RX-75 Guntank

The RX-75 Guntank (ガンタンク) is a fictional weapon from the mecha anime Mobile Suit Gundam. The real life Type 87 self-propelled anti-aircraft gun of the Japan Self-Defense Forces was unofficially nicknamed as Guntank after the fictional weapon by troopers.

The RX-75 Guntank was the first prototype mobile suit developed in the Earth Federation's Project V. However, the Guntank hardly qualified at all as a mobile suit, which generally referred to bipedal machines. The Guntank had the torso and arms of a mobile suit, but possessed a tank-like base with tracks. It also lacked the humanoid manipulator hands and had a canopy-style cockpit on the head, along with the cockpit in the torso. Like all Project V prototypes, the Guntank's design incorporate the Core Block System.

The RX-75 Guntank was developed when the first rumors of the Principality of Zeon's mobile suits reached the Federation. The Guntank was designed as a long-range anti-mobile suit and artillery support unit. Although its performance in this role fell below expectations, it did pack a heavy punch. Its main weapons were twin 180 mm recoilless cannons, which were capable of both effective direct and indirect fires at both long and medium ranges. The Guntank's two arms ended in four-barrel missile launchers instead of manipulator hands. These weapons provided good cover fire against enemy tanks and aircraft but less effective against enemy mobile suits at close range.

Guntank, along with Gundam has great cultural influence in Japan. The rescue robot T-52 Enryu (援竜) (official link of newer model T-53) created by Tmsuk(official page) for the Japanese fire department is quoted to be Guntank(?)'s huge rescue robot by My commu journal.

RX-75-4 Guntank
On Side 7, only one unit, the RX-75-4 Guntank, survived the Zeon Zaku attack. This remaining prototype made its way to the Pegasus-class assault cruiser White Base. The Guntank design fought alongside the RX-77-2 Guncannon and the RX-78-2 Gundam, but it was easily outclassed due to the close-range nature of warfare under Minovsky interference. However, after the death of the Guntank pilot Ryu Jose, the mobile suit was upgraded to be used by a single pilot in the canopy-style cockpit, and continued to be piloted by Hayato Kobayashi. The RX-75-4 Guntank was finally decommissioned at the Federation's General Headquarters at Jaburo, South America in November UC 0079 having served admirably in its short service.

In the original Mobile Suit Gundam anime TV series, the RX-75-4 Guntank was not decommissioned at Jaburo but continued service on board the White Base until it was destroyed at the Zeon space fortress A Baoa Qu. The discrepancy between the two versions of events exists because the Guntank was seen more as a 'super robot' genre mecha than the 'real robot' genre mecha that the series was aiming for. The movie version of events is considered more canonical, as it reflects the latest version of Tomino's vision.

The RX-75-4 Guntank first appear in Mobile Suit Gundam, design by Kunio Okawara.

The RX-75 Guntank was given a new look to make it more realistic in the "origin" manga, changes from the animated 1979 guntank include a shorter torso, and the open area between the driver's cockpit and the gunner's cockpit suggests that this Guntank does not utilize the FF-X7 Core Fighter used by the original.

RX-75 Guntank Mass-Production Type
A mass production model of Guntank was produced later in the war, designated RX-75 Guntank Mass-Production Type. The Mass-production Type abandoned the Core Block system to cut costs; the new model could also swivel its upper torso. The original Guntank's 180 mm cannons were replaced with smaller 120 mm cannons; these cannons could be removed and replaced with other appendages. Some of these mass-produced Guntanks were equipped with a forward bulldozer mounted on the front glacis plate and crane for recovery work. It was proven to be a highly efficient artillery support unit in the later phase of the One Year War. It first appeared in Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team.

RTX-440 Guntank Ground Assault Type
Only appearing in Episode 3 of MS IGLOO 2: Gravity Front, the RTX-440 is a prototype designed for rapid penetration attack and laying down heavy suppressive barrages. Normally armed with a single 220mm cannon, two arm autocannon, a flamethrower and a variety of high-explosive bombs, mines and multi-rocket system, the RTX-440 is also equipped with an "emergency destruction system" for kamikaze runs. Its mobility is also enhanced by a pair of tank treads in front of the body, which are deployed when the machine is in fast-attack mode. Only three RTX-440 units are ever built before the project was canceled, apparently due to the defection of Federation technical officer Clyde Bettany, who leaked the prototype's inside information to the Principality. In reality, Federation intelligence organized the defection to plant Bettany as a double agent within the Zeon command.

The three Guntanks are assigned to a trio of convicts led by Bettany's lover, Lt. Arleen Nazon, who was jailed for his "treason". In exchange for a grand amnesty, the group is deployed for various high-risk operations across Europe, eventually participating in Operation Odessa. The team self-destructs their units in an effort to take out two Zeon Dobday-class land battleships. Ironically, Bettany was aboard the second Dobday, which he was supposed to take over from the inside — the very reason the RTX-440 project was sacrificed.

RMV-1 Guntank II
After the One Year War, the development of Guntanks continued, resulting in the RMV-1 Guntank II, which was even more tank-like (and less mobile suit-like) than its predecessors. A pair of recoilless 120 mm cannon mounted on its head turret gave it wider firing arcs than previous Guntank models. The new torso was capable of independently rotating, so the arms were replaced with rocket and missile launchers. The new Guntank was designed in every way as a vehicle for ground combat. Some Japanese reference material classifies the Guntank II as a mobile vehicle instead of a mobile suit, hence the RMV code in its model number. This model of Guntank stays in service up to the Gryps conflict of Zeta Gundam where they can be seen among other MSV units defending Jaburo from the AEUG forces.

RMV-1 Guntank II first appear as part of Mobile Suit Variations and design by Kunio Okawara.

F50D (RXR-44) Guntank R-44
The last "Guntank" model fielded is the F-50D Guntank R-44, a rejected prototype that transforms in to a usable mobile suit mode. It appears in the 1991 movie Gundam F91, and was under the ownership of Frontier IV war museum curator Jung Roy, who acquired the machine into his collection at the age of 44 and re-numbered it RXR-44. When Crossbone Vanguard invaded Frontier IV in U.C.0123, Roy, along with several other civilians, launched out in his prized R-44 into battle in a valiant but foolhardy act of resistance. The R-44 was later destroyed when an injured Seabook Arno attempted to ram the tank into Dorel Ronah's XM-04 Berga Dalas, who in turn stabbed the tank with his shot lancer and caused it to crash against a wall.

The R-44's design was incorporated from an earlier transformable mobile suit, ECOAS's D-50C Loto, as seen in the 2007 novel Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn.

Guntank for Newtype
Appeared in Gundam Ace only.