Alvis Stalwart

Britain's answer to the DUKW was a far tougher off-road truck that happened to swim. About 1,100 were built, it entered British Army service in 1963 and stayed for almost thirty years, and in the water two Dowty water-jet units pushed it along at about 6 mph. The trade-offs are typical of the breed. It could carry 5 tons on land, but its swimming load was limited to 3 tons in service. Its permanent six-wheel drive also suffered on paved roads, where the transmission wound up and wore out bevel boxes and tires, so drivers were told to pull off the road every 50 miles or so to relieve it. For crossing rivers and bad ground with a real load, it was hard to beat.