It entered service with the Regia Aeronautica in July 1941 after some extensive prototype testing and it proved to be a very decent dogfighter and, as stated by the Australian ace Clive Caldwell it was "one of the best and most undervalued of fighters" . It had it defects though. As its predecessor, it could enter in a dangerous and uncontrollable spin and it was seriously underarmed with just two 12,7mm Breda-SAFAT machine guns placed in the cowling that tended to jam very often, the radio equipment was very faulty tending to fail and forcing pilots to communicate via waggling wings and the oxygen system caused 50 to 60% of the faults, some of them fatal ones.
Due to the many defects, the prototypes and pre-production versions didn't saw real combat service until 1941 even if the first prototype was ready in summer 1940.
They served in every front of the war where Italy was involved, from the home defence to the eastern front and the north African one.
Sources:
1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macchi_C.202
2. Salamander Books - The Complete Book of Fighters
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