WASP?

Can anyone confirm (or discount) that the attached photo is a `WASP` flame thrower varient of the Bren Carrier?
The marking on the front is also a mystery to me a `5` (possibly red?) in a white or yellow circle (I`ve seen similar on a photo of a Canadian carrier?).
The soldier at the front was/is Durham Light Infantry (I have another photograph of him which clearly shows his cap badge) I am unsure if he was still with the Durhams at the time this photo was taken.Any pointers would be appreciated.


Best Wishes

Jim

 

Wasp Mk.II
Mk.II quite different to the earlier variant of the wasp equipment.


Thanks Adam ..late 1944-45 perhaps ? Sorry I have little knowledge of these things but from what I`ve heard in the past ..is it true that the Canadian version had its tanks external? Not that I`m going to be able to tell from the photo?

Best Wishes

Jim

 

Canadian War Museum sample

 

Jim,
The black '5' within a yellow ring is the bridging sign. This signifies that the vehicle should not cross anything lower than a Class 5 bridge.

Les.

 

Thank you all,Appreciate all the information.Could Wasps be used by any units or was their use confined in anyway to a particular units/divisions? Would the white `V` above the weapon have a meaning or is it a spurious `V` for Victory? Thanks


Best Wishes

Jim

 

The small specialty publication "Mechanized Flamethrowers in Canadian Service" By Cookie Sewell has a detailed history of the Ronson, the WaspIIC and Ram tank based Badger flamethrower as well as a number of other Canadian mechanized flame throwers that didn't make the war.

A review of it can be found at this link:
Mechanized Flamethrowers in Canadian Service

Cribbing from Nigel Watson's excellent books (Universal Carriers) and Chamberlain & Ellis's 'Making Tracks':

Wasp Mk.I - developed '41 - 1000 ordered in Sept '42 - delivered by Nov. '43.

Wasp Mk.II - Prototype tested August '43.
First combat use of the II - July 29th '44 with 53rd Division.

Wasp Mk.IIc - "Appeared in august '44 ... in the advance to Falaise"



Mk.II project concentrated on getting the same Flame Nozzle compacted down to fit in Usual Carrier firing slot (Mk.1 nozzle was arranged over the top of the armour).

Internal/External tanks.
Pre-Wasp 'Ronson Projector' carrier equipment had two rear external tanks.
Wasp II - Internal.
Canadian variant of Wasp with single large external rear tank is a Mk.IIc. (c for Canada)

Technically (pedantically even...) the 'Wasp' bit appears to be only the flamethrowing equipment's name, the gear being apparently retrofitted to a variety of carriers (even one photo of an Oxford carrier with Wasp II gear in there) before a specifically wasp carrier layout was issued, with more armour and smoke projectors fitted - Order issued in April '44 that all Carriers in production to get pre-drilled holes for Wasp II fitting.

 

"We found that, in most cases, if you used flame properly, we saved lives."
George Bannerman

"I had an interesting war. I think I did some good with flame, teaching people how to use it because we found that when we used flamethrowers properly, it caused the Germans to immediately give up. We just didn’t find many burned Germans because as soon as the first flash of our flamethrowers were used, the people used it, they’d come out of their place and quit firing.

I have one little story about a sergeant of a Canadian unit; and he was in a Flamethrower Carrier [Wasp Bren Gun Carrier], and he was going across the [Leopold] Canal. And there was an 88 [mm German Anti-Tank Gun] across the way, you know that would have blown that little Wasp Flamethrower into kingdom come. And he pressed the trigger and all they got was the little shot of gasoline and a little fire, but all the people on the other side come out with their arms up and he was pretty near dead scared. But we found that, in most cases, if you used flame properly, we saved lives. And I think that if I have any credit for what I did in World War II, was I taught a lot of people how to use it.

It [the Wasp] was a Bren Gun [Universal] Carrier [lightly armoured tracked vehicle] and we mounted this thing: it had a tank at the back and the flame fuel was pressurized with carbon dioxide, pushed it through a heater, then on the carrier, and then went to the gun. So when you pressed the trigger, you got a spark, a shot of gasoline and then the fuel came. So the gasoline was on fire and went right along the rod of fuel, up to 150 yards. And then when it hit, it was, there was flame everywhere. Most times, if the crew got the enemies’ heads down by lots of fire, mortars and machine guns, so this tender little carrier could get close. And when it got within say about 100 yards, you’d press the trigger, whoosh and everything quit. Out they came.

It’s a great weapon and we couldn’t get a lot of commanders to use it, because they thought, oh, it’s not a means [for] anything. But the units that did, and I have one special one, the Régiment de Maisonneuve. I spent quite a bit of time with them and, at the end of the war, they held a special mess dinner for myself; and my crew were well treated too by their other ranks. This unit had been so effective that in the last stages of the war, the last five weeks, when we lost a lot of Canadian lads, this unit had hardly any deaths because they used flame every day; and they just had the enemy coming out, and not firing back. It was wonderful.

My mom wrote hundreds of letters. She wrote my dad four times a week and we were in a small town, or she was, and the trains only went twice a week, but there was a merchant that went into Swift Current [Saskatchewan] twice a week. And he also carried letters. And for Gordon [Bannerman - who served in the 17th Field Regiment, RCA] and I, the two sons, we would get two [letters] a week. And then my mother knit hundreds of pairs of socks for the navy guys and always put her name in it; and when any boy wrote back and said thank you, they were automatically on her list. Her idea of writing a letter was a big pad of paper like this and no paragraphs, nothing, just write, turn it over, just write and send it. And so she used more stamps than anybody else in our little village [Neville] in Saskatchewan.

I was working with the Régiment de Maisonneuve; and we were sitting down, a whole bunch of us, you know, I was sitting next to a buck private from the Régiment de Maisonneuve. They took a very great pride and they learned to speak English, because they were a French-speaking unit. A very fine unit at the end of the war. And I was reading a letter from my mom and this soldier next to me said, "is that a letter from your mom?" And I said, "yes." I said, "would you like to read it?" "Oh, yes." And when he read it, he was crying at the end of it; and he’d been joined up against the wills of the people of Quebec, religious I think. And here he was, all I had to do was ask for his regimental number, and I knew his unit, and we would have got, my mother would have written him in a minute. And this stupid old man didn’t do it. I’ve never forgiven myself for that. And I cannot, because I feel my mother was so good to us and to many navy boys with knitted socks. If they wrote back, she always answered and wrote them. So when the war was over, because they’d gone to the coast, there was dozens of those lads came and visited my mom. She was a great mom."

George Andrew Bannerman

 

Actually the first WASP use was on (approx) 15th July by one of the Battalions in 158 Brigade (6 RWF if I recall correctly).

All reports I've read of their use were very impressed as they (like most Churchill tank units) encouraged enemy units to surrender over fighting it out conventionally. Saving a great number of lives on both sides.

 

"Ronson" flame equipment was produced in large numbers, for mounting on Universal Carriers. By the end of 1942, the first deliveries of a production order of 1,000 had been completed.

The introduction of the Mark II Wasp, however, led to an order by the Canadians of 500 Wasp kits from the British War Office. Like the Ronson, the Wasp was fitted to a universal carrier, with a flame nozzle in the front of the vehicle, and fuel tanks inside. Canadian Wasp kits were done with a single external fuel tank rather than dual internal tanks. This variant was known as the Mark IIC (for Canada). The Ronsons in Canadian stores were used solely for training.

The Wasps were eventually used in infantry Carrier Platoons, and the first vehicles were ready for action in June 1944.

By the end of November 1944, 134 Wasp Mk II and 73 Wasp Mk IIC had been delivered (or 207 total of an established strength throughout Canadian formations of First Canadian Army serving in Northwest Europe of 192, and in keeping with the established policy of First Canadian Army being equipped solely with the Canadian model.)"

Source: Canadiansoldiers com

 

I was interested to read this thread Gents. My grandfather's younger brother served with the Rifle Brigade in Italy and had the attached photos of his unit's vehicles. I now know what they are. Were all WASP's fitted with a flame thrower?

 

I've only found two references to the number of Wasp equipment sets. One comes from Canada, search CMHQ141 online, which says eight were to be provided for each Inf Bn, Mot Bn and Recce Regt, held in stores and available on seven day's notice. An amendment to the Inf Bn WE from Apr45 allowed for six carriers in the Carrier Pl to be fitted with Wasp equipment.

Gary

 

It is apparent that trials in Normandy saw mixed use (under researched area). Some Bns certainly had six Wasps.

Officially this made two Sections of three, however it is also clear that three Sections of two were also experimented with - each led by a Sergeant.