A landing pod or lander pod was a small utility craft in use by the Federation in the mid-23rd century. The pod comprised a spherical cockpit connected to an aft section containing four extendable stabilizing vanes, which could rotate freely around the cockpit to maintain position and attitude. Pods were equipped with both ejection and auto-navigation systems, though the navigation computers were susceptible to magnetic fields.
The landing pods were originally developed for a mission to Kim-Tara, with Michael Burnham acting as one of the test pilots for the design. As the gravimetric conditions were similar, they were used in an away mission to reach the wreck of the USS Hiawatha in 2257.
The USS Discovery carried a complement of at least four of these landing pods, stored beneath the starship's shuttlebay. (DIS: "Brother")
In 2258, the landing pod complements of Discovery and the USS Enterprise were retrofitted with phasers so that they could assist in the battle against a Section 31 armada. (DIS: "Such Sweet Sorrow", "Such Sweet Sorrow, Part 2")