A hibernation chamber is used by the solitary moonbase operator for the three day trip back to Earth. The HAL-9000 computer interfered with their life support, killing all three. Three of the five astronauts aboard the Discovery One in 2001: A Space Odyssey were placed in suspended animation.Nobody Nemo takes a trip to Mars aboard one of these, in order to maintain his late bride's promise of spreading her ashes on the red planet. Even at the phenomenal speed afforded by their matter-antimatter engines - 70 percent the speed of light - the journey from Earth to Pandora's solar system, Alpha Centauri, still takes over five years. The cryosleep variety is used in Avatar with the RDA's Interstellar Vessels.Possibly it was meant to save them from the discomfort of hyperspace entry. The shuttle to the space cruiser in The Fifth Element put all of its passengers into 'hypersleep' just before takeoff, even though the trip took just a few hours.
In the prequel movies, stasis pods are shown being used on earlier slower interstellar spaceships like the Covenant.In the third movie, the Sulaco is attempting to return home via autopilot (as the few surviving humans are in the freezer and the AP, Bishop, is damaged): thus, nobody is available to kill a facehugger that managed to get aboard and causes more damage.In the second movie, we find that Ripley's escape crypod had been drifting for over half a century: she is now a woman without a place, as her family has all died of old age long before (setting up her adoption of Newt).
Only to find Earthmen had invented hyperdrive and beaten him there by several centuries.
Thousands of Kestorans lie in suspension tubes, while a minimal crew keeps the ship running.