The , referred to as the ,
is a Japanese
assault rifle used by the
Japan Self-Defense Forces
The Japan Self-Defense Forces ( ja, 自衛隊, Jieitai; abbreviated JSDF), also informally known as the Japanese Armed Forces, are the unified ''de facto''Since Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution outlaws the formation of armed forces, the ...
,
the
Japan Coast Guard
The is the coast guard of Japan.
The Japan Coast Guard consists of about 13,700 personnel and is responsible for the protection of the coastline of Japan under the oversight of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. Th ...
's
Special Security Team
The is a counter terrorism tactical unit of the Japan Coast Guard, based at the . The acronym of its Kanji name has already been used by other units, the abbreviation "SST" is used for this team.
Background
In 1985, the Maritime Safety Agency ...
units,
and the
Special Assault Team
The is a police tactical unit in major Japanese prefectural police departments, supervised by the National Police Agency.
The SAT is a national-level counter-terrorism unit that cooperates with territorial-level Anti-Firearms Squads and Cou ...
.
It has never been exported outside Japan due to its strict
Japanese Arms Export Ban.
It is known in JGSDF service as Buddy.
The Type 89 was introduced to replace the
Howa Type 64
The , is a Japanese battle rifle used exclusively by the Japan Self-Defense Forces and the Japanese Coast Guard. It is a gas-operated, selective fire weapon which is chambered for the 7.62×51mm NATO round and uses a detachable 20-round box ...
battle rifle in frontline units, entering service in 1989. It has remained Japan's principal
service rifle
A service rifle (or standard-issue rifle) is a rifle a military issues to regular infantry. In modern militaries, this is typically a versatile and rugged battle rifle, assault rifle, or carbine suitable for use in nearly all environments. Most ...
since then. Limited numbers of the Type 89's replacement, the
Howa Type 20, were purchased in 2020.
History
Like most other nations, Japan began the
Cold War
The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...
with a
battle rifle
A battle rifle is a service rifle chambered to fire a fully powered cartridge.
The term "battle rifle" is a retronym created largely out of a need to better differentiate the intermediate cartridge, intermediate-powered assault rifles (e.g. the S ...
– the
7.62×51mm NATO Howa Type 64
The , is a Japanese battle rifle used exclusively by the Japan Self-Defense Forces and the Japanese Coast Guard. It is a gas-operated, selective fire weapon which is chambered for the 7.62×51mm NATO round and uses a detachable 20-round box ...
. However, over time, especially during the
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...
, the battle rifle's shortcomings became apparent, and ultimately, battle rifles began to be replaced with
assault rifles, which fired
intermediate cartridge
An intermediate cartridge is a rifle/carbine cartridge that has significantly greater power than a pistol cartridge but still has a reduced muzzle energy compared to fully powered cartridges (such as the .303 British, 7.62×54mmR, 7.92×57mm ...
s, though they had a weaker effective range compared to battle rifles. The 5.56×45mm round (
SS109 SS1 may refer to:
Transportation
* SS 1, a British car of the 1930s and predecessor to the Jaguar
* China Railways SS1, an electric locomotive model used in China
* Moore SS-1, a glider
* Reliant Scimitar SS1, a sports car made by Reliant durin ...
), first used in the
M16 rifle
The M16 rifle (officially designated Rifle, Caliber 5.56 mm, M16) is a family of military rifles adapted from the ArmaLite AR-15 rifle for the United States military. The original M16 rifle was a 5.56×45mm automatic rifle with a 20-roun ...
, eventually became the standard of ammunition type for all
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...
member
assault rifles. In accordance with this, the
Defense Agency
The is an executive department of the Government of Japan responsible for preserving the peace and independence of Japan, and maintaining the country’s national security and the Japan Self-Defense Forces.
The ministry is headed by the ...
began development on their next generation assault rifle to replace the 7.62×51mm
Type 64 battle rifle after its 25-year span of service.
Development was handled primarily by
Howa
is a Japanese machinery manufacturer. The company is known internationally for their production of military and civilian firearms. However, they also manufacture products such as machine tools, sweeping vehicles and windows and doors.
Histo ...
since it was already licensed to produce the AR-180 version of the
Armalite AR-18
The ArmaLite AR-18 is a gas-operated assault rifle chambered for 5.56×45mm NATO ammunition. The AR-18 was designed at ArmaLite in California by Arthur Miller, Eugene Stoner, George Sullivan, and Charles Dorchester in 1963 as an alternative t ...
rifle for commercial purposes, and some of the Type 89's internal workings are the same as those of the AR-18 - the Type 89 uses the same short-stroke gas piston system with a rotating bolt as the AR-18, but not its dual
recoil spring
Recoil operation is an operating mechanism used to implement locked breech, autoloading firearms. Recoil operated firearms use the energy of recoil to cycle the action, as opposed to gas operation or blowback operation using the pressure of the p ...
s. In order to determine suitability of the rifle, it was issued in limited numbers to the
Japan Self-Defense Forces
The Japan Self-Defense Forces ( ja, 自衛隊, Jieitai; abbreviated JSDF), also informally known as the Japanese Armed Forces, are the unified ''de facto''Since Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution outlaws the formation of armed forces, the ...
for field testing purposes. After the data collected from the field testing stage of the AR-18 was examined, formal development of the next-generation assault rifle began with its designation as the HR-16 (HR1604).
The HR-15 was the first version of the experimental rifle that would eventually become the Type 89, but was developed concurrently with the HR-10, HR-11 and HR-13 by 1989.
On December 6, 2019, the Japanese Ministry of Defense announced that plans have started to eventually change the Type 89 to a new 5.56-based assault rifle. In 2020, the
Howa Type 20 was developed, and is planned to replace the Type 89 as Japan's
service rifle
A service rifle (or standard-issue rifle) is a rifle a military issues to regular infantry. In modern militaries, this is typically a versatile and rugged battle rifle, assault rifle, or carbine suitable for use in nearly all environments. Most ...
.
Design
One of the most advantageous features of the Type 89 rifle over the Type 64 was the ability to ease the load on the individual soldier in relation to the amount of ammunition that he could carry. Also, due to the use of aluminum and
thermoset plastic
In materials science, a thermosetting polymer, often called a thermoset, is a polymer that is obtained by irreversibly hardening (" curing") a soft solid or viscous liquid prepolymer (resin). Curing is induced by heat or suitable radiation and ...
as opposed to the steel and wood construction of the Type 64 rifle, the speed with which a soldier could react to a threat was increased. The fixed
stock
In finance, stock (also capital stock) consists of all the shares by which ownership of a corporation or company is divided.Longman Business English Dictionary: "stock - ''especially AmE'' one of the shares into which ownership of a company ...
version of the rifle contains a storage space covered by a rubberized cap that may be accessed by pulling the cap away from the body for the rifle and rotating it in either direction. Although the typical issue model is equipped with a fixed stock, a small number of the steel tubing folding stock version were produced for
AFV crews and
paratroopers
A paratrooper is a military parachutist—someone trained to parachute into a military operation, and usually functioning as part of an airborne force. Military parachutists (troops) and parachutes were first used on a large scale during Worl ...
.
Fit and finish of the Type 89 was improved greatly over the Type 64 due to the use of forged aluminum, molded thermoset plastics and stamped steel manufacturing methods pioneered by the processes used to produce the AR-18 and
Heckler & Koch G3
The Heckler & Koch G3 (''Gewehr'' 3) is a 7.62×51mm NATO, select-fire battle rifle developed in the 1950s by the German armament manufacturer Heckler & Koch (H&K) in collaboration with the Spanish state-owned design and development agency CET ...
series rifle.
Cost
The Type 89 was designed with simplified operation and minimal number of parts due to the understanding that the complex structure and large number of parts were responsible for the often defective operation of the Type 64 rifle. Because of this, the cost of the Type 89 rifle was roughly half that of the 870,000 yen Type 64 rifle in 1989. According to the Defense Agency, the unit cost of the Type 89 rifle was reduced to about 340,000 yen by fiscal year 2005.
Despite this, it is still considered too expensive for general issue as the ideal price required by the Japanese Government for general production is between 10,000 and 100,000 yen per unit. This is further complicated because the procurement method for the weapon is limited to single fiscal year accounting and further reductions in manufacturing process costs are currently non existent.
Magazine
The Type 89 can accept magazines designed for the M16 series of rifles.
However, the magazine produced specifically for the Type-89 uses a follower that has a special shape to hold the bolt open after the final round is spent. If an M16 series magazine is used, the bolt will not lock back after the final round is expended. The magazine designed for the Type 89 also differs from ones produced for the M16 because it has holes in the sides of the body to indicate if it has been loaded with 30 or 20 rounds of ammunition. However, this comes with the hidden cost of allowing sand and other foreign bodies to enter the magazine easily and cause
malfunctions in the operation of the weapon.
Unlike the M16, the magazine well of the Type 89 is not beveled or tapered because the lower receiver is only slightly wider than that of the magazine body, which makes reloading the rifle more difficult.
Ammo
Type 89 rifle ammunition is interchangeable with the 5.56×45mm SS109/M855 round used by the U.S. military and NATO.
Along with the 7.62×51mm round used in the Type 64 rifle, this allows for interchangeability with ammunition stockpiles of U.S. forces stationed in Japan. Since the ammunition developed for the Type 89 rifle is produced in Japan, it is head stamped with the
sakura
A cherry blossom, also known as Japanese cherry or sakura, is a flower of many trees of Prunus, genus ''Prunus'' or Prunus subg. Cerasus, ''Prunus'' subg. ''Cerasus''. They are common species in East Asia, including China, Korea and especia ...
mark of the Self Defense Forces instead of the typical NATO circle-cross used on the SS109/M855 round.
![Howa type 89 03](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2a/Howa_type_89_03.jpg)
The selector switch is located on the right side of the lower receiver and is often referred to as the "Atare 3," (アタレサン ''Ataresan'' アタレ(Atare) means "hit it") referencing the different selection positions. The markings and associated feature are as follows in functional order:
![Howa type 89 02](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/26/Howa_type_89_02.jpg)
: ア (アンゼン=Safe) → レ (レンシャ=Auto) → 3 (Three-Round Burst) → タ (タンパツ=Semi)
:Its 3-round burst feature is built separately from the rest, so as to prevent the selector switch from being totally useless in case it can't be used due to accident or a malfunction.
Accessories
The
bayonet
A bayonet (from French ) is a knife, dagger, sword, or spike-shaped weapon designed to fit on the end of the muzzle of a rifle, musket or similar firearm, allowing it to be used as a spear-like weapon.Brayley, Martin, ''Bayonets: An Illustr ...
manufactured specifically for the Type 89 rifle can be used as a wire cutter by connecting it to a lug on the
scabbard
A scabbard is a sheath for holding a sword, knife, or other large blade. As well, rifles may be stored in a scabbard by horse riders. Military cavalry and cowboys had scabbards for their saddle ring carbine rifles and Lever action, lever-action ...
. Furthermore, the end of the bayonet scabbard can be used as a bottle opener. The US Military
M9 bayonet
The M9 Bayonet, officially known as the M9 Phrobis III, is a multi-purpose knife and bayonet officially adopted in 1986 by the United States. It has a blade and is issued with a sheath designed to double as a wire cutter.
History
The M9 bayon ...
may also be affixed to the rifle.
The Type 89 rifle is equipped with an integrated bipod to facilitate accuracy, which was also on the Type 64. However, unlike the bipod on the Type 64, the version on the Type 89 is easily removed as it is clamped onto the barrel behind the bayonet lug with a
clothes-pin style spring mechanism and retained with a lever-like lock. Also, the Type 89's handguard is molded with inlets along its lower edges in order to accommodate the legs of the bipod if they are folded inwards for storage.
The
Type 06 rifle grenade
The is a rifle grenade used by the JGSDF. It can be launched from the Howa Type 89 or Howa Type 64 rifles without other attachments.
History
The JGSDF did not adopt the US-made M203 grenade launcher for general use after a thorough examination. ...
is designed for the Type 89.
The attachment of the
M203 grenade launcher
The M203 is a single-shot 40 mm under-barrel grenade launcher designed to attach to a rifle. It uses the same rounds as the older stand-alone M79 break-action grenade launcher, which utilizes the high-low propulsion system to keep recoil force ...
is possible with the proper adapter.
Special forces units of the
Japan Ground Self-Defense Force
The Japan Ground Self-Defense Force ( ja, 陸上自衛隊, Rikujō Jieitai), , also referred to as the Japanese Army, is the land warfare branch of the Japan Self-Defense Forces. Created on July 1, 1954, it is the largest of the three service b ...
are additionally issued a pressure switch activated
targeting laser
A laser designator is a laser light source which is used to Targeting (warfare), designate a target. Laser designators provide targeting for laser-guided bombs, missiles, or precision artillery munitions, such as the Paveway series of bombs, ...
and flashlight which are mounted on the barrel end of the weapon ahead of the front sight assembly. Regular members of the Self-Defense Forces may also obtain these, but must pay for them out of their own funds.
Recent improvements
A number of recent modifications have been made to the Type 89 due to the recent armed deployment to Iraq of JSDF members as well as an overall concern over counter-terrorist and possible future combat deployments.
In accordance with the "Iraq Revival Support Law on Special Measures on Land for the U.S. Military" (イラク復興支援特措法) or the "Self-Defense Forces Iraq Dispatch Law," a selector switch has been manufactured and installed on the left hand side of the lower receiver for ambidextrous use for rifles issued to JSDF members in Iraq.
However, this is only a temporary modification and the rifle must be returned to its original state (with the selector switch on the right side only) when it is returned to Japan.
![JGSDF with Type 89](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/ff/JGSDF_with_Type_89.webp)
In 2004, JSDF elements that had the possibility of seeing combat were issued an optic (an unmagnified
red dot sight
A red dot sight is a common classification for a type of non- magnifying reflector (or reflex) sight for firearms, and other devices that require aiming, that gives the user a point of aim in the form of an illuminated red dot. A standard desig ...
) with their Type 89 along with a mounting bracket in order to decrease target acquisition time.
However, since the use of the sight is still in its provisional stage, individual JSDF members are expected to purchase their own commercially available model for use in a possible combat theater. Among the commonly used optics include the MD-33 manufactured by Tasco Optics Japan under license.
During the initial deployment in Iraq, JSDF elements that had the possibility of seeing combat (for example the
Western Army Infantry Regiment
The Western Army Infantry Regiment ( ja, 西部方面普通科連隊, Seibu Hōmen Futsū-ka Rentai) is a Japanese light infantry regiment that specializes in amphibious operations. Its main purpose is to defend remote islands in Japanese territor ...
) were issued a removable foregrip
and a 25 mm
Weaver rail
A Weaver rail mount is a system to connect telescopic sights (often via a scope mount) and other accessories to firearms and certain crossbows. It uses a pair of parallel rails and several slots perpendicular to these rails.
The later Picatinn ...
was installed under the front handguards of their Type 89s to accommodate it. Shortly afterwards, the restriction was lifted and all units began to receive foregrips despite common complaints about damage to the handguards that were caused by the mount. However, the JGSDF prohibited the attachment of foregrips due to concerns of damage.
A
three-point sling was issued to JSDF elements that had the possibility of seeing combat due to the positive testimonials of various international military and police forces.
The issued three-point sling is in black color (unlike the
olive-drab
Olive is a dark yellowish-green color, like that of unripe or green olives.
As a color word in the English language, it appears in late Middle English. Shaded toward gray, it becomes olive drab.
Variations
Olivine
Olivine is the typic ...
for standard sling), with a buckle similar to the one for the ALICE LC-2 belt. Individual JSDF members were also allowed to purchase their own commercially available models for their own use if they wished.
Variants
Type 89-F
![89R(初期生産)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d8/89R%EF%BC%88%E5%88%9D%E6%9C%9F%E7%94%9F%E7%94%A3%EF%BC%89.JPG)
The only variant of the Type 89 is the Type 89-F rifle, also known as the Type 89 Para,
which has a folding stock compared to the fixed stock of the standard Type 89.
The Type 89 Para is issued to airborne soldiers, tankers, recon soldiers, and armored infantry soldiers. The stock folds to the left side in order to not cover the safety selector on the right side.
ACIES carbine
As part of the development of the JSDF's Advanced Combat Infantry Equipment System (先進個人装備)—which is the approximate equivalent of the American
Future Soldier
Future Soldier was a multi-nation military project by the United States and its allies launched in the late 1990s.
Set-up
Superiority to enemy ground forces will be achieved by equipping the average ground-based combat soldier with an integ ...
program—some Type 89 Rifles have been modified to a
carbine
A carbine ( or ) is a long gun that has a barrel shortened from its original length. Most modern carbines are rifles that are compact versions of a longer rifle or are rifles chambered for less powerful cartridges.
The smaller size and lighter ...
format with an overall length of about 800 millimeters, a four-sided rail system, a polymer retractable stock, and a shorter barrel.
Publicity photographs taken at exhibitions hosted by the Technical Research and Development Institute of the
Japanese Ministry of Defense
The is an executive department of the Government of Japan responsible for preserving the peace and independence of Japan, and maintaining the country’s national security and the Japan Self-Defense Forces.
The ministry is headed by the ...
(TRDI) also show that the third generation of the prototyping process for ACIES has now produced a full size version of this modified Type 89 with a retractable stock and rail system.
That variant has a full-length barrel and an overall length of about 940 millimeters. An underbarrel digital interface switch connected to a foregrip has also been developed, along with an unusually large top-mounted sighting system.
The sighting system incorporates a ranging device and a video camera so that, at least under
shooting range
A shooting range, firing range, gun range or shooting ground is a specialized facility, sports venue, venue or playing field, field designed specifically for firearm usage qualifications, training, practice or shooting sport, competitions. So ...
conditions,
it is possible to hold the rifle at a distance from the body to train and fire it around corners—much like analogous foreign systems. There was also some evidence of evaluation of other assault rifles as possible replacements for the Type 89, but this may no longer be the case.
References
Bibliography
*
External links
Official JGSDF Page
{{AR-16 derivatives
5.56 mm assault rifles
Rifles of Japan
Cold War weapons of Japan
Weapons and ammunition introduced in 1989