On a Tuesday military exercise at a training ground in southern Japan, a catastrophic internal explosion inside a Type 10 main battle tank claimed the lives of three Japan Ground Self-Defense Force soldiers and left a fourth service member wounded, defense officials confirmed.
The fatal incident unfolded at the Hijudai Training Area, located in Oita Prefecture, as the Type 10 tank took part in a live-fire drill alongside two other armored vehicles. At the time of the blast, three service members — the tank’s commander, gunner and a designated safety officer — were positioned inside the vehicle’s gun turret, and all three died as a result of the explosion. The fourth crew member, the tank’s driver, escaped immediate death but sustained injuries that required medical attention.
In the wake of the tragedy, Japan Ground Self-Defense Force Chief of Staff Masayoshi Arai announced an immediate suspension to all live-fire training operations for two of Japan’s main tank models: the Type 10 and the older Type 90. Both platforms utilize the same type of live ammunition that was in use during Tuesday’s accident. The suspension will remain in place throughout the official investigation into the root cause of the explosion and other key circumstances surrounding the incident.
“Our priority is to quickly identify the cause of this accident so we can implement thorough preventive measures to stop such a tragedy from happening again,” Arai stated in a press briefing following the blast.
First rolled out for deployment in 2011, the Type 10 stands as Japan’s most modern domestically produced main battle tank, designed to deliver enhanced mobility, firepower and armor protection for the nation’s ground defense forces.