History Main / DropShip

** Standard shuttles fill this role in multiple ''Franchise/StarTrek'' series. Some of them may count as SpacePlanes. Not all shuttles are armed but many have phasers.

* The Colonial Raptor in ''Series/BattlestarGalactica2003'' serves this role among others in the Colonial Fleet. They are atmospheric-capable MilitaryMashupMachines combining the space shuttle and an Apache helicopter.

* The Peacekeeper Marauder from ''Series/{{Farscape}}'' is a heavy fighter/dropship hybrid operated by elite commandos. It has a large hatch on the bottom from which troops can egress. They seem to be used most often in boarding operations and as scouts.
** The Scarran Stryker and the Luxan Penetrator serve a similar role.

*** The Lambda shuttle itself is used like this in some Eu works and is the inspiration for several drop ships in other works of fiction.

* ''Film/TheForceAwakens'' continues the tradition with the First Order Transporters, also known as Atmospheric Assault Landers. They're tiny compared to Lambda shuttles, but each one still carries up to 20 stormtroopers and can unload them all in seconds.

** The Scarran Stryker and the Luxan Penetrator serve a similiar role.

[[folder:LiveActionTelevision]]

* In ''Film/{{The Avengers|2012}}'', the Chitauri ground troops were transported to Earth by Leviathans which combine this trope with LivingShip.

[[folder:Real Life]]
* The closest real-life equivalents to this trope are military gliders. Granted, these works only in atmospheric conditions, but it was an accurate and pretty reliable way to get airborne soldiers and heavy equipment, such as artillery and vehicles, where they were needed. Unlike normal gliders, they did not truly soar, and had to be cut loose from their carrier planes a short distance from their destination. They were only used during World War II, after which they were replaced by helicopters.
* Almost-RealLife Example: The [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SUSTAIN_(military) Small Unit Space Transport and Insertion]] concept of the U.S. Marine Corps is a serious proposal (though one not likely to become reality any-time soon) to deploy Marines to anywhere on Earth via a small sub-orbital SpacePlane. The flight profile would be similar to that of a military glider, but with a portion of the time spent in space under rocket power.
[[/folder]]

** The ''VideoGame/StarWarsBattlefront'' games use [=LAATs=] and other craft as ship-to-ship boarding dropships. There are various other kinds of dropship in the StarWarsExpandedUniverse, primarily but definitely not exclusively belonging to the Empire. There are a lot of different classes, designed to ferry anything from stormtroopers to [[SpiderTank AT-ATs]] to and from the surface of the planet and the Star Destroyer drifting in orbit.

* The spaceplanes and Kulu Ion Fliers in Peter F. Hamilton's ''NightsDawn'' trilogy perform this on a regular basis, some with more success than others. Most notable being [[spoiler: Ashley's last-second rescue of the ''Lady Macbeth''s crew and assorted others when an ironberg (yes, that's exactly what it sounds like) is about to fall on them from orbit. Another of the ''Lady Mac''s spaceplanes was used to sterilise a landing zone in a jungle with belly-mounted microwave lasers.]]

* The Kovolis Systems Security from NexusGate has these in its fleet.

*** The main reason for the size of [=BattleTech=] Dropships is the fact that rather than travelling from orbit to the surface of a planet, they travel through an entire ''solar system''; Battletech FTL limits the closest a [=JumpShip=] can get to a star's gravity well to a distance that, using the Sol system as an example, stretches out to around the orbit of Jupiter. On top of that, the faster-than-light drive on the average [=JumpShip=] takes up so much of its volume that their ''sublight'' maneuvering drives don't allow them to go anywhere in a hurry, so they tend to just hang out at the jump points where they arrived and recharge their K-F cores while the DropShips play taxi.

A common vehicle in MilitaryScienceFiction: A DropShip is a craft used to carry troops, vehicles and/or supplies from an orbiting ship to the surface of a planet or natural satellite and back, sometimes while under fire. Some are effectively a MilitaryMashupMachine between a space shuttle and a transport helicopter, while others are full-sized landing craft that are substantially larger. If the ship is armed and/or the troops involved happen to be reinforcements, it may be the vehicle of a GunshipRescue. [[DropShip Drop ships]] can go by may different names. These include, but are not limited to: drop ship, assault shuttle, landing craft. In a proper sci-fi setting, the size and configuration is limited only by the author's imagination.

TruthInTelevision, given the fact that the physical requirements of "getting from a planet to orbit and back" are far, far different than those of "getting from orbit around one planet to orbit around another". Think of [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_Lunar_Module the lunar lander]] as a kind of DropShip and you'll get the idea.

* A variation is used in ''Literature/TheHistoryOfTheGalaxy'' books in the form of Marine Assault Modules. Unlike a typical example of a DropShip, [=MAMs=] can be equipped with [[FasterThanLightTravel hyperdrives]], although they aren't likely to have fuel for more than one jump. Besides carrying {{Space Marine}}s and/or [[RealRobotGenre Real Robots]], they also feature two powerful turrets to allow them to clear the deployment area or break down fortifications prior to the ground assault. They can either land to unload troops or deploy {{Drop Pod}}s (basically, shipping crates with landing thrusters). Not designed for space warfare, they are invaluable during ground assaults.

*** The main reason for the size of [=BattleTech=] Dropships is the fact that rather than travelling from orbit to the surface of a planet, they travel through an entire ''solar system''; Battletech FTL limits the closest a [=JumpShip=] can get to a star's gravity well to a distance that, using the Sol system as an example, stretches out to around the orbit of Jupiter. On top of that, the faster-than-light drive on the average [=JumpShip=] takes up so much of its volume that their ''sublight'' maneuvering drives don't allow them to go anywhere in a hurry, so they tend to just hang out at the jump points where they arrived and recharge their K-F cores while the [=DropShips=] play taxi.

** Orks rarely bother with individual DropShips, preferring to bring their space transports to the planet. They use hollowed-out asteroids with huge engines for space travel, and sending thses Roks swreaming through the atmosphere reults in on of two things: thousands of angry and armed orks emerging from the wreckage and crater ready to krump some 'eadz, or a titanic explosion visible from space as the rok detonates, which is slightly less desirable than the first result, but not by much.

* ''VideoGame/DawnOfWar'' only sees DropShips in the Imperial Guard stronghold level of Soulstorm, and even then they just drop troops on prescripted locations (one inside your base). Given the GameBreaker nature of flyers in DoW, letting them carry troops would have been serious overkill.

* The ''Literature/{{Eldraeverse}}'' brings us the ''Flapjack''-class cavalry dropship, which uses a '''pair''' of {{OrionDrive}}s - one to accelerate out of orbit, and one to brake hard on landing. The latter doubles as a nuclear daisy-cutter to clear the landing zone.

* Closer to this, even if unmanned, are probes as ''Huygens'', carried by ''Cassini'', that landed on Saturn's moon Titan back in 2005 or the ''Philae'' module transported by Rosetta to the comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko in 2014.

* The Combine use the bio-mechanical variety in ''VideoGame/{{Half-Life 2}}''. They generally carry pods full of troops, but are also capable of carrying non-standard loads, such as Gordon Freeman's jeep. Considering their biological components, they probably aren't space-worthy, but as all of the events of the game take place within the atmosphere, this isn't a big issue. They're even referred to as drop ships in-game by the Rebels.

For when the vehicle is not designed to go back up, see DropPod.

* The military glider. Granted, it works only on atmospheric conditions, but it was an accurate and pretty reliable way to get airborne soldiers and heavy equipment, such as artillery and vehicles, where they were needed. Today, helicopters have superceded the gliders.
* Almost-RealLife Example: The [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SUSTAIN_(military) Small Unit Space Transport and Insertion]] concept of the U.S. Marine Corps is a serious proposal (though one not likely to become reality any-time soon) to deploy Marines to anywhere on Earth via a small sub-orbital SpacePlane.

* In ''Literature/WhateleyUniverse'', the military forces of major nations have small groups of elite Rapid Response dropships, as well as orbital platforms for forces which can be inserted via a DropPod system, and can even mix in Empowered forces from the MSOC and Delta units if time allows. However, due to the massive cost of these procedures, even the US can only field about a battalion strength of dropship forces. On the other hand, major supervillains such as Dr. Diabolik and Gizmatic also have similar forces, as can paramilitary groups such as the MCO and the Knights of Purity, and mercenary units such as the Paramount Guard and the Syndicate's Tiger Guard. Some of which are notably superior to those run by the governments, and in some cases they can staff them with SuperSoldier units.

* In ''Literature/WhateleyUniverse'', the military forces of major nations have small groups of elite Rapid Response dropships, as well as orbital platforms for forces which can be inserted via a DropPod system, and can even mix in Empowered forces from the MSOC and Delta units if time allows. However, due to the massive cost of these procedures, even the US can only field about a battalion strength of dropship forces. On the other hand, major supervillains such as Dr. Diabolik and Gizmatic also have similar forces, as can mercenary units such as the Paramount Guard and the Syndicate's Tiger Guard, some of which are notably superior to those run by the governments, and in some cases they can staff them with SuperSoldier units.

* ''Franchise/StarCraft'':

** The ''StarWarsBattlefront'' games use [=LAATs=] and other craft as ship-to-ship boarding dropships. There are various other kinds of dropship in the StarWarsExpandedUniverse, primarily but definitely not exclusively belonging to the Empire. There are a lot of different classes, designed to ferry anything from stormtroopers to [[SpiderTank AT-ATs]] to and from the surface of the planet and the Star Destroyer drifting in orbit.

** On the Covenant's side of the war, there are two variants: the Type-25 'Spirit' Troop Carrier, and the Type-52 'Phantom' Troop Carrier.

* ''Dropzone Commander'' appears to have been built entirely around the idea that "dropships are cool." Every faction has them,[[note]] Okay, Shaltari Gates technically don't ''carry'' their cargo, being mobile teleporters, but they fulfil the same function.[[/note]] in sizes ranging from little infantry-carrying gunships to giant monstrosities that can hold and deploy nine tanks at once. And, well, the name is a bit of a clue.

-->'''Captain Zapp Brannigan:''' As you know, the key to victory is the element of surprise. Surprise!