DSEI UK 2025: Team LionStrike unveils General Support Utility Platform

Team LionStrike, a new collaboration between GM Defense, NP Aerospace, and BAE Systems, unveiled the General Support Utility Platform (GSUP) as part of its bid to modernise the British Army’s ground vehicle fleet during DSEI UK, 2025. 

The vehicle is the centrepiece of Team LionStrike’s proposal for the UK Ministry of Defence’s Light Mobility Vehicle (LMV) programme, which seeks to replace an ageing military vehicle fleet. The collaboration also aims to address broader opportunities across NATO and allied nations, with a focus on delivering economic growth for the UK as part of the Land Industrial Strategy.

The partnership brings together GM Defense’s portfolio of vehicles, including the company’s flagship Infantry Squad Vehicle (ISV), with the UK’s defence expertise. The ISV has been ordered by the US Army, and is equipping its Infantry Brigade Combat Teams, providing them with much greater mobility. The partnership will also collaborate on logistics trucks, with the work on all vehicles done by BAE Systems’ Weapon Systems UK business, while NP Aerospace will serve as the UK-based design authority and specialist integrator.

BAE Systems will work with GM Defense to enhance and upgrade commercial vehicles for military use. The Team LionStrike partnership is expected to create and sustain skilled jobs and generate new opportunities for the UK supply chain. Together, the companies state they will establish a UK supply chain to support their efforts in the country. 

“The combined capabilities of Team LionStrike enable us to lead the charge for the UK Government’s ambitions to revitalise and sustain vital UK defence capacity,” said John Borton, Managing Director of BAE Systems’ Weapons Systems UK business. “We will ensure the British Army has the best capabilities to support their evolving needs.”

GM Defense President Steve duMont echoed this sentiment, stating that the GSUP and other vehicles in their portfolio are designed to provide “major advancements in operational capability and performance, along with unmatched safety and reliability.”

Other potential competitors for the programme are thought to include Kia, which displayed a “greened” variant of its commercially available vehicles at DSEI. Babcock has teamed with Toyota to offer the Toyota Ground Logistics Vehicle (GLV), and General Dynamics Land Systems UK is collaborating with Ricardo Engineering and Ford to offer the Ford Ranger.

Tech profile: GSUP

The new GSUP is a rugged, high-performance vehicle designed for rapid configuration and deployment in various operational scenarios. It boasts a payload capacity of up to 1,339kg with a gross vehicle weight of 3,500 kg. GM Defense has a live production line that is capable of churning out 2,000 vehicles per month, according to a company press release. The GSUP also features a modular system from STORM Vanguard, a company that specialises in building modular systems for pickup trucks. The company offers RADS (Rapid Adapt and Deploy System), which “enables seamless integration of specialized equipment while ensuring systems can be quickly transferred between vehicles, trailers, or deployed as standalone units.” Ultra PCS has provided an electronic backbone for the vehicle that supports integration of communication systems. 

Calibre comment

The Light Mobility Vehicle (LMV) is another challenging juncture for the UK MoD and its industrial strategy. It falls within the Army’s Land Mobility Programme which is designed to replace the light utility and protected mobility vehicles in British service. This covers almost everything from the Land Rover and Pinzgauer fleet, through to the Foxhounds, Mastiffs, and even some of the roles performed by the FV432 Mk 3. As originally described, the LMV fits within the Light Utility Platform, with an estimated requirement for up to 7,000 vehicles, replacing Land Rover and Pinzgauer amongst other platforms. It is to be procured in three variants: General Support Utility Platform, Civilian Armoured Vehicles, and Light Mobility Vehicles.

The Land Mobility Programme is likely to have a total value exceeding £4.8 billion ($6.4 billion/€5.7 billion), assuming that the scope and scale of the programme is left untouched. The programme is also – like most of the Army’s procurements – no longer discretionary. The newest Land Rovers are around 30 years old already, the FV430 Bulldog – despite many upgrades – is between 40 and 60 years old. Meanwhile platforms in the 4×4 protected mobility space effectively all perform the same role, but create several different logistics chains.  

The first steps were announced at DSEI, with the UK joining the Common Armoured Vehicle System programme, through a Patria/Babcock partnership. This addresses the Medium Protected Mobility requirement and domestic production makes a lot of sense in that regard. However, the MoD may want to choose a platform that can be delivered quickly from an existing production line, which could speed up the entry into service and reduce costs. Here, a live production line may be an appealing addition to the competition. But the signals from the Labour Government are that domestic products are preferred. While understandable, this approach is already raising questions and concerns in other programmes, Project GRAYBURN being an example. Team LionStrike does seem to address some of that drive, localising the vehicles through two UK companies and leveraging NP Aerospace’s considerable experience in supporting the UK’s vehicle fleet. However, a significant domestic production offering seems to have been a decisive factor in several recent selections. 

By Sam Cranny-Evans, published on September 17, 2025. Credit for the lead image is GM Defense.