List of Type 97 Chi-Ha variants

This is a list of vehicles developed from the Japanese Type 97 Chi-Ha tank.

Amphibious tanks

 * Type 3 Ka-Chi Amphibious Tank
 * Ka-Chi, as Amphibious Tank derivated to Type 1 Chi-He Chassis, armed with 47 mm main gun and two 7.7 mm MG.


 * Type 4 Ka-Tsu Amphibious Vehicle
 * Ka-Tsu was the amphibious carrier of cargo or troops developed by IJN. The engine component and electric devices are watertight and it can be carried underwater by submarine.


 * Type 5 To-Ku Amphibious Tank
 * To-Ku was amphibiuous tank armed with 1x 47mm or 25mm Type 1 gun, 2 x 7.7mm Type 97 MG.was based possibly in Chi-To or Chi-Ri hull.


 * Type 4 Ka-Sha Amphibious Tank
 * Ka-Sha was other amphibious tank based in Chi-To or Chi-Ri Chassis.

Engineering vehicles

 * Experimental Trench Excavator
 * The experimental Trench excavator derived from Type 97 Chi-Ha Tank, with device in the stern is a plow to dig a trench. It is said that this vehicle was made around 1941-42 for the service in Manchuria. Some examples were sent to Wewak on the north coast of Papua-New Guinea for use by Japanese 6th Div AIF.

Medium tanks

 * Type 97 Special Shinhoto Chi-Ha or Chi-Ha Kai
 * Type 97 with a new turret armed with the Type 1 47 mm gun.


 * Experimental Medium Tank Chi-Ho
 * Experimental Medium Tank with similar chassis to the type 97.


 * Type 1 Chi-He Medium Tank
 * Chi-He is a successor to Chi-Ha. The speed and the armor are better than Chi-Ha but it still has a 47 mm gun that was inadequate against M4 Sherman.


 * Type 3 Chi-Nu Medium Tank
 * This tank was developed in order to cope with M4 Sherman. Its hull is the same of Chi-He and its gun was converted from Type 90 field gun. Chi-Nu was deployed in Japan proper to prevent expected Allied invasion.

Gun tanks

 * Type 2 Ho-I Medium Gun Tank'
 * IJA called the closed fire support tank as Gun Tank. Experimental model was base on Chi-Ha and the production model was based on Chi-He. Ho-I was deployed in the gun tank company of the tank regiment. There is no record that Ho-I was used in action.


 * Short Barrel 120 mm Gun Tank
 * Late in World War II, the Imperial Japanese Navy made the Type 97 Chi-Ha variant by replacing its gun with a naval 12 cm (120 mm) short gun. Produced in small numbers and deployed in Japanese Special Naval Landing Forces.

Armored carriers

 * Experimental Light Armored ATG Carrier So-To
 * ATG Variant for armed transport light AT Gun in Type 97 TK tankette structure.

Siege weapons and heavy mobile artillery

 * Experimental Type 4 Heavy Mortar Launcher Ha-To
 * As a 300 mm heavy mortar mounted in Type 4 Medium Tracked Carrier Chi-So chassis.

Self propelled guns

 * 75 mm SP AT Gun Na-To or Na-To Sha
 * A self-propelled anti-tank gun. Using the Chi-To and Chi-Ri tank guns on the Type 4 Medium Tracked Carrier Chi-So chassis.


 * 75 mm SPG Ku-Se
 * An SPG with 75 mm Cannon in Type 5 Light Tank chassis. The turret was removed, and a Type 99 mountain gun was placed in the hull similar to Ho-Ni/Ho-Ro SPGs.


 * Experimental Type 5 15 cm SPG Ho-Chi or Ho-Chi Sha
 * This SPG with Type 96 15 cm (149.1 mm) Howitzer in Type 97 Medium Tank chassis, similar to Ho-Ni/Ho-Ro SPGs.


 * Naval 12 cm SPG or Long Barrel 12 cm SPG
 * This SPG developed by the Imperial Japanese Navy with a naval Type 10 120 mm AA Gun in a Type 97 Medium Tank chassis.


 * Experimental Type 4 120 mm SPG Ho-To
 * This SPG with Type 38 120 mm Howitzer in Type 95 Light Tank chassis, similar to Ho-Ni/Ho-Ro SPGs.


 * Experimental 105 mm SP AT Gun Ka-To or Ka-To Sha
 * Ka-To's development was ordered in 1943, but the actual process of development is unknown. Ka-To's hull was similar to the Type 4 Chi-To or Type 5 Chi-Ri Medium. Its main armament was to be newly developed.such TD poses resemblances with prototype of Type 95 Heavy Tank also


 * Experimental 105 mm SPG Ji-Ro or Ji-Ro Sha
 * This SPG with 105 mm main cannon in Type 95 Heavy Tank chassis, similar to Hummel or Elefant.


 * Experimental 105 mm SPG
 * This SPG with 105 mm main cannon in Type 95 Heavy Tank chassis, similar to Ho-Ni/Ho-Ro SPGs. This SPG was different from Ji-Ro.


 * Type 1 Ho-Ni I 75 mm SP AT Gun
 * Turret removed and 75 mm gun installed to create a self-propelled gun. They were organized along similar lines as artillery units.


 * Type 1 Ho-Ni II 105 mm SPG
 * As the Ho-Ni I with a 105 mm gun.


 * Type 3 Ho-Ni III 75 mm SP AT gun
 * The Ho-Ni III had an enclosed fighting compartment around the gun and was deployed in tank regiments as a tank destroyer.


 * Type 4 Ho-Ro 15 cm SP Howitzer
 * This SPG with Type 38 15 cm (149.1 mm) Howitzer in Type 97 Medium Tank chassis, similar to Ho-Ni SPG.

Other variants

 * Se-Ri
 * Armoured recovery vehicle with a collapsible crane powered by a 240 hp diesel engine.


 * "Mine Clearing Tank G" ("Chi-Yu" Mineplow Tank)
 * Type 97 Medium Tank "Chi-Ha" fitted with 2 revolving drums carrying rows of chains for mineplowing.Essentially a copy of the British mine flail tanks.


 * Ho-K
 * A Type 97 with the turret removed and a steel prow mounted for creating paths through forests. Used in Manchuria to aid the fight against the Soviet Union. One group was sent to New Guinea for use in the construction of an airfield there.


 * Ka-So
 * Observation tank with dummy main gun.


 * "Type 97 Chi-Ha" Special Attack Vehicle
 * As Chi-Ha Tank special modification in combat front, unarmed, packed with explosive charges with crew of 1 or 2, for Kamikaze used in collision strikes against Allied tanks or infantry assaults.


 * Type 97 Shi-Ki
 * Command tank with a 57mm dummy gun, usually supplemented by a live 37mm gun on the hull instead of the machine gun. Easily recognized by the rail-antenna on its turret, it had long-range communications and superior optics.


 * "High-Voltage Dynamo Vehicle" Ka-Ha
 * The Ka-Ha was a Type 97 tank. The main gun was a dummy and there was no machinegun. It carried a dynamo which could generate a high voltage (10,000 Volt) current.