Equipment of Carriers in the Carrier Platoon

[Christopher Ono]

Hello,

Michael Dorosh suggested that I try to pick the brains of the experts here on this forum regarding a question which I had. He specifically suggested that Geoff Winnington-Ball might have the answer.

The No. 4 Platoon of a Canadian light infantry battalion in WWII (circa 1944-45) has on its TO&E 13 carriers.

I assume that these would be the Windsor universal carriers for the most part. I know that the various carriers dedicated to towing/carrying (in the AT platoon and mortar platoon) were generally unarmed.

My question is:

Would any of these carriers in the carrier platoon be modified to be Bren gun carriers or otherwise armed, or would they be unarmed as a rule?

I've seen units with Vickers MMGs mounted, but I believe these were typically part of the Divisional MG units and not from the standard infantry battalion carrier platoon.

As a follow on question while I'm here, were Wasp-type carriers simply modifications of carriers already in the battalion, or were they assigned from division or specially formed units?

Thanks in advance.