Syd Mead
Syd Mead, a principal conceptual designer on "Aliens", first designed the "Sulaco" as a massive sphere, a "heavily armed cargo ship, outfitted to transport material". James Cameron was not satisfied, as having a spherical model move past the lens would have required variable focus; he produced a quick sketch of the style of ship he imagined and noted that he was imagining something like "a forest of antennae enter[ing] the frame, followed by the enormous bulk of the SULACO".