The gun is armed and loaded by a mechanical bustle autoloader (conveyor-belt type) developed by Mitsubishi of Japan. As with autoloader-equipped Russian main battle tanks, the French Leclerc, and the Swedish Strv 103, the Type 90 achieves manpower savings by reducing the crew to three. Its ability to operate without a loader also allows the use of a smaller turret. The autoloader can reload in around two seconds, and the practical auto-loading and firing cycle for one target is around 4–6 seconds.