Time Slip Reiwa Japan

014 - Postwar Japan

There are two things that have become a problem for Japan's national defense.

The first is the number of tanks and other heavy equipment – the scale. This will not be a problem if Japan exercises its domestic production power through military demand, i.e., as long as it implemented military expansion as an economic stimulus.

The other problem is the maintenance of engines, missiles, and other items that have been completely imported. This was a real headache. In particular, aircraft engines became a major problem, including for civilian use. Reverse engineering of the engines had been carried out with the cooperation of the USFJ as soon as the time slip was discovered, but the actual war between Japan and the Soviet Union caused the operating rate to drop at a frightening rate.

Somehow, they succeeded in surviving the war, but Japan quickly decided to proceed with the development of engines and other equipment.

. . .

Development of Armored Vehicles

Unlike the Japanese mainland, the infrastructure in Taiwan, Korea, and Sakhalin were poor. This made armored vehicles a necessity, and the armoring of the Japanese armed forces (federal troops) was also an urgent issue. In order to avoid the cost of deploying a large infantry force on the front lines, Japan pushed forward with mechanization.

The first vehicle to be developed was the tank. It used the 105 mm rifled gun of the Type 16 Maneuver Combat Vehicle, which had a stockpile of ammunition. It weighed 39 tons. It uses a welded structure of bulletproof steel plates for armor, a decision that was based on the attack power of the enemy vehicles that this vehicle was designed for. The engine, chassis, FCS, and all other aspects of the vehicle have been simplified and the cost reduced as much as possible. This was partly to reduce production costs, but it was also to prevent problems when deployed and operated by the various national armies that had low maintenance capabilities.

The reason for this was that it would be too cruel to ask people in the 1920s to suddenly use technology that was 100 years ahead of its time, and it was not easy to train instructors even for education. Another notable difference from the Type 10 tanks was the improvement in comfort. As this vehicle was expected to be used in frontline operations, comfort was also an important factor. This tank was developed in a very short period of time, two years, and was named the Type 31 tank upon deployment. *1

Around the time of the development of the Type 31 tank, an armored vehicle was also developed that used as many of the same maintenance parts as possible. This was also in the form of aiming to reduce the cost, including operation and maintenance, rather than the cost alone. Because the Type 31 tanks were given top priority, they were formulated in FY32, one year later, and were called the Type 32 series.

In addition, the GSDF's equipment was to be addressed by increasing the number of Type 10 tanks and Type 16 MCVs.

. . .

Development of Aircraft

After understanding the usefulness of bombers during the Soviet-Japanese War, Japan began to work on the development of a large bomber. Since there were no high-powered engines for large bombers, this was the first priority.

They also developed an air superiority fighter. This was the development of an air defense interceptor to deal with the piston fighters that would appear in the future. In terms of performance alone, the ASDF's fighter groups have outstanding performance that is 50 years ahead of the competition, but there is a problem with numbers.

For this reason, the development of an air superiority fighter equipped with a turboprop engine was started by diverting technology from the jet engines that had been manufactured before. The main armament was a 20 mm machine gun and a short-range air-to-air missile converted from portable SAMs. *3 It is an all-weather fighter with a speed advantage and radar-controlled guided missiles, an advantage that was judged to last for 20 years. Completed in about three years, it was named the F-5 fighter in 1933 upon deployment.

In addition, Japan also began developing helicopters for ground attacks. Since the means of air defense would be underdeveloped in the next 50 years, the helicopter was expected to be used as an aerial artillery weapon. However, this was not the result of arming transport helicopters. This was due to the concern that the payload would be eaten up by the helicopter's capability.

. . .

Development of Ships

The construction of the Yamato-class escort ship had reached its peak. Other than that, the construction of ships to meet the needs of this era was largely under control. It was a reverence for the Washington Naval Treaty. Japan's only potential maritime threats were the United States and Britain, and since Japan maintained good relations with both of these countries, there was no particular need to build up its war potential.

For this reason, most that were built were OPVs of the standard 1.500-ton class. The main purpose was to respond to the expansion of territorial waters. In particular, it was important to maintain a presence in the South Seas. The same could be said for the entire Sea of Okhotsk. For this reason, nearly 30 ships were built. *2 However, even more important than the construction of OPVs was the expansion of the Coast Guard's ships. With more than double the territorial waters and exclusive economic zones than before, the Coast Guard was forced to expand the scale of its operations to a level that was not only twice as large as before.

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Notes

*1: The Type 31 was an extremely affordable and simplified tank from the Japanese perspective, but at the same time, it was a tank that was too far removed from its contemporaries. It had sloped armor, a long-barreled large-caliber gun, and a high-powered engine. In other words, it had armor that could handle the firepower of a medium tank or smaller, firepower that could destroy a heavy tank, and maneuverability that rivaled that of a light tank.

The introduction of the Type 31 tank, which balanced these elements at a high level, made all conventional tanks obsolete and gave the world what is known as the Type 31 shock, or standard tank shock. Although Type 10 and Type 90 tanks had existed before, the Type 31 tank was particularly shocking because Japan had been actively promoting this tank domestically.

In addition to that, it was accepted by the media from overseas, so it became known to other countries. At the stage when the prototype was completed, France even approached them to purchase it as a main battle tank in triple digits.

*2: Since it was to be built on a considerable scale, the US and Britain confirmed that it was a destroyer-sized ship with a standard weight of 1.500 tons, but it was a pure patrol ship with only one 76 mm main gun and short-range missiles for air defense, so it was not a problem. The same was true for the patrol ships of the Japan Coast Guard. Although large patrol ships boasted a scale comparable to that of light cruisers, they were not considered a problem due to their low firepower and hull structure not being suitable for combat.

*3: The main armament of the aircraft was supposed to be 20 mm guns, but at the time of detailed design, it turned out that it would be difficult to develop a compact and lightweight 20 mm gun for use on aircraft, so the 20 mm armament was withdrawn and a 12,7 mm machine gun was adopted. After that, the development of a 20 mm gun itself was considered, but in the end, the new development was rejected.

However, this did not mean that the 20 mm gun would be abandoned, because the power of the 20 mm gun was attractive when considering future engagements with large bombers. Therefore, it was finally decided to give up the installation of the gun in the wing, and to install a modified version of the M197 machine gun in the nose of the aircraft.