TYPE 89 HEAVY GRENADE
DISCHARGER - a short ranged mortar desired to be fired braced on
the ground, the "knee mortar" gave the Japanese infantryman a huge
advantage in short-range firepower. The best an average GI might throw a
grenade is around 100 feet, 35 yards. The Type 89 could place a grenade
up to twenty times that distance. They were cheap, light, simple, not
primitive, extremely dangerous and utterly ubiquitous. The 503d
had a mortar platoon in each Company, normally with three 60mm mortars.
The Japanese would have a 50mm mortar launcher in each squad. The
US standard launcher weighed in at about 43 lbs, whereas the Type 89
weighed in at 12 lbs. They were easy to use, robust, and amazingly
accurate. It was initially called a "leg mortar" because it was carried
strapped to the leg. In captured documents, "leg mortar" was
mistranslated as "knee mortar". It was fired by a toggle
string, not by dropping the mortar round down the weapon's barrel. How
many allied servicemen broke their thigh using trophy examples of this
weapon is unknown, so hopefully this is not a photograph of an
idiot about to get himself a self-inflicted wound. The 'trooper has been
identified as Dodson. |