The suspension consists on each side of five road wheels, drive sprocket at the rear and idler at the front. The Type 10 MBT is powered by a water-cooled, four-stroke, and eight-cylinder diesel engines producing 1200 hp at 2,300 rpm developed by Mitsubishi coupled with an MT1200 continuously variable transmission (CVT) gearbox. It has a weight of 40 tones in basic configuration, 44 tones in standard configuration, and 48 tones in fully equipped. Thanks to the modular armour, the protection can be adapted according to the mission requirements and threats. Type 10 is fitted with modular ceramic armour to increase protection against Rocket Propelled Grenade (RPG) ammunition, HEAT (High-Explosive Anti-Tank) projectiles, and anti-tank guided missiles. It can shoot modern 120mm ammunition and also the new third-generation APFSDS-T (Armor Piercing Fin-Stabilized Discarding Sabot – Tracer) round. The 120mm gun is fed by an automatic load located in the turret bustle. The 120mm smooth-bore gun is fitted with a thermal sleeve, fume extractor and a muzzle reference system. The main armament of the Type 10 MBT consists of a 120mm 44 caliber smooth-bore gun, which is licensed-built by Japan Steel Works and ATLA. The Type 10 MBT has a crew of 3, the driver seated at the center-front, the gunner on the left side of the turret and the commander on the right side of the turret. The Type 10 MBT uses the classic design of MBT’s with the driver at the front, turret in the middle and power pack at the rear. The production was launched in 2010 and it entered into service with the Japanese army in 2010. The development of the Type 10 was launched in 2002 and the first prototype was completed in 2006. Type 10 is considered as a fourth-generation Main Battle Tank (MBT) manufactured locally by the Japanese company Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. Japanese Army Type 10 main battle tank (Picture source Army Recognition) Follow Army Recognition on Google News at this link

Currently, the Japanese Ground Self Defence forces use three types of main battle tanks including 76 Type 10, 200 Type 74 and 341 Type 90. According to the latest Defense Budget Plan of Japan, the Japanese army would like to acquire 12 more Type 10 main battle tanks.

Japanese tanks modern 2017