During the edition 2019 of its Firepower event which takes place every year at the end of August in the East Fuji Maneuver Area, the Japan Ground Self Defense Forces (JGSDF) has unveiled the Type 19, a new 155mm wheeled self-propelled howitzer based on a MAN military truck chassis.

New Japanese-made Type 19 155mm 8x8 wheeled self-propelled howitzer in a live demonstration at the Firepower event of the Japan Ground Self Defense Forces. August 2019.  (Picture source Internet)

The new Japanese Type 19 155mm wheeled self-propelled howitzer seems very similar to the French-made CAESAR manufactured by the French Company Nexter Systems. The main advantages of that type of artillery system are that it has similar firepower to existing towed and self-propelled artillery systems with greater strategic mobility and quicker in/out of action times.

The Type 19 is based on a MAN Military 8x8 military truck chassis with the crew cabin at the front and one 155mm howitzer mounted at the rear. According to our first analysis, the crew cab seems to be fitted with armor to provide protection against firing of small arms 7.62mm calibers and artillery shell splinters.

The Type 19 has a crew of five with three soldiers seated in the crew cab and two additional seats in a cabin located in the middle of the truck chassis.

As for the French CAESAR, the Type 19 seems to be equipped with a main fire-control computer located in the crew cab but at the rear on the left is the gun display unit for the crew when the system is deployed in the firing position. When the system is deployed in the firing position a large spade is hydraulically lowered at the rear to provide a more stable firing platform. The rear four wheels are raised clear of the ground so that the large spade absorbs all the firing stresses.