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Type 96

1936 WORLD WAR 2

History of the Type 96

From 1936 to the end of World War II in 1945, the Type 96 light machine gun was in service with the Imperial Japanese Army. Intended to replace the Type 11 LMG, the Type 96 was an improvement, but still had some of the inherent design limitations prevalent in its predecessor, the Type 11.

Nonetheless, the Type 96 was largely accepted and served until the end of the war - it never officially replaced the Type 11, nor was it replaced by the cessation of hostilities.

Of course, as the Japanese army became more committed to a full-scale war in Manchuria and China, completely new requirements were put forward based on subsequent combat operations. Machine guns have stood the test of time since World War I, and as doctrines continue to evolve around the world, this weapon class meets an entirely new need as a suppression system to protect the advance of Allied infantry. Gone are the bloody days of trench warfare in strategically mobile smaller infantry groups backed by machine gun fire and light artillery, tanks have proven to be the norm.

Heavy machine gun systems still play a role in every conflict, but light machine guns make this class suppression fire a viable and portable concept. The world's major powers have begun to develop these light weapons precisely for this purpose, and the growing Japanese army also proves this.

The first draft of the Type 11, developed by renowned Japanese gunsmith (and lifelong Army officer) Kijiro Nambu, came out in 1922 with limited success. For the most part, the Type 11 is a very conventional weapon system, fueled by gasoline, using an underpowered 6.5x50mm Arizaka (Meiji 30) rifle cartridge fed by a 30-round "funnel" system.

The hopper method allows the magazine to hold up to six 5-round "clips" with the magazine housing attached to the weapon system and the shooter inserting the magazines into the machine as needed. While an arrangement that leaves the Type 11 vulnerable to dust accumulation and contamination in the field is a good solution, it will undoubtedly cause clogging of the internal system.

After gaining extensive experience in this field with light machine guns throughout China in the early 1930s, Japanese troops rallied to find new weapons of similar scope and capabilities.

Nambu set out to work on a complex design that basically borrowed qualities from the Czech ZB vz. 26 series machine guns, as well as the French Hotchkiss model. The original 6.5x50mm Arisaka cartridge proved so effective in combat that a new Army rifle cartridge was introduced - the 7.7x58mm Arisaka cartridge.

Although newer, more powerful cartridges were being produced at the time of the LMG's revised design, the new machine gun still houses the low-power 6.5x50mm Arisaka cartridge. The design was evaluated in 1936 and entered the Imperial Japanese Army's inventory as the Type 96 LMG.

Production began shortly thereafter and continued until 1945.