USMC M4A2 Sherman versus Japanese Type 95 HA-GO: Central Pacific 1943-44 by Romain Cansière and Ed Gilbert & Edouard A Groult

Author:Romain Cansière and Ed Gilbert & Edouard A Groult
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing Plc
Published: 2020-09-17T00:00:00+00:00

This Ha-Go, knocked out on a road on Saipan, shows bamboo poles mounted on the back for infantrymen to hold onto while the tank was moving. The unprotected tank riders (foreground) were usually the first victims of the powerful American fire. (MCHD)

The Japanese 9th Tank Regiment was composed of a mixture of tank models, such as this Type 95 Ha-Go (left) and Type 97 Chi-Ha (right), both knocked out on Saipan, June 17, 1944. (NARA)

American assault forces consisted of the 2nd and 4th Marine divisions and the Army’s 27th Infantry Division. Each Marine division brought its organic tank battalion. The 4th Tank Battalion was a veteran of combat on the islands of Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands, while the 2nd Tank Battalion had seen its share of combat in the Solomons and at Tarawa. The Marine Corps did not need individual medium tank companies anymore since it was converting to all-medium tank battalions.

During training, tank–infantry cooperation was greatly improved with the addition of a telephone to the rear of each tank so the infantry could better control tanks. In addition, jeeps were equipped with TCS radios for tank company commanders to better coordinate tank attacks with infantry at battalion level.

Better coordination with supporting arms (artillery, aviation, and naval gunfire) was also emphasized. To prevent friendly fire, large markings were painted on the tank turret tops. The 4th Tank Battalion painted the turret tops in yellow while the 2nd Tank Battalion painted large white five-pointed stars. This was to help aerial observers to better locate the front lines and thus adjust gunfire support. This time, factory-designed wading stacks were available to all tanks.

After Tarawa, Bale’s company was re-designated A Company, 2nd Tank Battalion. He recalled:

Probably some of the best combined arms training I’ve ever been through took place [in Hawaii] in the Second Marine Division. I attributed it to several things. We had lost so many people and learned so many lessons following Tarawa, and we didn’t know where we were going, but we wanted to apply all those things and did not want to make the mistakes, and did not want to lose the lives. Before the division embarked and left there, the division staff laid out on the ground, using a chalk line, and said “this is the beach, and over here is something else, and over here is a road” and this kind of thing. It duplicated where we were going to land. Then everybody walked through it. Didn’t make any difference whether you were in tanks or the artillery or what, you walked through it. I’ve often said, I didn’t say it today because I have friends out in that audience, and also panelists who would disagree violently with me, but I also think that—and I’ve served in four Marine Divisions at one time or another between World War II and Korea and Viet Nam—the 2nd Marine Division when it left Hawaii going to Saipan was probably the best trained Marine Division I’ve ever seen.

Private First Class Robert U.

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