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World War II Wiki

The Type 4 Ka-Tsu was a landing craft that was used by Japan during World War II.

Description[]

The Type 4 Ka-Tsu had a crew of five men and it was powered by a 120 hp engine sealed in a watertight compartment which could propel it to speeds of up to 20 km/h on land and 5 knots in the water. The armament of the Type 4 Ka-Tsu consisted of two 13 mm machine guns mounted in various ports.[1] Furthermore, derivatives of the Ka-Tsu were designed to carry two torpedoes to attack American battleships and cruisers in port. 

The driver's compartment had around 10 mm worth of armor protection with little armor plating being available for the passengers. The Ka-Tsu itself had a total length of eleven meters and a total weight of 14.5 metric tons. It also had a bell crank suspension system, though in practice, the trackers were one to slide off of their wheels and thus render the vehicle immobile. One of the most unique features of the vehicle was that the engine was hermetically sealed so that it could be transported and delivered to the front by submarine.

History[]

During its development, a mere 49 examples of Type 4s were created. These models were sent to Kure, Japan and tested for a possible attack on Majuro atoll.[2] Here, the vehicles were deemed to be underpowered and thus too slow to attack effectively. Furthermore, problems with the hermetics of the engine compartment further effected the results.

The Type 4 Ka-Tsu was initially developed in 1942 out of the realization that landing craft capable of stealthily resupplying isolated garrisons was needed in the South Pacific. Work on a vehicle to suit these needs was put into place immediately with the end result being the Type 4 Ka-Tsu. Following its sea trials, the Type 4 was quickly modified for its torpedo kamikaze role and it was attempted for units to be equipped with these vehicles, though none entered service. 

References[]

  1. http://www3.plala.or.jp/takihome/ka-tsu.htm
  2. Zaloga J. Steven. Japanese Tanks 1939-1945. Osprey Publishing (2007), Page 24


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