Thunderbirds

[Mossie]

I've had a few thoughts now & three came to mind.  I thought about what the Thunderbirds lacked in equipment.  The first thing I though of was some kind of mobile medical post to fit inside one of T2's pods.  There are always big disasters going on but the Thunderbirds have always been lucky enough to come across only small numbers of walking wounded!  This would deal with large numbers of casualties, butI can't quite see this one in my minds eye yet.

Second was for a new Thunderbird  I thought that T4 always seemed a bit overstreched for such a tiny submersible & that they could do with some kind of surface vessel.  There was an episode where a rocket fell into the river & I remember they had trouble recovering it.  First take was for some kind of Erankoplan but I didn't think it fitted in very well.  Second take was a composite flying boat, a double bodied aircraft with a catmaran hull.  The cat would detatch from the plane, becoming two machines, T7 & T8 (don't worry Runway, I hadn't forgotten about T6!).  T7, the ship would have a bridge & superstructre that raised up which would include facilities for lifting gear, launch of remote recon subs, even torpedoes & depth charges to deal with the Hood's sub!  T8 would provide support in a way I haven't quite worked out yet, I don't want it to be a T2 "2".

Third idea was not for equipment, but for an airliner similar to the Fireflash that was always getting itself into trouble (so much so that I don't think any b**ger would ever get on it!).  Maybe modify some sixties airliner like a Caravelle or Comet, widen the fuselage to give a blended body type look, add canards, a forward sept wing & enormous engines.

The new T7/T8 combo is my favourite at the mo.  Most of my ideas never get built as I'm too slow a builder, so maybe as Nils mentioned this could be a turned into a Thunderbirds/Gerry Anderson GB?  I'd have to kick my backside into gear then!

You can find the Thunderbird theme at TV Cream, along with Joe 90, Space 1999, Terrahawks & UFO!  This site should keep you nostalgia freaks going for a while....!!!

Sorry for the big post, too many ideas to get off my mind!

Simon

[MartG]

Currently Thunderbirds is on every morning at 11am on BBC2

Got the DVD box set  

[Spey_Phantom]

i had a thunderbird design going on im mind as well.
a little more violent but usefull  

as i read in some of my comic books, where IR was deployed to some warzones to rescue a trapped spy. thunderbird 4 was confiscated by the bereznik republic and they theatened to kill gordon if they would save him. eventually TB1 came around to bust him out of jail.

anyway, my idea was a design for a small, multirole fighter to fit into TB2's belly.
this would have to ba a fighter in the class of the F-35B or a fighter that could take off from a extreme short runway. its role would be cover the rescue team when nuetral military support seems unavailable. in another comic book, TB2 as under a mortar fire attack from Panama army forces, tha would be another situation to use such an aircraft.

there is however the fact that IR does not have alot of pilots to fly it, therefor it could be interesting to install a robotic autopilot (UCAV style) next to the conventional pilot seat. therefor, if a pilot was not available it could be remotly controled from TB1 or mobile control, if needed.

another idea was to launch it in midair, from a launchpad, where the roof of TB2's pod would open up, and the aircraft could launch on its own power, "F-104G ZELL" style  B)  

[jcf]

anyway, my idea was a design for a small, multirole fighter to fit into TB2's belly.
this would have to ba a fighter in the class of the F-35B...

there is however the fact that IR does not have alot of pilots to fly it, therefor it could be interesting to install a robotic autopilot (UCAV style) next to the conventional pilot seat. therefor, if a pilot was not available it could be remotly controled from TB1 or mobile control, if needed.

Funny you should mention that:

"LM waiting to dust off unmanned F-35 concept

    Lockheed Martin says that following the completion of its contractual
obligations on the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) development program, the
company is ready to dust off concepts for an unmanned JSF if service interest is
there.
    Several years ago, the company put "significant effort" into developing two
unmanned JSF concepts, according to Frank Mauro, vice president for advanced
systems development at Lockheed Martin Aeronautics.
One was a "dual-rated" JSF that could fly with or without a pilot, and the
other a "dedicated" unmanned version in which the cockpit is replaced with an
additional fuel tank. Boeing did similar conceptual work for an unmanned version
of its JSF candidate during the F-35 program's competitive phase.
    Lockheed's dual-rated JSF is projected to cost 3 percent more than the
baseline manned carrier takeoff and landing (CTOL) variant, Mauro said during a
briefing in Washington Aug. 15. The dedicated unmanned version is projected to
cost about 3 percent less. With its extra fuel tank, the dedicated version also
would gain another 400 miles of range, Mauro said.

Concepts shelved

     Greater savings could be achieved if the dedicated unmanned JSF flew as a
stripped-down wingman to a manned F-35, which would command them. Because the
unmanned wingman would require fewer sensors, Lockheed estimates it would cost
about three-quarters as much as a manned F-35.
     These concepts were shelved as the services embarked upon what became the
Joint Unmanned Combat Air System (J-UCAS) program, which was described at its
outset as an effort to develop something like an unmanned F-35. None of the cost
savings projected by Lockheed for its unmanned variants would meet the original
J-UCAS cost target of costing one-third as much as a manned JSF, however.
     Following the dissolution of the J-UCAS program, Lockheed is waiting to see
if there will be a place for the unmanned F-35. "We're looking at picking [the
unmanned concepts] up when we get enough customer interest," Mauro said. "Right
now our customers are focused on getting F-35's three variants flying and
they're trying to determine what to do with J-UCAS follow-on." "
_______________________________________________________________________
Workin' for the IR Skunkworks are ye? :ar:
Cheers, Jon

[JC Carbonel]

Remember the episode of "secret of blue water" anime which had a dream sequence with a Victorian TB2 ? That would be nice as an idea down-date TB and do TB in WW2 , TB in WW1 , TB in US civil war ....

If someone is game I am ok to participate in such an idea ...and I have no preference !

JCC

[GeorgeC]

Ah but you can't have too many TBs as there are only 5 Tracey brothers to crew them. Living on an island - with only one eligible female - and doing month on, month off shifts in orbit on TB5 is bad enough without having to bob about on a boat too.

Regards

GeorgeC

[Runway ? ...]

I always thought the VVA 14 was a Thunderbird in the waiting. V/STOL Seaplane and all if it was bigger it might even be persuaded to fit Mossies idea.

(Off to email AModel. If anybody can they might    )  

[Mossie]

Ah but you can't have too many TBs as there are only 5 Tracey brothers to crew them.

There was the T6 episode, they got around it with Brains flying the Tiger Moth, but how would they get around it normally?  I always wondered how they maintained the craft as well, surely Brains couldn't manage it all by himself?

I think if you were going to make a new Thunderbirds series with more craft then you'd have to come up with some way of recruiting.  Might be wrong but I vaguely remember a few cousins being mentioned?  I'm sure Jeff has a string of ex wives & girlfreinds, there's probably a good few more Tracey offspring around!  You'd have to think about building on Tracey Island as well to accomodate the new T-birds.  Another way around it is that not every Thunderbird is required at any one time, so you probably have enough to go around, I'm sure they could add a few girl pilots to stop the boys going stir crazy!

I've come up with a role for my T8 aircraft, fairly obvious really.  It would be a SAR aircraft, carrying various search sensors such as MAD, sonar etc & would be able to drop life rafts, winch up casualties & even small watercraft.  T7/8 would launch from a boat house that the Traceys use for a few pleasure craft.  The boathouse would split in two, a secret entrance in the cliff would open & T7/8 would emerge ready for service!

Simon.

[Mossie]

I always thought the VVA 14 was a Thunderbird in the waiting. V/STOL Seaplane and all if it was bigger it might even be persuaded to fit Mossies idea.

Runway, I never new the VVA 14 existed, that beast is very impressive!  If you removed the centre fuselage thats pretty much what I was thinking of!  In fact, you've got me thinking of a re-design now based around this.

Cheers Runway!

Simon.

[Mossie]

Picked up a Heller Transall C-160 at the weekend.  The main thing I wanted was the Tyne engines for a Rotodyne Z build, so the fuselage will come in handy for this build.  I'll pop a spacer in to give the fuselage an oval section & I may chop the tail at the ramp & turn it upside down, or pose it at a different angle.

The design for the aircraft has already undergone several incarnations in my head, but the catmaran has remained largely the same.  Drawings not my strong point, but I'll see if I can knock something together over the next few days & see what people think.

Simon.