'Rogue One: A Star Wars Story' release date, latest news: Reveals a new ship: the U-Wing

Fans have known for a while that Gareth Edwards' "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story" will feature new ships from the Imperial side like the TIE Striker, but a new ship for the Rebel Alliance has been revealed called the U-Wing.

Thanks to a recent episode of "The Star Wars Show," Lucasfilm has given fans a first look at a new Rebel gunship. This ship was actually seen much earlier when concept art was revealed for "Rogue One," but now audiences can get a look at the ship as a whole.

According to Matt Martin from the Star Wars Story group, "The U-Wing is a new ship in the Star Wars universe. It's a troop transport and gunship. So it's there to bring in Rebel troops to heavy fire zones and get out as quickly as possible. The wings move depending on the situation, and it's there to both drop off troops and provide air support."

The U-Wing looks pretty much like an X-Wing and A-Wing hybrid. It has four of the X-Wing's signature thrusters and a cockpit that resembles the X-Wing's as well. The main body looks a lot like an A-Wing, however. The ship also has an ability to fold its wings depending on what the ship is used for. It looks like the wings folded back could be what the ship looks like when it's traveling, and it folds up during attack position — opposite to the X-Wing that folds out when it is ready to attack.

It's quite pleasing to see new ships revealed for "Rogue One," since "The Force Awakens," didn't really showcase any new ships for the audience even though it was set in the future. It's kind of ironic that the new ships are coming to a prequel.

"Rogue One: A Star Wars Story" premieres this Dec. 16.