Type Rocket artillery In service 1943-1945 Wars World War II | Place of origin Empire of Japan Used by Imperial Japanese Army Weight 227.6 kg (502 lb) | |
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The Type 4 20 cm Rocket Mortar (四式二十糎噴進砲, Yonshiki nijyū-senchi funshinhō) was a 203 mm rocket mortar used by the Imperial Japanese Army in the final stages of World War II.
Development and design
The Type 4 rocket mortar was developed in the final stages of World War II by the Japanese Army Technical Bureau, as a low-cost, easy to produce weapon, which had an advantage of greater accuracy over conventional mortars in that it fired spin-stabilized projectiles. The first units were deployed in 1943, and were used successfully in combat during the Battle of Iwo Jima and Battle of Okinawa. Due to its ease of construction and portability, the Type 4 was produced in large numbers and distributed to hidden arsenals for use as last-ditch weapons during the projected Allied invasion of the Japanese home islands.
Although the weapon came with a standard mortar tube with tripod mounting, if necessary, the rocket-propelled round could be launched from an ordinary pipe or culvert with sufficient diameter, wooden rails, or even directly from a slope in the ground.