The Type 10 (10式戦車) is a main battle tank (MBT) of the Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force (JGSDF). Initially accepted into service in 2010 (with effect in 2012) to complement and replace the existing Type 74 and Type 90 main battle tanks. Compared to its predecessors, there was a bigger emphasis on the C4I system, weight reduction, and modular armour.
Challenges of the New Millennium
In the mid-1990s, after the introduction of the Type 90 MBT (TKX-1), the Ministry of Defense recognized that, despite its advanced fire control system (competitive even by NATO standards), further upgrades to the Type 90 would be impractical due to its already substantial weight by Japanese standards. The older Type 61 medium tank could not contend with early MBTs, and the Type 74 MBT was too costly to modernize. Meanwhile, potential adversaries, such as mainland China and the Russian Federation, had already fielded new MBTs, including the PLA's ZTZ96 and ZTZ99, and the Russian T-90A. To maintain both tank development and Japan's self-sufficient defence capability, the JGSDF approved a new plan for a next-generation MBT with modular design, allowing for further upgrades, which was designated TKX-2.
From Kyumaru to Hitomaru
The TKX-2 project set ambitious goals: to match the light weight of the Type 74 (at 40 tons fully loaded) while being smaller than the Type 90, and to incorporate a domestic 120 mm smoothbore gun, the latest C4ISR system, modular composite armor, and a new engine paired with an HMT transmission. Led by the TRDI with assistance from Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, the project saw the smoothbore gun and an advanced APFSDS developed by Nippon Steel Corporation and Daikin Industries, respectively. These designs were tested on a Tank Test Bed (TTB) adapted from the sixth Type 90 prototype, which first appeared in a booklet in the early 2000s. The TTB results validated the designs, and the TKX-2 project officially began in 2002. The first prototype was completed in November 2004 and tested at JGSDF Camp Higashi-Chitose, with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries building a second prototype in 2005. Additionally, three Type 90s were converted for use in testing tank platoon command systems.
After evaluations at the JGSDF Fuji School, the Ordnance School, and leaked images of the second prototype, the TKX-2 was publicly unveiled on June 14, 2010, during the opening of the JGSDF East Fuji Manoeuvre Area, and officially designated as the Type 10 MBT in October. As the most advanced MBT of its time, the Type 10 has since become an icon of the JGSDF's progress into the 21st century.
