Universal Carrier

General characteristics
Length	12.5 ft, 3.75 m
Width	7 ft, m
Height	5 ft, m
Weight	t
Suspension	bogie
Speed	30 mph, 50 km/h road km/h off-road
Range	km
Primary armament	.303 Bren Gun, .303 Vickers MG, or Boys anti-tank rifle
Secondary armament	none
Maximum armour	mm
Power plant	Ford V8 hp, ( kW)
Crew	2-5

The Universal Carrier was a small, tracked British military vehicle used widely by British and Commonwealth forces in World War II. The metre is the basic unit of length in the International System of Units (SI: Système International dUnités). ... The word ton or tonne is derived from the Old English tunne, and ultimately from the Old French tonne, and referred originally to a large cask with a capacity of 252 wine gallons, which holds approximately 2100 pounds of water. ... .303 cartridge The . ... Bren Gun Type Light machine gun Nationality United Kingdom Era World War II History Date of design 1935 Production period 1938 - Service duration 1938 - 1958 (longer as L4) Operators United Kingdom, Commonwealth War service World War II, Korean War, Specifications Type machine gun Calibre . ... Vickers machine gun Type Nationality UK Era WW1 - WW2 History Date of design 1912 Production period 1912- Service duration 1912-1968 Operators War service Specifications Type Calibre 0. ... Boyes Anti-tank Rifle Type Anti tank rifle Nationality United Kingdom Era World War II History Date of design 1937 Production period 1937 - ? Service duration 1937 - 194? Operators United Kingdom, Empire/Commonwealth, War service World War II Specifications Type Bolt action rifle Calibre . ... A hoplite wearing a helmet, a breastplate and greaves (and nothing else). ... The designation Ford Model B, like Ford Model A, was actually used for two different automobiles. ... The horsepower (hp) is the name of several non-metric units of power. ... Caterpillar tracks are large (modular) tracks used on tanks, construction equipment and certain other off-road vehicles. ... World War II was a truly global conflict with many facets: immense human suffering, fierce indoctrinations, and the use of new, extremely devastating weapons like the atom bomb. ...

The Universal and the other Carriers were used by British and Commonwealth forces in the same way that the Jeep was used by the US Army. Jeep® is an automobile marque (and registered trademark) of DaimlerChrysler. ... The Army is the branch of the United States armed forces which has primary responsibility for land-based military operations. ...

Development

The design of the Universal was influenced by the Carden-Lloyd carrier, developed during the late 1920s. The first Carrier was completed by Vickers in 1936. There were several variations that appeared side by side until the final Universal carrier was developed in 1940. Sometimes referred to as the Jazz Age or primarily in North America as the Roaring Twenties. // Events and trends Technology John T. Thompson invents Thompson submachine gun, also known as Tommy gun John Logie Baird invents the first working television system (1925) Charles Lindbergh becomes the first person to fly... The Vickers corporation, founded as the Vickers Company in 1828, was a British manufacturer, primarily of military equipment. ... 1936 was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ...

Although used as a platform for a variety of weapons, including the Vickers machine gun, the vehicle was commonly known as the "Bren Gun Carrier". The Universal Carrier was also used to transport personnel and equipment, such as 3 inch mortars. Vickers machine gun Type Nationality UK Era WW1 - WW2 History Date of design 1912 Production period 1912- Service duration 1912-1968 Operators War service Specifications Type Calibre 0. ... Bren Gun Type Light machine gun Nationality United Kingdom Era World War II History Date of design 1935 Production period 1938 - Service duration 1938 - 1958 (longer as L4) Operators United Kingdom, Commonwealth War service World War II, Korean War, Specifications Type machine gun Calibre . ... Soldier Firing the M224 60mm Mortar. ...

Although lightly armoured on all sides, it was an open top design and occupants were not as well-protected from shrapnel or the blast effects on the battlefield. Shrapnel is the collective term for fragments and debris thrown out by an exploding shell or landmine. ...

Production

Ford of Canada made 28,000 Universal Carriers. They were also manufactured in Australia and New Zealand. The Ford Motor Company (often referred to simply as Ford; sometimes nicknamed Fords or FoMoCo, (NYSE: F) is an automobile maker founded by Henry Ford in Detroit, Michigan, and incorporated on June 16, 1903. ...

Variants

Mk.I

The orginal model

Mk.II

Equiped with a towing hitch.

Fargestell Bren (e)

A captured carrier of 1940, reused by the Germans with a 3.7 cm PaK gun.

T-16

Known as Carrier, Universal, T16, Mark I. was a significantly improved vehicle manufactured under Lend Lease by Ford in the United States from March 1943 to 1945. It was chiefly used by the Canadian forces during the War. Post war it was used by Switzerland and the Netherlands. The Lend-lease Act of March 11, 1941 permitted the President of the United States to sell, transfer title to, exchange, lease, lend, or otherwise dispose of, to any such government [whose defense the President deems vital to the defense of the United States] any defense article. It thus extended...

Wasp

A flamethrower equipped variant

External links

• http://www.universalcarrier.org

• mapleleafup.org "The Ford Universal Carrier"

• diggerhistory.info "Bren Carrier"

See also