Michigan Plant Turning Out New Military Troop Carrier

The military production offshoot of General Motors is making good on a new military contract. It has only needed 120 days to deliver the first of potentially thousands of small and quick troop transport vehicles to the Army.

The new Infantry Squad Vehicles, or ISV’s, are designed to carry 9 troops over rough terrain and get them where they need to go fast. GM Defense is releasing an update about the contract and its progress on its website this week.  Most of the production of the new troop carriers is happening at a GM Defense production plant in Milford, only about 30 miles northwest of downtown Detroit and not far from the famed GM Proving grounds.

It’s an innovative design based on the 2020 Chevrolet Colorado ZR2. That is a mid-sized truck model. The troop-carrying ISV version uses about 90 percent commercial off the shelf parts. Not the least of which include Chevrolet Performance race components. The troop carriers weigh in at about 5,000 pounds. They can be carried underneath a UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter with a sling or can fit inside a CH-47 Chinook helicopter.

David Albritton is the President of GM Defense. He’s pleased with how his company got this project off the ground so quickly, saying, “One hundred and twenty days from contract award to delivery is a significant milestone, and I am very proud of the team for this accomplishment. We’re leveraging General Motors’ engineering prowess and immense manufacturing capabilities to bring transformative solutions to the military vehicle market. Our initial success with the ISV shows our commitment to our customer and highlights our unique right to win in the military mobility market.”

The better than $214 million contract was just awarded in June. GM Defense will initially build up over 600 ISVs. It will also support the production of up to 2,065 vehicles pending additional authorization over the next eight years.