The Type 97 Te-Ke was a Japanese tankette (4.5 tons) of the Second World War designed as a replacement for the earlier Type 94.
The origins of the Type 97 lay in a prototype diesel-engined Type 94. Although the chassis was on the whole similar the design of the 97 was different than the 94. The engine was at the rear and the turret (and commander) moved to the middle of the tank - this put the driver to the left of the commander and in a much better position for communication.
Production began in 1937. It was Japan's most widely used tankette, and was produced in large numbers. As with the 94 it was also used for towing a trailer of supplies. Some vehicles were fitted with a 7.7 mm Type 97 machine gun instead of the 37 mm gun. Typically, Type 97s were distributed in twos to support infantry units, and were very often used as armored tractors and supply vehicles. By 1943, most Type 97s had been withdrawn completely.The main gun was the Type 94 37 mm tank gun, barrel length of 1.3585 m (L36.7), EL angle of fire of -15 to +20 degrees, AZ angle of fire of 20 degrees, muzzle velocity of 600 m/s, penetration of 45 mm/300 m and used by Type 95 Light Tank (Early Model) and Type 97 Tankette. | 
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