Japanese Model 88 75-mm AA Gun

Description of the WWII Japanese Model 88 (1928) 75-mm Antiaircraft Gun from Japanese Field Artillery, Special Series No. 25, Military Intelligence Division, U.S. War Department, Washington, D.C., October 15, 1944.

Model 88 (1928) 75-mm AA Gun.

Model 88 (1928) 75-mm AA gun is the standard Japanese mobile antiaircraft artillery weapon. It has been encountered more generally in U.S. campaigns against the Japanese than any other artillery weapon. It has a high velocity which makes it suitable for use against ground targets, especially armor. It has been used both in defense of airfields against ground attack and in a dual-purpose role as an antiaircraft and coast-defense gun. For antitank purposes it has the advantage of all-round traverse and the disadvantage of limited mobility. It thus can be quite effective when fired from ambush against tanks, but it cannot shoot and run.

 

GENERAL
Weapon		75-mm AA gun, Model 88 (1928), 7-cm field gun.
General Characteristics		Semiautomatic loading and firing.
Identification		Five out-riggers. Pedestal mount.
Tactical Employment		Ordinarily air defense but also in battle as 4-gun field battery.
FIRING CHARACTERISTICS
Length of Tube		130.5 in.; 44.2 calibers.
Muzzle Velocity		2,360 f/s.
Maximum Range		29,848 feet (vertical).
Elevation		85°.
Depression		0°.
Traverse		360°, 5 minutes for complete traverse.
Rate of Fire: Maximum		15-20 rpm.
Ammunition		AA pointed shell, HE, shrapnel, smoke, incendiary, and illuminating.
Type of Breechblock		Semiautomatic horizontal sliding.
Type of Firing Mechanism		Continuous pull percussion (Krupp type).
Rifling		28 grooves. 1 turn, 25.6 calibers.
Twist		Uniform right hand.
Length		101.5 in.
CONSTRUCTION AND MOVEMENT DATA
Weight of Gun:
Firing		5,390 lb.
Traveling		6,039 lb.
Over-all Length:
Firing		16 ft. 6 in.
Traveling		14 ft. 9 in.
Width:
Track		5 ft. 3 in.
Maximum		6 ft. 4 in.
Height		6 ft. 7 in.
Road Clearance		1 ft. 2 in.
Method of Transport		Tractor-drawn or 6-by-6 truck with winch.
Practical Speed on Good Roads		Maximum: 12 miles per hr.
		Normal: 3 miles per hr.
Type of Equilibrator		Spring cable.
Typeof Brakes		Hand.
Wheels and Tires		36 by 6, 90 pounds pressure, rubber.
Trail		5 out-riggers with jacks for leveling.
Recoil System:
Standard		At 0° 54.6 in.; from 50°-85°, 23.4 in.
Maximum		60.5 in.
Type of Recoil System		Hydropneumatic, variable.
Type Fluid Recoil Cylinder		Light fluid lubricating oil.
Type Fluid Counterrecoil Cylinder		Light fluid lubricating oil.
Quantity Fluid Recoil Cylinder		4 qt.
Air Pressure Counterrecoil Cylinder		830.1-1,419 lb./sq in.