In the 1997 film “Starship Troopers,” the troop transport ship is the Rodger Young.
The Rodger Young carries Johnny Rico’s Mobile Infantry unit, the Roughnecks, during the Federation’s war against the Arachnids. Carmen Ibanez is also associated with the ship as a pilot, placing it at the center of several major battles and deployment scenes.
The name comes from Robert A. Heinlein’s 1959 novel Starship Troopers, which also names a military transport Rodger Young. The film changes many details from the novel, including the visual design of the military and the tone, but retains this important ship name.
A common mix-up is confusing the Rodger Young with the Valley Forge, the ship connected to Rico’s earlier unit before he joins the Roughnecks. The name honors Rodger Wilton Young, a U.S. Army soldier who received the Medal of Honor posthumously for actions during World War II.