British Mobility and the Universal Carrier
Bibliography with Notes plus Bonus Content
Latimer, Jon. Operation Compass. Oxford: Osprey Publishing, 2000. Kindle.
Chapter: Opposing Forces
“Most importantly, all transport was mechanised and while there was never enough of it, it was scaled far more plentifully than that of the Italians.
“Armour support included the Universal Carrier in a variety of roles…each of these vehicles was reasonably fast, they were lightly armoured and useful only for recce and support tasks.”
Wahlert, Glenn. The Western Desert Campaign 1940-1941
(Australian Army Campaigns Series Book 2). Sydney: Big Sky Publishing, 2011. Kindle.
Chapter: Australian, British and Italian Forces
“…Some artillery units used carriers for forward observers, line laying, and ammunition carrying duties…
…The machine gun carriers were generally Universal Carriers Mark 1, all mounting Vickers and Bren guns, with some equipped with a Boys anti-tank rifle. The volume of fire that the carriers were able to produce, with their Vickers guns connected to the engine radiators of the carriers, were largely responsible for minimizing casualties at Bardia.”
Watt, Gavin K. The Perth Regiment Canada. Universal Carrier.
https://www.perthregiment.ca/universal-carriers
“It was not proof against airbursts or grenades, as the machine had no overhead cover. This was partly to facilitate the dismount and partly to save weight…”
“As there was no precedent for the Carrier, there was a certain amount of puzzlement as to its most profitable deployment. In the early days of the war, German and Italian anti-tank weapons were far less common. This encouraged some units to use their Carriers boldly, taking full advantage of the enemy’s lack of resistance to even lightly armoured vehicles. The higher echelons of the Army were most critical of these uses, regarding the Carrier Platoon as a valuable asset that should be preserved. Commanders in the field were constantly admonished not to think of their Carriers as either Scout Cars or light tanks.”
Bonus Illustrations
WWII in North Africa 