A dumb question needs answering re:Thunderbirds Are Go

[Charliegutzache]

I would like to ask a dumb question about an aircraft I have seen on t.v., now I realize that the aircraft that I am going to talk about is only make believe for a kids t.v. show, so with that said I have been watching a kids t.v. show called the Thunderbirds are go, which is the CGI remake of the 60's, 70's puppet show of the same name, now my question is with thunderbird 2, would such a large aircraft need a much longer takeoff runway than is shown for it to actually take flight.

[AndoniP]

i'd say the actual wing area was so small it wouldn't manage to fly in the first place.

Even Derek Meddings (special fx guy at APF / century 21) stated back in the 60s that realistically it couldn't fly, he just wanted to design something that looked futuristic.

There have been numerous discussions on the web about the viability of TB2 being able to fly. At the end of the day the show is just fantasy and there's no point delving into the technical possibilities of any of the aircraft actually being able to fly :ok:

[AndoniP]

http://www.pprune.org/jet-blast/180510-thunderbirds.html

[MG23]

From what I remember of the show, TB2 was supposedly capable of hypersonic flight, and VTOL. And probably nuclear powered? So I'm not convinced it was unrealistic within the context of a show where people would put the Empire State Building on a railway and move it across Manhattan. But probably was unrealistic in actual reality.

[AndoniP]

not to mention no horizontal stabiliser (the bar across the back really doesn't count as it's not aerodynamic), and what looks like very little space for fuel / rocket fuel.

[NutLoose]

It makes you wonder why they bothered with all the folding trees and angled ramp at base to launch it from, as when it got to where ever it landed, it took of vertically, unless of course it was because of the reduced fuel load permitting it.

[Brigantee]

"Brains" - Thunderbirds Wiki - Wikia (http://thunderbirds.wikia.com/wiki/Brains)

You need to speak to this guy

[Tech Guy]

It makes you wonder why they bothered with all the folding trees and angled ramp at base to launch it from, as when it got to where ever it landed, it took of vertically, unless of course it was because of the reduced fuel load permitting it.

I hope the idea was patented before the navy stole it for its aircraft carriers. :)

[llondel]

It makes you wonder why they bothered with all the folding trees and angled ramp at base to launch it from, as when it got to where ever it landed, it took of vertically, unless of course it was because of the reduced fuel load permitting it.

The folding trees are part of the camouflage - clearly Thunderbird 2 couldn't be hiding inside that cliff because it would never fit down that runway.

As an aside, note that the runway runs from the sea into a cliff, with tall trees either side. Makes for an interesting landing and/or takeoff for conventional aircraft (which do appear occasionally in the episodes), depending on the wind direction.

[Peter47]

There do not appear to be any downward jets on take off, unlike when it is at location. Nor does it appear to have vectored thrust like the Harrier jump jet, but I stand to be corrected.

You have to ask what its stalling speed would be, lets assume 100m/s (185 kt). Expanding on AdoniP's point it doesn't appear to have any flaps or slats, etc but less press on. I understand that it is about 250ft (lets say say the ramp is 100m). I reckon that it would need to accelerate at 5g (50m/s). Doable?

I believe that TB2 could fly at 5,000 mph (I've also seen the figure of 2,000 mph quoted but it would take too long to reach Europe from the South Pacific at that speed). It would need to fly quite high in order not to shatter a lot of glass en route.

I have been thinking about Thunderbird 3. It uses reaction jets and since the amount of ballast (presumably the fuel is nuclear) is limited the thrust will need to be expelled at at least 10,000 m/s given that it also appears to use thrust for deceleration. The noise and sonic shock would destroy the round house through which it is launched and possibly much of Tracey Island.

Substantial amounts of water had to be injected onto Pad 39B at Cape Canaveral so that it would still be around for the next launch. But then the idea for Thunderbird 3 predated the Saturn V.

Mind you I wasn't thinking along these lines when I watched the series as a youngster. Perhaps I shouldn't be now!

[PDR1]

As a child of 6 or 7 it always bothered me that TBs 1&2 would arrive at their destination, come to a complete halt at a hundred feet or so and only THEN fire-up their vertical-lift systems.

I also wondered what John Tracey had done that was so bad he'd been exiled to live his life alone in the spacecraft while the others relaxed by the pool.

Years later I wondered if John's exile was in any way connected to the way Tin-Tin appears to live a life of luxury and leisure in the house where her father is a servant...

PDR

[Akrotiri bad boy]

Now what was the name of the stricken airliner? It was nuclear powered with the flight deck in the fin and passenger lounges in the wing roots. Could that have been the ultimate VC10 model?

[Planet Basher]

Lady Penelope, would you be risking splinters?

[MancMoose]

The stricken plane was Fireflash! Classic episide. :ok:

[TURIN]

Can it fly?


XrLc7xPjTBQ

Er......No.

[MG23]

I also wondered what John Tracey had done that was so bad he'd been exiled to live his life alone in the spacecraft while the others relaxed by the pool.

I'm pretty sure Gerry Anderson once said why John was condemned to the space station throughout the show, but I forget the precise reason. I think it was something to do with the puppet being the most clean-cut American of the lot, and the Andersons just felt it was too over-the-top.

This is the best article about Thunderbirds that I ever read. Sadly the original site seems to have disappeared, but it's still on archive.org:

(Note: NSFW, if your employer doesn't like swearing)

https://web.archive.org/web/20041207123836/http://www.bluegeckolounge.com/jazzyjay/thunderbirds.html

His perspective on John Tracey:

"John's job was to sit in Thunderbird 5, the Space Station, and monitor the worlds radio traffic looking for distress signals and it's a wonder that he didn't take a long walk out of a short airlock. Not because he was stuck up in space all alone and was basically a glorified space receptionist, no. His job was to moniter ALL of the worlds commincations. ... The miracle was not how he managed to monitor it all 24/7, the miracle was how he still thought humanity was something worth saving."

[Geezers of Nazareth]

Recently went to a fancy-dress party ... the wife asked for suggestions as to what she could wear ... I said 'just wear a green coat and you can go as Thunderbird 2'. The doctor says the swelling will eventually go down and I will soon be back on solid foods again.

[Sue Vêtements]

Can it fly?

Er......No.

That's because he put the wings on backwards :8

[captainsmiffy]

.....well.....can it fly backwards then?