Ho-203 was a Japanese
autocannon
An autocannon, automatic cannon or machine cannon is a fully automatic gun that is capable of rapid-firing large-caliber ( or more) armour-piercing, explosive or incendiary shells, as opposed to the smaller-caliber kinetic projectiles (bull ...
that saw considerable use during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. It was a long-recoil automation of the Year 11 Type direct-fire infantry gun. It was fed by a 15-round closed-loop ammunition belt. It was operationally used only as the nose gun of the
Kawasaki Ki-45
The Kawasaki Ki-45 ''Toryu'' (屠龍, "Dragonslayer") was a two-seat, twin-engine heavy fighter used by the Imperial Japanese Army in World War II. The army gave it the designation "Type 2 Two-Seat Fighter"; the Allied reporting name was "Nick". ...
-KAI heavy fighter, the anti-bomber workhorse of the Imperial Japanese Army, and tried out in the upper fuselage of the III-KAI variant of the
Mitsubishi Ki-46
The Mitsubishi Ki-46 was a twin-engine reconnaissance aircraft used by the Imperial Japanese Army in World War II. Its Army ''Shiki'' designation was Type 100 Command Reconnaissance Aircraft (); the Allied brevity code name was "Dinah".
Devel ...
''Dinah'' twin-engined warplane as a Japanese form of the Nazi ''Luftwaffe''s ''
Schräge Musik
''Schräge Musik'', which may also be spelled ''Schraege Musik'', was a common name for the fitting of an upward-firing autocannon or machine gun, to an interceptor aircraft, interceptor aircraft, such as a night fighter. The term was introduce ...
'' upwards-aimed armament system for heavy fighters.
Specifications
*Caliber: 37 mm (1.45 in)
*Ammunition: 37 x 112R (475 g)
*Weight: 89 kg (196 lb)
*Rate of fire: 120 rounds/min
*Muzzle velocity: 570 m/s (1,870 ft/s)
*Effective range: 900 m (2,950 ft).
Similar ordnance designs
*
37mm ''Bordkanone'' BK 3,7 (Nazi Germany)
See also
*
Ho-5 cannon
The Ho-5 (Army Type 2) was a Japanese aircraft autocannon used during World War II. Developed from the Ho-103 machine gun, it was a version of the American Model 1921 Browning aircraft machine gun. It replaced the Ho-1 and Ho-3 (Army Type 9 ...
*
MK 108 cannon
The MK 108 (German: ''Maschinenkanone''—"machine cannon") was a 30 mm caliber autocannon manufactured in Nazi Germany, Germany during World War II by Rheinmetall‑August Borsig, Borsig for use in aircraft.
The cannon saw widespread use as an ...
*
Ho-155 cannon
The 30 mm Ho-155 cannon was a Japanese aircraft autocannon used during World War II, often mistakenly called with the Ho-105 or Ho-151. A lighter and more compact Ho-155-II was designed towards the end of the war.
Development
The Ho-155-I was fi ...
*
Ho-204 cannon
Ho-204 was a Japanese aircraft autocannon that saw limited use during World War II. It was the largest gun to see active service derived from the Model 1921 Aircraft Browning. It was used as upward-oblique armament in the Ki-46-III and as nose ...
*
Ho-301 cannon
The Ho-301 was a Japanese 40 millimeter caliber autocannon that saw limited use during World War II, on Japanese Army Nakajima Ki-44 and Kawasaki Ki-45 KAI aircraft. It was unusual in using caseless ammunition. Although the effective range of the ...
*
Ho-401 cannon
Ho-401 was a Japanese aircraft autocannon that saw limited, if any, use during World War II. It was a large-caliber version of the 37 mm Ho-203 cannon
Ho-203 was a Japanese autocannon that saw considerable use during World War II. It was ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ho-203 Cannon
37 mm artillery
Autocannon
Aircraft guns