View source for Hispano Mk.II (20 mm)

== Description ==
''Write an introduction to the article in 2-3 small paragraphs. Briefly tell us about the history of the development and combat using the weaponry and also about its features. Compile a list of air, ground, or naval vehicles that feature this weapon system in the game.''

=== Vehicles equipped with this weapon ===
<!-- ''List out vehicles that are equipped with the weapon.'' -->

{{Navigation-Start|Vehicles equipped with this weapon}}

{{Navigation-First-Line|'''Fighters'''}}
{{Navigation-Line|Boomerang}}{{Specs-Link|boomerang_mki}}{{-}}{{Specs-Link|boomerang_mkii}}
{{Navigation-Line|Hurricane}}{{Specs-Link|hurricane_mk1c}}
{{Navigation-Line|MB.5}}{{Specs-Link|mb_5}}
{{Navigation-Line|P-51}}{{Specs-Link|p-51_mk1a_usaaf}}{{-}}{{Specs-Link|p-51b}}
{{Navigation-Line|Seafire}}{{Specs-Link|seafire_mk3}}{{-}}{{Specs-Link|seafire_mk3_france}}
{{Navigation-Line|Spitfire Mk V}}{{Specs-Link|spitfire_mk5b_notrop}}{{-}}{{Specs-Link|spitfire_mk5b}}{{-}}{{Specs-Link|spitfire_mk5b_italy}}{{-}}{{Specs-Link|spitfire_mk5c_notrop}}{{-}}{{Specs-Link|spitfire_mk5c}}
{{Navigation-Line|Spitfire Mk IX}}{{Specs-Link|spitfire_ix_early}}{{-}}{{Specs-Link|spitfire_ix}}{{-}}{{Specs-Link|spitfire_mk9c_4cannons}}{{-}}{{Specs-Link|spitfire_ix_plagis}}{{-}}{{Specs-Link|spitfire_ix_usa}}{{-}}{{Specs-Link|spitfire_ix_ussr}}{{-}}{{Specs-Link|spitfire_mk9c_iaf}}{{-}}{{Specs-Link|spitfire_lf_mk9e_iaf}}{{-}}{{Specs-Link|spitfire_lf_mk9e_weisman}}
{{Navigation-Line|Spitfire (Griffon)}}{{Specs-Link|spitfire_mk14c}}{{-}}{{Specs-Link|spitfire_mk14e}}{{-}}{{Specs-Link|spitfire_fr_mk14e}}{{-}}{{Specs-Link|spitfire_fr_mk14e_belgium}}{{-}}{{Specs-Link|spitfire_xvi}}{{-}}{{Specs-Link|spitfire_mk18e}}{{-}}{{Specs-Link|spitfire_f22}}{{-}}{{Specs-Link|spitfire_f24}}
{{Navigation-Line|Typhoon}}{{Specs-Link|typhoon_mk1b}}{{-}}{{Specs-Link|typhoon_mk1b_late}}

{{Navigation-First-Line|'''Strike aircraft'''}}{{Specs-Link|beaufighter_mk21}}{{-}}{{Specs-Link|beaufighter_mkx}}{{-}}{{Specs-Link|firefly_mk1}}{{-}}{{Specs-Link|mosquito_fb_mk6}}{{-}}{{Specs-Link|mosquito_fb_mk26_china}}

{{Navigation-End}}

== General info ==
''Tell us about the tactical and technical characteristics of the cannon or machine gun.''

=== Available ammunition ===
<!-- ''Describe the shells that are available for the weapon and their features and purpose. If it concerns autocannons or machine guns, write about different ammo belts and what is inside (which types of shells).'' -->

* '''Default:''' {{Annotation|HEI|High-explosive incendiary}}{{-}}{{Annotation|SAP-I|Semi-armour-piercing incendiary}}{{-}}{{Annotation|T|Tracer}}
* '''Universal:''' {{Annotation|AP-T|Armour-piercing tracer}}{{-}}{{Annotation|HEI|High-explosive incendiary}}{{-}}{{Annotation|SAP-I|Semi-armour-piercing incendiary}}
* '''Ground targets:''' {{Annotation|AP-T|Armour-piercing tracer}}{{-}}{{Annotation|SAP-I|Semi-armour-piercing incendiary}}{{-}}{{Annotation|HEI|High-explosive incendiary}}{{-}}{{Annotation|AP-T|Armour-piercing tracer}}
* '''Air targets:''' {{Annotation|T|Tracer}}{{-}}{{Annotation|HEI|High-explosive incendiary}}{{-}}{{Annotation|SAP-I|Semi-armour-piercing incendiary}}{{-}}{{Annotation|HEI|High-explosive incendiary}}{{-}}{{Annotation|SAP-I|Semi-armour-piercing incendiary}}
* '''Tracers:''' {{Annotation|AP-T|Armour-piercing tracer}}{{-}}{{Annotation|T|Tracer}}{{-}}{{Annotation|HEI|High-explosive incendiary}}
* '''Stealth:''' {{Annotation|HEI|High-explosive incendiary}}{{-}}{{Annotation|HEI|High-explosive incendiary}}{{-}}{{Annotation|SAP-I|Semi-armour-piercing incendiary}}

{{:{{PAGENAME}}/Ammunition|HEI, T, SAP-I, AP-T}}

=== Comparison with analogues ===
''Give a comparative description of cannons/machine guns that have firepower equal to this weapon.''

== Usage in battles ==
<!-- ''Describe the cannon/machine gun in the game - its distinctive features, tactics of usage against notable opponents. Please don't write a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view, but give the reader food for thought.'' -->
The Hispano Mk.II cannons are lethal weapons, and stand out as some of the most powerful WWII-era aircraft guns in the game. The HEF-I and SAP-I shells available on many ammunition belts for these cannons deal a huge amount of damage to aircraft of any size, from fighters up to heavy bombers, and can give British pilots the edge in head-ons, interceptions, and general dogfighting. The stealth belts are especially powerful, suiting sneakier playstyles. Using cloud cover and approaching from blind spots, a Hispano-armed pilot can jump an enemy and obliterate them with a few bursts before the enemy even knows they're coming.

Like their predecessor in the Mk.I, the Mk.IIs still have some severe flaws that can be a headache. The stock guns prior to upgrade are not only prone to jamming during lengthy periods of shooting, but are hopelessly inaccurate. The stock belts are also fairly ineffective, as they lack the sheer number of high-damage shells. This makes using these guns a headache while they're stock, and it can be a difficult grind if the plane you're flying is weak at stock to begin with.

While these cannons aren't the best guns in the game for attacking ground targets, they will still do a decent chunk of damage to anything they hit, although it's highly recommended to use the Ground targets belt if available, as other belts will struggle with armoured targets. The AP rounds can destroy light pillboxes, and anything weaker should be easy pickings. Just be mindful of the inaccuracy of the guns, and your ammo count. Since these are 20 mm guns, few planes using them will stock a large amount of ammo, save for the Beaufighters and the Mosquito.

=== Pros and cons ===
<!-- ''Summarise and briefly evaluate the weaponry in terms of its characteristics and combat effectiveness. Mark pros and cons as a list.'' -->

'''Pros:'''

* HEF-I rounds can shred fighters in less than 3 seconds, in the hands of a skilled pilot
* AP rounds can penetrate light pillboxes
* Reasonably accurate at longer ranges when upgraded

'''Cons:'''

* "Default" belt contains practice shells which deal far less damage than other ammunition belts
* HEF-I and SAP-I rounds do more puncturing damage compared to other countries' cannons due to possessing lesser amounts of filler
* "Air targets" ammunition belts are less effective against bombers, instead, utilize Stealth or Ground targets ammunition
* Cannons quickly overheat when repeatedly fired for long periods of time
* Painfully inaccurate when stock
* Unlike other cannons, it requires three modifications instead of only one to minimise jamming probability and inaccuracy

== History ==
<!-- ''Examine the history of the creation and combat usage of the weapon in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the weapon and adding a block "/History" (example: <nowiki>https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Weapon-name)/History</nowiki>) and add a link to it here using the <code>main</code> template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <code><nowiki><ref></ref></nowiki></code>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <code><nowiki><references /></nowiki></code>.'' -->
After the Battle of Britain in 1940, the British Air Ministry realized their eight machine gun armed Supermarine [[Spitfire (Family)|Spitfires]] and Hawker [[Hurricane (Family)|Hurricanes]] were obsolete, lacking the punch to take out enemy aircraft during attack runs. So the Royal Air Force decided to arm the majority of their aircraft, including later variants of both the Hurricane and Spitfire designs, with 20 mm cannons. The RAF already had the [[Hispano Mk.I (20 mm)|Hispano Mk.I]], a licensed copy of the French [[Hispano 404 (20 mm)|Hispano 404]], but these drum-fed designs were noted to present problems on the earlier Bristol [[Beaufighter (Family)|Beaufighter]], where it was hard to replace the drums at night or during manoeuvres. In addition, the Mk.I was tested on the Spitfire and Hurricane where it was known to jam during aerial manoeuvres. The Air Ministry briefly considered that cannons would not be possible and specified that new fighters should be armed with twelve machine guns.

However, Martin-Baker managed to successfully developed a reliable belt-feed for the Hispano which became the Hispano Mk.II. These cannons were first used on the Hurricane and Spitfire in groups of four along with other late war fighters such as the Blackburn [[Firebrand TF Mk IV|Firebrand]] and [[Firecrest]] strike fighters, later models of the Beaufighter, the Austrialian CAC [[Boomerang Mk I (Great Britain)|Boomerang]] fighters, de Havilland [[Mosquito (Family)|Mosquito]] series of heavy fighters, lead-lease Douglas [[DB-7 (Great Britain)|DB-7]] light bombers, Fairey [[Firefly F Mk I|Firefly]] fighters, the first RAF fighter jet, the Gloster [[Meteor (Family)|Meteor]], the Hurricane's successors the [[Tempest (Family)|Tempest]] and the [[Typhoon (Family)|Typhoon]], lend-lease North American [[P-51A]] Mustangs, and Martin-Baker's own [[MB.5]] prototype.

The Mk.II was originally used in a four gun configuration on fighters, which was also used with the Mk.I on the Westland [[Whirlwind Mk I]], however the outboard guns on Spitfires were found to freeze up at high altitudes. As a result, the RAF began replace the two outboard wing cannons with 4 [[Browning (7.7 mm)|.303 Brownings]] or .50 [[M2 Browning (12.7 mm)|M2 Browning]] machine guns to complement the two inboard wing-mounted Mk.IIs. The British had feared their industrial capacity would not be enough maintain their supply of cannons so they licensed the design to the United States. While their fears were unfounded, the license resulted in the US developing their own variant of the HS.404 starting with the M1, which would develop into a family of cannons that culminated in the [[M24A1 (20 mm)|M24A1]] used during the Korean War.

== Media ==
<!-- ''Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.'' -->

;Videos
{{Youtube-gallery|djKhmYXyNjo|'''Top 7 Autocannons''' discusses the {{PAGENAME}} at 01:56 - ''War Thunder Official Channel''}}

== See also ==
<!-- ''Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:''
* ''reference to the article about the variant of the cannon/machine gun;''
* ''references to approximate analogues by other nations and research trees.'' -->

* [[Hispano Mk.I (20 mm)]]
* [[Hispano Mk.V (20 mm)]]

== External links ==
''Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:''

* ''topic on the official game forum;''
* ''other literature.''

{{USA aircraft cannons}}
{{USSR aircraft cannons}}
{{Britain aircraft cannons}}
{{China aircraft cannons}}
{{Italy aircraft cannons}}
{{France aircraft cannons}}
{{Israel aircraft cannons}}

[[Category:Aircraft cannons]]