By: Christian Lehman

Japanese Warfare in WWII

The Eastern Front of WWII Fight between the allied powers and the

Pacific Islands, mainly JapanStarted due to the Japanese bombing of the

Military Base at Pearl Harbor HawaiiVJ day (Victory over Japan) was on August 15

1945 after the United States bombed the Cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki

The Pacific Theater of Operations

Japanese Aircraft

Japanese AircraftAt the beginning of WWII

Japan had one of, if not the most, advanced Naval Air force in the world

All of the Japanese planes were at least as good as any other plane in the sky, some were much better

The Japanese pilots were very well trained which helped Japan wrap up victory after victory in the Pacific skies.

The Mitsubishi A6M Zero More commonly

known as the Zero When introduced,

the zero was the best carrier- based fighter in the world

It had excellent maneuverability and very long range

Kamikaze Aircraft operations Towards the end of the

war, the Japanese pilots started to use a strategy called Kamikaze

The plane would fly directly into its target, usually an allied Navel vessel, killing the pilot and as many allied troops as possible

The planes were usually filled with explosives or extra fuel tanks

Japan was running out of experienced pilots and had a declining industrial capacity

The Japanese refused to surrender and kamikaze was a last ditch effort cripple the Allied forces

The A6M Zero was a main Kamikaze planeThey were essentially transformed into manned

missilesPilots were willing to give their life for this

cause because they did not want to experience the shame of capture or defeat

Kamikazes

Mitsubishi G4M Betty Long range light

bomber, operated by the Japanese Navy during the entire war, carrying one ton of bombs, or a big 800kg torpedo

Light weight was because of little armor, making plane vulnerable

long range light bomber

carried one ton of bombs

It was poorly protected, but where it was used it usually faced thinner fighter opposition than other bombers

Bomber AircraftMitsubishi Ki-2l Sally

Mitsubishi G4M Betty Bomber Aircraft Mitsubishi Ki-2l

Sally

At the beginning of WWII the Japanese Navy was arguably the most powerful Navy in the World

The Japanese Navy had top notch Aviators, planes, and ships

Its battleships were among the most powerful in the world

In 1941 Japan led the world in operational aircraft carriers

Their submarine fleet was one of the most varied and powerful submarine fleets

Japanese Aquatic Warfare

Japanese Submarines The Japanese submarines

were equipped with the most advanced torpedo in the war, the oxygen fueled type-95

Overall they were used in small numbers and didn’t have a big effect on the war

Most of the times, they were used to transport supplies to islands

Submarine Aircraft Carriers The Japanese came up

with the idea of having an aircraft carrier that was a submarine

They manufactured 47 of these carriers

Most only had room for 1 plane but a select few had enough room for two or even three

Enabled under the Axis Powers’ Tripartite Pact

Provided for an exchange of strategic materials and manufactured goods between Germany, Italy and Japan

Only six submarines attempted this risky mission

Submarines Yanagi Missions

During WWI, the Japanese purchased tanks from foreign

Trials with these purchased vehicles were very successful but and there were plans to create 3 light tank battalions and one heavy tank battalion

Only problem was that Japan did not have tank production capability

More foreign tanks were purchased and more research was done

Japanese tanks

Japan produced several models of amphibious tanks for WWII

Notable models: Type 1 Mi-Sha, Type 3 Ka-Chi, and Type 4 Ka-Tsu

Only 184 amphibious tanks were built only 19 of them were made during the war

These tanks were used later in the war as dug-in Pillboxes on Pacific islands

Amphibious Tanks

In the period between 1931 and 1938 the Japanese built nearly 1,700 new tanks

This made them the 4th largest tank producer in the world at that time

This was a very drastic change, from no tanks after WWI to being a leader in tank production in WWII

This shows the rate at which Japan was improving its technology and tools

Tanks

Japanese Weapons

Type 14 (Nambu): considered standard Japanese side arm, very reliable, but didn’t get much use in the field

Type 94: developed as a compact pistol for pilots, air crews and tank crews

Side Arms

Japanese Weapons

Type 97 Hand Grenade: fragmentation grenade, standard grenade of infantry men, weaker than allied grenades, was unreliable and sometimes dangerous because of its inaccurate fuse

Grenades

Japanese Weapons

Arisaka: Saw very heavy use by the Japanese Imperial Army (IJA), one of the most reliable guns in the Japanese arsenal

RiflesAttached to the end

of a weapon, mainly a rifle, used in close quarter combat for stabbing

Bayonets

Japanese weapons

Type 99: used to provide covering fire for advancing infantry, very versatile weapon

Type 92 (Woodpecker): main heavy machine gun of IJA, very powerful, used extensively for defensive fights

Light Machine Gun Heavy Machine Gun

Japanese Weapons

Attached to the end of a weapon, mainly a rifle, used in close quarter combat for stabbing

Bayonets

Japanese weapons

Type 93: Particularly useful against fortifications, bunkers, and pillboxes, fuel worn on back, ignition system was based on a heated electrical wire

Flamethrower

Banzai ChargeSuicidal attack,

usually to avoid surrender or dishonor

Banzai soldiers usually used rifles with bayonets and made an attempt to stab as many allied soldiers as possible before begin killed

Japanese soldiers refused to give upThey thought it dishonorable to be captured

or defeated by the enemyMost times, the Japanese soldiers would kill

themselves if the battle was about to be lost, that was a more honorable death than to be killed by an enemy

Kamikaze missions and Banzai attacks were carried out because of their fear of shame and dishonor

End of the War

Japanese warfare was somewhat guerrillaMany of the battles in the pacific took place

in wooded areas Japanese soldiers would camouflage

themselves with grass, leaves, and branchesThey would hide in high grass until the allies

came into range, then they would pop out and try to kill as many as possible

They also had snipers hidden in the palm trees making them almost invisible

Guerrilla warfare

Kamikaze video: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5327440627774880714&ei=Kj4jSqLaH4qCqQKDqIGuAg&q=kamikaze&hl=en&emb=1

Zero Fighter plane video: http://www.evtv1.com/player.aspx?itemnum=10593

Video links