Ho-3 (20 mm)

Description

The 20 mm Ho-3 is a Japanese autocannon. It was identical to the 20 mm Ho-1, except is mounted in a fixed fashion onboard aircraft. Both designs were based off the 20 mm Type 97 anti-tank rifle.

Vehicles equipped with this weapon

• Ki-45 hei
• ␗Ki-45 hei/tei
• Ki-45 ko

General info

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Available ammunition

• Default: FI · HEFI-T · HEF-I · AP-T
• Universal: HEFI-T · HEF-I · AP-T
• Ground targets: AP-T · AP-T · FI · HEF-I
• Tracers: AP-T · HEFI-T
• Stealth: FI · FI · HEF-I · HEF-I

Penetration statistics
Belt	Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
	10 m	100 m	500 m	1,000 m	1,500 m	2,000 m
Default	36	34	27	20	15	11
Universal	36	34	27	20	15	11
Ground targets	36	34	27	20	15	11
Tracers	36	34	27	20	15	11
Stealth	2	2	2	2	2	2

Comparison with analogues

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Usage in battles

The Ho-3 cannons have a fairly low rate fire at 400 rpm. They make up for it with decent Default and Universal belts, each with powerful HEFI rounds. They also have good accuracy and velocity, allowing them to be used effectively in a variety of situations.

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Decent accuracy once gun is upgraded
• Good muzzle velocity
• Good default and universal belts
• Good explosive effect with HEFI rounds

Cons:

• Very low rate of fire

History

The Imperial Japanese Army first issued their requirement for an anti-tank rifle in 1935 due to tension with the Red Army over the Manchurian Border and the Republic of China purchasing Vickers Six-Ton tanks. Kokura Arsenal entered a 20x125 mm design for the competition in 1936 which competed against a design from Nagoya Arsenal based on the Hotchkiss Mle 1929 and was accepted into service in 1938 as the Type 97 Automatic Cannon.

Despite the name, Type 97 was a semi-automatic only rifle that was the heaviest anti-tank rifle of World War II. While it saw some action in the 1938 Battles of Khalkhin Gol against the Soviets and was used for infantry support in China (leading to the development of a new high explosive round), it was obsolete by 1942 due to stronger tank armor.

The Imperial Japanese Army Air Service used the Type 97 in two capacities. The first was as a weapon for the Teishin Shudan Paratroopers. The second capacity was the Ho-1 and Ho-3 aircraft-mounted automatic cannons. Unlike the Type 97, the Ho-3 had a fully automatic mode with a rate of fire of 300-400 rpm and was fed with a larger 50-round drum magazine compared to the 12-round magazine used on the Type 97 or the 15-round drum of the Ho-1. The Ho-3 served as the flexible armament on the Ki-45 series of heavy fighters.

Media

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See also

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• reference to the article about the variant of the cannon/machine gun;
• references to approximate analogues by other nations and research trees.

External links

• [Gunsight.jp] Japanese Army Aircraft Weapons
• [The Pacific War Online Encyclopedia] Japanese 20mm Type 97 Cannon