1979-80: Type 90 (90式戦車, Kyū-maru-shiki-sensha) MBT
While earlier subcomponent development had been going on since 1977, detailed systems design began in 1979-80.
The goal of the program was to develop a new vehicle to counter the Soviet 125mm tanks (T-64/T-72/T-80) that were slowly making their way to the Far Eastern Military District, along with the massive increase in credible Soviet sealift capacity that had arrived since the mid-1970s that made an amphibious invasion of Hokkaido a credible possibility for the first time since the early 1950s.
Six prototypes were manufactured during 1983-1985 and the testing phases were:
October 1983 to October 1986 (First Prototype; technical testing)
September 1987 - December 1988 (Second Prototype; platoon testing)
February 1989 - August 1989 (Practical GSDF testing)
On 6 August 1990, the new vehicle was finally type classified and 341 were built from 1990-2009.
2002: Type 10 (10式戦車, Hitomaru-shiki sensha) MBT
Development began in 2002, with the first mass production tank being unveiled on 10 January 2012. The Type 10 was designed to be more useful in MOUT (Military Operations in Urban Terrain) than the preceding Type 90, as well as being more strategically mobile than it's precedessor.
One of the major flaws of the Type 90 was it's relatively long hull; making it hard to manuver it in urban areas. The Type 10's hull is almost 1 meter shorter, and the tank is able to turn 360 degrees on it's centroid axis; making it much more manuverable in a built up city. Additionally, the Type 10's side armor makes up a larger proportion of the total armor mix than it did in the Type 90, along with fittings for modular armor.
A lot of attention has been paid to vision while buttoned up in the Type 10 -- the Tank Commander's thermal imager is placed up higher than in the Type 90 and it has a wider viewing angle and increased depression/elevation, enabling it to see very close to the sides of the tank in close situations, something not possible in the Type 90. The vehicle also has front, rear and side-looking cameras and an electronic "driver aid" of an undisclosed nature.
The Type 10 is also the first tank in the world with a continuously variable transmission (CVT); giving it an even greater acceleration and deceleration advantage over the Type 90, which was able to come to a complete stop from 50 kph in about 2 meters' length (with attendant bruising if the tank commander was outside of the hatch).
While the Type 90 had automatic target tracking as a killer feature; the Type 10's C4I features have apparently deeper and heavier networking than the US Army's Blue Force Tracker; making it possible for a Type 10 platoon to share networked enemy locations down to the individual tank amongst themselves, so that the Type 10 can expect an enemy tank to be at a certain location, enabling the hydro-pneumatic suspension to be adjusted ahead of time enabling a "roll out" to shooting position, firing with the minimum possible profile and a roll back to protected cover in the shortest possible time and minimum target profile.
2004: Type 16 Mobile Combat Vehicle (16式機動戦闘車)
Development of the MCV began with an outline in the 2004 Defense Program, followed by allocation of funding in 2007, enabling R&D to begin to begin. The first prototype was released in 2013, followed with procurement from 2016 onwards.
Unlike most wheeled vehicles of the 2000s, the Type 16 MCV doesn't have a blast-resistant V-hull intended to counter mines or IEDs. This is likely due to no real "corporate knowledge" of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, other than a small deployment.
The Type 16 is part of a larger reorganization of the JGSDF to be more mobile and to finally eliminate the last of the Type 74 MBTs.
Under the previous structure, JGSDF divisions had:
3 x Infantry Regiments
1 x Artillery Regiment
1 x Tank Battalion
The new structure for divisions equipped with the Type 16 MCV will be:
2 x Infantry Regiments
1 x Rapid Mobile Regiment (with MCV)
Additionally, it will be possible to transport the Type 16 MCV on the Kawasaki C-2, making it possible for Japan to rapidly air-deploy mobile protected firepower.
2013: Amphibious Rapid Deployment Brigade (水陸機動団)
https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%B0...8B%95%E5%9B%A3
Japan from 2013 onwards began to constitute a genuine large-scale amphibious force, following Chinese statements that covered the Senkaku Islands (which Japan owns), instead of just Taiwan.
The core of the new ARDB is the Western Army Infantry Regiment (西部方面普通科連隊), a unit that was formed in March 2002 to recapture any of the 2,600 islands that Japan claims if a hostile force were to seize them.
In the new ARDB, the Western Army Infantry Regiment became the 1st Amphibious Manouver Regiment (第1水陸機動連隊). A second, and possibly third Amphibious Manouver Regiment will be raised.
The new Amphibious Manouver Regiments will consist of the following organization:
HQ&HHC Company
Combat Landing Company (AAV)
Heliborne Company (via CH-47J)
Boat Company (With Assault Boats)
To make all this happen; back in 2013 the JGSDF bought four AAVP7's for reference and testing, followed by orders for 54 more in 2016, for a total of 58 AAVP7s, broken down as:
6 x Command Vehicles (AAVC7A1 RAM / RS)
6 x Recovery Vehicles (AAVR7A1 RAM / RS)
46 x APC Vehicles (AAVC7A1 RAM / RS)
Deliveries took place in mid to late 2017. Once deliveries of all the AAV's had been completed, the new Amphibious Rapid Deployment Combat Landing Battalion (水陸機動団戦闘上陸大隊) that was to organizationally control all of the JGSDF's Amtracks, stood up in March 2018. Each Combat Landing Company in the Combat Landing Battalion is assigned to an Amphibious Manouver Regiment.
Further changes are already planned for the ARDB; with the V-22 Osprey having been chosen to supplement the more conventional CH-47Js already serving in the heliborne companies.
The Japanese have already developed a prototype unarmed amtrack for testing of concepts; it's likely that the AAV7Ps will be replaced in the next 10-15 years by a Japanese Amphibian Vehicle that we have yet to see.
Generalized Notes on Japanese Equipment and Organization
Due to Article 9 of their Constitution, Japanese military equipment cannot be exported to recoup development costs; and as such, due to high costs; most Japanese items are "cut short" or run off in small lots.
Additionally, due to being an island nation, Japan doesn't face the near immediate threat(s) of ground invasions that other major powers of the post-cold war period do; and as such, equipment tends to stay in service for an exceedingly long period of time and new types of equipment (Type 74 or Type 90 MBTs) or munitions (modern sabot projectiles) come long after other major powers have introduced equivalents.
Because of the physical geography of Japan (heavily mountainous) and location of threats (Soviet/Russian forces in the Kuriles), the newest and heaviest equipment is deployed to Hokkaido along with "heavy" organizations such as the 7th Division (第7師団, Dai-Nana Shidan), which previously was known as the 7th Mechanized Division (15 August 1962 - 1981) and 7th Armored Division (1981-??).
Another factor for deployments to Hokkaido (besides the Soviet/Russian threat) is logistics. A Japanese study of 17,920 bridges in Japan as of 2010 (
http://www.kantei.go.jp/jp/singi/shi...i5/siryou1.pdf) rated the following passage rates:
Foreign MBT (60 tonnes): 40% of bridges in Japan (M1A2 and Challenger II, 62 tons; Merkava Mk 4, 65 tons)
Type 90 MBT (50 tonnes): 65% of bridges in Japan
Type 10 MBT (44 tonnes): 84% of bridges in Japan
By pre-deploying to likely combat zones, you eliminate the logistical headaches of shipping units to the combat zone.
Equipment Provided/Acquired by Japan under MDAP and other Deals with Service Dates
LINK to Japanese Wiki
60mm M2 Mortar (Jun 1951 - 1970s)
81mm M1 Mortar (Sep 1951 - early 1990s)
153 x 75mm M1 Pack Howitzer (1952 - 1981)
220 x 155mm M1 Howitzer (1952 - 1998)
378 x 105mm M2A1 Howitzer (1952 - 1998)
32 x 155mm M2 Long Tom (1952 - 1996)
70 x 203mm M2 (1954 - 1994)
40mm M1 Bofors (1951 - 1982)
90mm M1 AA Gun (1956 - 1974)
75mm M51 Skysweeper AA Gun (1958 - 1987)
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1/4 Ton Truck (Jeep) (1950 - 1980) (Both WWII production and post-war production in Japan)
3/4 Ton Truck (Dodge WC) (1950 - late 1970s)
1,650 x GMC 2.5 ton truck (1950 - 1978)
NOTE: Japan built an updated version of the 2.5t GMC truck -- it was in service 1951-1988.
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8 x M29C Weasels (1950s - 1960s)
Not used much due to the development of domestic snow vehicles.
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36 x M3A1 Armored Car (1950 - 1981)
Originally issued to the National Police Reserve, they were used as HQ vehicle for tank units and special HQ units.
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8 x M8 Armored Car (1950-1967)
4 x M20 Armored Car (1950-1967)
These were provided to the National Police Reserve, and they became part of the JGSDF. It seems that the original plans called for many more M8/M20 to be provided to the NPR, but the poor performance of these systems in Korea against the NKPA terminated this.
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375 x M24 Chaffee (1952 - 1974)
232 x M4A3E8 Sherman (1954 - 1972)
80 x M32 Armored Recovery Vehicles (1954 - 1980)
147 x M41 Walker Bulldog (1961- 1983)
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10 x M44A1 155mm SP Howitzer (1965 -- 1986)
30 x M52A1 105mm SP Howitzer (1966 - 1984)
With the introduction of the indigenous Type 75 155mm SPH from 1975~ onwards, these units were slowly sequentially retired.
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98 x M15 CGMC Halftrack (1952 - Late 1980s)
They were kept in service rather late, despite the increasing difficulty of obtaining 37mm ammunition.
168 x M16 MGMC Halftrack (1952 - 1974)
Apparently, it appears that the M55 quad 50 turret on the MGMC was stored as "spare equipment" for a bit longer after the type's retirement.
35 x M19A1 SPAA (1953 - 1979)
22 x M42 SPAA (1960 - 1994)
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These were provided for reference/test/study purposes:
2 x M36 Tank Destroyers
1 x M47 Tank
1 x M37 105mm SPH (for reference to make the Type 56 105mm SPH)
1 x M39 Armored Utility Vehicle
1 x M59 APC (for reference to make Type 60 APC)
1 x LVT(A)-5 for development of amphibious vehicles