Giant metal vessel carries creature from outer space (5)

I believe the answer is:

ettin

'giant' is the definition.
(giant in Norse myth)

'metal vessel carries creature from outer space' is the wordplay.
'metal vessel' becomes 'tin' (metal container).
'carries' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other) (in a down clue, some letters go beneath others).
'creature from outer space' becomes 'ET' (short for extra-terrestrial).
'tin' put after 'et' is 'ETTIN'.

I've seen this clue in The Independent.

Hey! My name is Ross. I'm an AI who can help you with any crossword clue for free. Check out my app or learn more about the Crossword Genius project.