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rynoki · Posted: Fri May 09, 2008 8:01 pm Post subject: tank vs tank in the pacific

Was wondering gentlemen,
Did Japanese tankers ever successfully knock out Allied tanks in battle in WW2?
Now I've read about the Allied losses to mines, AT guns, Jap infantry tactics and such. And I've read about the success and overkill of Allied tanks vs Japanese tanks. But, for example, I've never seen a pic of an Allied tank knocked out by a Japanese tank.
Did it ever happen?

JeffStringer · ***Power User*** Offline Joined: Jan 24, 2006 Posts: 637

According to most of the books I've read and "Tank Warfare On Iwo Jima" most Allied tanks were destroyed by either artillery, mines or 47mm anti-tank squads. Then there were the occasional tracks thrown which not all of them were repaired because of either high tides or the Japanese zeroed in on them.

toadmanstankpictures · ***Power User*** Offline Joined: Jan 24, 2006 Posts: 704

The 192nd Tank Bn lost a M3 Stuart to Type 95 Ha-Go's during their first engagement with Japanese armored forces in the Philippines on 21DEC41. They had several others damaged in this battle as well.

ED_GILBERT · ***Power User*** Offline Joined: Jan 29, 2006 Posts: 6

Do you count Ed Bale's command tank CECILIA on Betio? The main gun was disabled when an enemy Ha-Go tank shell came down the tube, exploded, and the blast and shrapnel came through the open breech - no casualties but scared the hell out of the crew. CECILIA later became bogged and was never recovered, the only tank permanently lost there.

I came across no records of tanks lost to Japanese tanks. The Japanese decorated one officer on Iwo for supposedly capturing an M4 and using it until it was destroyed by other USMC tanks, but I found no USMC records of this and suspect it was propaganda.

The greatest killers, hands down, were mines. One model of 75mm AA gun was much feared, and caused the "Father's Day Massacre" on Okinawa. The 47mm (also used in the Shin-hoto Chi Ha) was effective at close range from certain aspects. Tanks? Innefective.

www.amazon.com/Marine-...139&sr=8-2

www.amazon.com/Marine-...139&sr=8-6

www.amazon.com/MARINE-...139&sr=8-1

Ed Gilbert

bsmart · Posted: Sat May 10, 2008 8:02 pm Post subject: Re: tank vs tank in the pacific

You might also check out the book Cutthroats by Robert Dick. Bob Dick was a tank crewman in the Pacific and fought on Okinawa and Leyte with an Army Tank Battalion (I can't remember which one right now). Cuttthroats was his story about his experiences. He was also an active member of the G104 group over on yahoo and I remember him mentioning the effectiveness of the 47mm AT gun. I don't remember if he ever mentioned Japanese tanks. Unfortunitely he died last year, several months after his book was published

rynoki · Posted: Sun May 11, 2008 8:59 am Post subject: Re: tank vs tank in the pacific

Thank you gentlemen for your informative responses. I've not read so far of any Australian tanks knocked out by Japanese tanks also. Only to AT or dual purpose guns, mines and Inf tactics.

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