M5A1

Type 89

Type 87 RCV

TKX (P)

Type 89

Type 87 RCV

TKX (P)

Japan

VI Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
9.0	9.0	9.0

Class:

Light tank

Research:94 000

Purchase:520 000

Show in game

Description

The Type 89 is a rank VI Japanese light tank with a battle rating of 9.0 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced in Update 1.85 "Supersonic".

The full name is known as the Mitsubishi Type 89 infantry fighting vehicle (Japanese: 三菱89式装甲戦闘車 - Mitsubishi 89-shiki sōkō-sentō-sha), the Type 89 provides an autocannon weapon combined with an anti-tank guided missile for a diverse range of attack methods.

General info

Survivability and armour

Describe armour protection. Note the most well protected and key weak areas. Appreciate the layout of modules as well as the number and location of crew members. Is the level of armour protection sufficient, is the placement of modules helpful for survival in combat?

If necessary use a visual template to indicate the most secure and weak zones of the armour.

Mobility

Write about the mobility of the ground vehicle. Estimate the specific power and manoeuvrability as well as the maximum speed forward and backwards.

Armaments

Main armament

The Type 89 is outfitted with the following:

• 1 x 35 mm Oerlikon KDE autocannon
• 6 x Type 79 ATGMs

The ATGM missiles are fired in salvos of two. Its auto cannon is shared with the Gepard, the Type 87, and the Chieftain Marksman and is widely considered to be one of the most effective guns in regards to damage output and reliability. This is due to its moderate calibre and rate of fire: 35mm is the largest of the small autocannons which allows it to have a much higher rate of fire than any 40 mm or 57 mm system. This allows the Type 89 to easily deal with any lightly armoured vehicle in the game. It also has access to a belt of DM 23, which allows it to deal with MBTs from the side, though this is usually not advised. The Type 79 ATGM has around 700 mm flat pen at any range and has a high velocity, making it one of the better ATGMs in-game, though it falls short of the HOT series and the AGM-114Bs found in the AH-1Z. This ATGM lets you deal with most tanks from the front, but be sure to avoid hitting NATO NERA composite armour or Russian ERA, as these composite armours will likely prevent an easy penetration. Note that since you have two ATGMs mounted to the outside of your vehicle (with six total), you can immediately fire another missile after your first one lands.

Additional armament

Some tanks are armed with several guns in one or more turrets. Evaluate the additional weaponry and give advice on its use. Describe the ammunition available for additional weaponry. Give advice on how to use them and how to fill the ammunition storage. If there is no additional weaponry remove this subsection.

Machine guns

Offensive and anti-aircraft machine guns not only allow you to fight some aircraft but also are effective against lightly armoured vehicles. Evaluate machine guns and give recommendations on its use.

Usage in battles

Describe the tactics of playing in the vehicle, the features of using vehicles in the team and advice on tactics. Refrain from creating a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view but give the reader food for thought. Describe the most dangerous enemies and give recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of the game in different modes (AB, RB, SB).

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Has 2 ATGM loaded at the same time and can fire them in quick succession
• Unlike other IFV and most of ATGM carriers, can fire ATGM on move and at any speed
• Type 79 ATGM is hard to dodge and have high penetration power of 700 - can breach ERA and weak NERA
• Potent ammunition for autocannon - able to take out enemy tanks with one or two well-aimed penetrating hits
• Second strongest APHE shell on an infantry fighting vehicle
• High explosive round can one-shot low flying aircraft
• With APDS shells, can fight medium most tanks
• Can very efficiently exchange speed to maneuverability at gears 2 and 3
• Neutral steering
• Good reverse speed, turns better in reverse than forward

Cons:

• Weak armour - has hull break, can't completely negate damage, like the Warrior with add-on composite shields, can lose entire crew to a single 20 mm API-T and even APDS shot from the side
• Low ammo count for the main gun
• Due to placement of ATGM launchers on turret, firing them in close combat is awkward and may result in a non-fatal hit
• Unlike type 60 ATM, ATGM only reloads after you fired both of loaded missiles, forcing you to waste ammunition, on top of having only six ATGMs
• ATGM reload takes 30 seconds, which is three times slower than any other light tank and specialized ATGM carrier
• Unfavorable matchmaking compared to other infantry fighting vehicles like the M3 Bradley
• Driver is not able to handle first forward gear turning of the tank, resulting in abysmal forward first-gear turning speed. Problem can be avoided by manually shifting transmission to gear 2 or driving forward until driver does it himself, but IFV will stutter in close combat

History

At the beginning of the 1980s, the JSDF wanted to replace its outdated Type 60 and Type 73 APCs with more modern IFVs, similar to the American Bradley and the German Marder. The JSDF drew up a set of requirements and tasked the Mitsubishi company with developing a suitable replacement.

In 1984, funding was approved to build four different prototypes, all of which underwent testing until 1986. By 1989, one prototype design was selected and was adopted within the armed forces under the designation of Type 89.

Initially, the JSDF estimated the need for about 300 Type 89s to be built. However, the end of the Cold War in the 1990s combined with a limited budget prevented a rapid mass-production of Type 89 to take place. In fact, production was proceeding at a very low rate, with just over 50 vehicles entering service with the JSDF by 1999.

Although production of Type 89 was discontinued in 2004, the vehicle is still in service with the JSDF today. As of 2016, a total of 68 vehicles were present in the JSDF’s inventory from the initially planned 300.

- From Devblog

Media

An excellent addition to the article will be video guides, as well as screenshots from the game and photos.

See also

Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:

• reference to the series of the vehicles;
• links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.

External links

• [Devblog] Type 89: The Fire Dragon

Japan light tanks
Type 89	I-Go Ko
Type 95	Ha-Go · Ha-Go Commander
Type 98	Ke-Ni
Other	Ka-Mi
IFV	Type 89
Wheeled	Type 87 RCV (P) · Type 87 RCV · Type 16 (P) · Type 16 (FPS) · Type 16
USA	▅M24 · ▅M41A1