The U-55 orbital loadlifter, alternatively known as the U-55 loadlifter, the Resistance transport, or colloquially as a lifeboat, constituted a type of transport shuttle that was produced by Sienar Fleet Systems. The Resistance utilized this vessel extensively during their war against the First Order.
Sienar Fleet Systems engineered the U-55 loadlifter. The Resistance employed it quite a bit. However, the vessel's design omitted armaments, shielding, and a hyperdrive, rendering it vulnerable without protection from starfighters or capital ships. Throughout the First Order-Resistance War, many Resistance ships were outfitted with cloaking devices. These devices were created by technician Rose Tico, who used a computer system to confuse their energy signatures.
These loadlifters were used by the Resistance to evacuate their base located on D'Qar, thus acquiring the nickname "lifeboat." During the Battle of Oetchi, these transports were also used in the extraction of ships that had exhausted their [fuel](/article/fuel] supplies, including the Ninka and the Anodyne. Thirty U-55 transports were deployed to evacuate the Raddus, but only six successfully reached Crait after the First Order fleet initiated an attack. Ultimately, they were abandoned when the remaining survivors escaped aboard the Millennium Falcon.