- Yes.
- No.
- In a future Dutch/BeNeLux techtree.
- In the French BeNeLux sub-tree
- Other (Please explain in the comments).
- I said “No” in the first question.
Hello everyone, today I’ve got a dumb little vehicle to suggest, because why not!
This is the Dutch Universal Carrier, armed with a 7.7 mm Type 92 heavy machine gun!
A Dutch Universal Carrier armed with a 7.7 mm Type 92 heavy machine gun
Source: Foto's
History
Spoiler
A Dutch Universal Carrier Medium Machine Gun"
Source: Foto'sFollowing the end of World War Two, the Netherlands was in dire need of Militairy Equipment. In the mainland of the Netherlands there were lots of Militairy dumps, containing surplus Cars, Halftracks and Tanks.
But this was not the case in the Dutch East Indies (Indonesia). Now there was no kind of enemy tank force to speak of in the Dutch East Indies, but there was still a demand for some kind of mechanized force. That is why shortly after the end of WW2, the Dutch ordered 1.200 Ford Universal Carrier from Canada to be used in the Dutch East Indies.
These carriers were perfectly suited for the environment, and the simple open construction of the Universal Carrier also meant that it could be very easily adapted for any role required.
The crew of this Universal Carrier I’m suggesting here got their hands on a Japanese 7.7 mm Type 92 heavy machine gun. This machine gun was mounted on a tripod that was located in the middle of the carrier. This gave the machine gun excellent firing angles, but lacked any kind of protection for the crew. It is unclear why it was decided to use a Japanese machine gun, my best quess is that there was a surplus of them and plenty of ammunition to put them in service.
The Universal Carriers would remain in the Dutch East Indies, and were a big part of the Indonesian National Revolution. A number of them would also be captured by the Indonesians and used for the years to come.
Specifications
Spoiler
Mass: 4.01 tons
Crew: 4Powerplant: Ford England GAU370 Petrol engine
Engine horsepower: 85 hp
Max speed: 50 km/hArmament:
- 1 x 1 7.7 mm Type 92 heavy machine gun
Ingame
Spoiler
Yeah I know, this vehicle ingame would be the worst possible thing to play. But it would be funny!
I think it would be funny if each nation got something like this ingame. Tankettes with machine guns added to them would just be funny to play and zoom around the battlefield with.
The BeNeLux has been added to France, so this is now the only option where Dutch vehicles will go to. At the moment (7-1-2026) there is no proper BeNeLux ground vehicle line, so this little Universal Carrier could be a nice way to add some more BeNeLux stuff to the tree. But maybe it’s best that this vehicle is reserved as a premium or event thing. Considering it would function so poorly ingame it might be best kept as a seperate thing from the main researchable techtree.
A Dutch Universal Carrier Medium Machine Gun"
Source: Foto's
That would be all for today, see you next time!
Sources
Spoiler
Main source:
- “Wiel en Rups, Voertuigen van de landmacht 1945-2015” book by Sander Ruys
- Pantser.net.
Extra sources: