The Nuffield Guppy was a small military vehicle designed by Sir Alec Issigonis

Alec Issigonis

Sir Alexander Arnold Constantine Issigonis, CBE, FRS was a Greek-British designer of cars, now remembered chiefly for the groundbreaking and influential development of the Mini, launched by the British Motor Corporation in 1959.- Early life:Issigonis was born into the Greek community of Smyrna ...

 while he worked for the Nuffield Organisation

Nuffield Organisation

The Nuffield Organisation was a vehicle manufacturing company in the United Kingdom. Named after its founder, William Morris, 1st Viscount Nuffield, it was formed in 1938 as the merger of Nuffield's Morris Motor Company , another of Nuffield's companies the MG Car Company and Riley.Morris Motors...

 in the early 1940s. The vehicle was designed to be parachute

Parachute

A parachute is a device used to slow the motion of an object through an atmosphere by creating drag, or in the case of ram-air parachutes, aerodynamic lift. Parachutes are usually made out of light, strong cloth, originally silk, now most commonly nylon...

-droppable and was intended to assist paratroops

Paratrooper

Paratroopers are soldiers trained in parachuting and generally operate as part of an airborne force.Paratroopers are used for tactical advantage as they can be inserted into the battlefield from the air, thereby allowing them to be positioned in areas not accessible by land...

 to transport loads up to 500 lb (227 kg) at walking speeds and to be amphibious

Amphibious vehicle

An amphibious vehicle , is a vehicle or craft, that is a means of transport, viable on land as well as on water – just like an amphibian....

. The vehicle somewhat resembles the DUKW

DUKW

The DUKW is a six-wheel-drive amphibious truck that was designed by a partnership under military auspices of Sparkman & Stephens and General Motors Corporation during World War II for transporting goods and troops over land and water and for use approaching and crossing beaches in amphibious...

 but was only about 8 feet (2.4 m) long. It had large balloon tyre

Tire

A tire or tyre is a ring-shaped covering that fits around a wheel rim to protect it and enable better vehicle performance by providing a flexible cushion that absorbs shock while keeping the wheel in close contact with the ground...

s and an outboard motor

Outboard motor

An outboard motor is a propulsion system for boats, consisting of a self-contained unit that includes engine, gearbox and propeller or jet drive, designed to be affixed to the outside of the transom and are the most common motorized method of propelling small watercraft...

 at the rear. It was capable of carrying one person with equipment - or being used as a kind of motorized wheelbarrow

Wheelbarrow

A wheelbarrow is a small hand-propelled vehicle, usually with just one wheel, designed to be pushed and guided by a single person using two handles to the rear, or by a sail to push the ancient wheelbarrow by wind. The term "wheelbarrow" is made of two words: "wheel" and "barrow." "Barrow" is a...

 by someone walking alongside the vehicle.

The war in Europe ended before the Guppy saw service.

The confusingly similar name "Nuffield Gutty

Nuffield Gutty

The name Nuffield Gutty was used for three prototype vehicles built in 1947 in an attempt to meet a British War Department specification for a light field car to replace the American Jeep that was in service in large numbers following the war...

" was subsequently used for several unrelated prototype vehicles.