World War II Database

Contributor: C. Peter Chen

ww2dbaseThe Type 4 Ho-Ro self-propelled guns were designed by the Japanese Army Technical Bureau after being inspired by the German Grille series of self-propelled guns. Guns of an older 150-millimeter howitzer design were built on the hulls of Type 97 Chi-Ha medium tanks, and the 4- or 5-man crews were protected only in the front by the means of a 25-millimeter shield. They could fire a 79-pound shell to the maximum distance of 6,000 meters. Mitsubishi Heavy Industries were placed in charge of producing these guns, and between 1944 and 1945, only about 25 were built, largely due to the lack of raw materials. Some Type 4 Ho-Ro self-propelled guns were assigned to the Fourteenth Area Army during the defense of the Philippine Islands; in the Philippine Islands, they were deployed in teams of four vehicles. A few were also assigned to the defending forces at Okinawa, Japan, and were deployed in smaller teams that operated either two vehicles or only one vehicle each.

SPECIFICATIONS

Type 4 Ho-Ro

Machinery	One Mitsubishi Type 100 air-cooled V-12 diesel engine rated at 170hp
Suspension	Bell crank
Armament	1x150mm Type 38 howitzer
Armor	12-25mm
Crew	4
Length	5.53 m
Width	2.28 m
Height	1.54 m
Weight	13.3 t
Speed	38 km/h
Range	250 km

Photographs