II |
| Production history | |
| Designed | 1944 |
| Produced | 1945 |
| No. built | 1,700 wooden launchers during 1945, less than 200 rockets starting May 1945 |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 220 kilograms (490 lb) |
| Barrel length | 3.22 metres (10 ft 7 in) |
| Shell | 508 kilograms (1,120 lb) |
| Caliber | 400 mm (16 in) |
| Elevation | 40° to +65° |
| Muzzle velocity | 220 m/s (720 ft/s) |
| Maximum firing range | 3,700 metres (4,000 yd) |
The Type 4 40 cm rocket (四式四〇糎噴進, Yonshiki yonjū-senchi funshinhō) was a 400 mm (16 in) rocket used by the Imperial Japanese Army in the final stages of World War II.
Development and design
The Type 4 40cm rocket was developed in the final stages of World War II by the Imperial Japanese Army Technical Bureau, as a relatively low-cost, easy to produce weapon, which had an advantage of greater accuracy over conventional mortars in that it fired a spin-stabilized projectile. Due to its ease of construction, it was produced in limited numbers and distributed to hidden arsenals for use as last-ditch weapons during the projected Allied invasion of the Japanese home islands. Unlike the Japanese Type 4 20cm rocket mortar, the Type 4 40cm rocket did not see action and stocks were confined to the mainland.
The Type 4 40cm rocket was restricted to launch via standardized fixed wooden troughs which were largely constructed by Japanese Army garrison toops, and not steel tubes like the Type 4 20cm rocket mortar. During 1945 construction of the fixed wooden launchers outpaced actual production of the Type 4 40cm rocket. Range of the Type 4 40cm rocket was controlled via variable bleeding of the propellant gases.
References
- Bishop, Chris (eds) The Encyclopedia of Weapons of World War II. Barnes & Nobel. 1998. ISBN 0-7607-1022-8
- Chamberlain, Peter and Gander, Terry. Heavy Field Artillery. Macdonald and Jane's (1975). ISBN 0-356-08215-6
- McLean, Donald B. Japanese Artillery; Weapons and Tactics. Wickenburg, Ariz.: Normount Technical Publications 1973. ISBN 0-87947-157-3.
- US Department of War, TM 30-480, Handbook on Japanese Military Forces, Louisiana State University Press, 1994. ISBN 0-8071-2013-8
External links
Notes
- Ness, Leland. Rikugun: Volume 2 - Weapons of the Imperial Japanese Army & Navy Ground Forces (p. 135). Helion and Company.
- Ness, Leland. Rikugun: Volume 2 - Weapons of the Imperial Japanese Army & Navy Ground Forces (p. 135). Helion and Company.
- Ness, Leland. Rikugun: Volume 2 - Weapons of the Imperial Japanese Army & Navy Ground Forces (p. 135). Helion and Company.
- Ness, Leland. Rikugun: Volume 2 - Weapons of the Imperial Japanese Army & Navy Ground Forces (p. 135). Helion and Company.
- Ness, Leland. Rikugun: Volume 2 - Weapons of the Imperial Japanese Army & Navy Ground Forces (p. 135). Helion and Company.
- Taki's Imperial Japanese Army home page
- Taki's Imperial Japanese Army home page
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