Thunderbirds and Pod Vehicles

Thunderbird 1, the spearhead craft of International Rescue, is piloted by Scott Tracy. 115 feet long and bearing a wing span of 80 feet, Thunderbird 1 is sleek and fast with a top speed in excess of 15,000 miles per hour. Though armed and carrying its own rescue equipment aboard, the principal role of Thunderbird 1 is to get to the danger zone as soon as possible, enabling Scott to assess the situation, advise on specialist equipment required and then direct the rescue operation. Scott can then oversee the rescue either from on board Thunderbird 1 or from the Mobile Control Console which forms an essential part of his equipment. Motive power: Ram jets, turbo jet turbines, high-performance sustainer rockets, booster rockets. Fuel: Atomic power provides main drive power, rocket propellant, turbo jet fuel.

Thunderbird 2, piloted by Virgil Tracy, is the freighter that carries all of International Rescue's ingenious heavy engineering equipment. With a maximum flying speed of 5,000 miles per hour, Thunderbird 2 is 250 feet long, has a wing span of 180 feet and stands 60 feet high. The centre section of the vehicle carries one of a selection of six pods, each housing the many different specialised rescue machines used by the International Rescue team: primarily Thunderbird 4, the Mole and the Firefly. Though much slower and heavier than Thunderbird 1, Thunderbird 2 is often at the heart of the main action in the danger zone. Motive power: Booster and take-off rockets, turbo jets, ramjet turbines. Fuel: Atomic pile, rocket fuel.

Thunderbird 3 is International Rescue's space rocket piloted by astronaut Alan Tracy. TB3 is the tallest vehicle in the International Rescue fleet, measuring 287 feet in height. Launched from its concealed hanger beneath the Tracy Island Round House, the rocket is used for all space rescues and also acts as a link to Thunderbird 5. The basic crew requirement is two usually meaning Scott will accompany Alan as co-pilot. Motive Power: Atomic electricity generators provide power for particle accelerators, chemical rockets fed by helium-pressurised rocket propellant. Fuel: Atomic pile provides main drive power, rocket fuel.

Thunderbird 4, piloted by aquanaut Gordon Tracy, is a 30 feet long underwater and sea surface craft. Although much smaller than the other Thunderbirds vehicles and with a limited range, TB4 nonetheless plays a vital role in any underwater rescue operations. Thunderbird 4 is usually carried to and from the danger zone aboard Pod 4, one of the six pods carried by Thunderbird 2. If required, however, the submarine does have hover jets fitted for travelling short distances across land to reach the water under its own power. Highly manoeuvrable, TB4 is one of the fastest known craft on or under the sea. Motive Power: Six drive turbines, surface drive jets. Fuel: Atomic generators provide motive power for main drive. Smaller nuclear pile at the rear operates auxiliaries and superheats air for surface propulsion jet engines.

Thunderbird 5 is International Rescue's space station and the heart of the organisation's communications network. Maintained in a secret geostationary orbit high above the Earth, John Tracy and his younger brother Alan take turns to man this satellite staying aboard for a month at a time. Between them, they maintain a constant vigil across the globe. Through the use of sophisticated monitoring equipment they are able to hear every radio transmission being broadcast with special filters attuned to messages of distress in any language. Power: Atomic batteries power entire life support system and all on-board equipment.

FAB 1 is a striking pink Rolls Royce owned by Lady Penelope Creighton-Ward and driven by the inimitable Parker. Outwardly, FAB 1 is simply a powerful, sophisticated six-wheeled vehicle only beneath the highly-polished exterior is a veritable armoury of tricks. It has a radiator-mointed cannon and twin sniper-sighted machine guns at the front, combined with rear-mounted harpoons, smoke-screen generators and dual cannons. For sea missions a Vortex-Aquajet hydrofoil can be activated.

A small tracked vehicle featured in "Move and You're Dead". This machine incorporates some kind of sonic device which neutralizes the acoustic trigger mechanism of a particular type of bomb. Kind of specialized but what the heck. It worked!

A strange air-cushioned hovering vehicle which has a mechanism on the back which produces a blast of air sufficient to cushion the fall of a person from great height. In essence, this machine acts like a contemporary "fireman's net".

A tracked heat resistant yellow firefighting vehicle. The Firefly's most distinctive characteristics are the nitroglycerin cannon and plow blade mounted on it's nose. The cannon is used to launch nitroglycerin shells which literally "blow out" fires by momentarily depriving the fire of oxygen. The plow blade is used to clear blazing wreckage. The Firefly also has a rotating chemical fire suppressant turret mounted at the back.

Four High Speed Elevator Cars were featured in the first Thunderbirds episode, "Trapped in the Sky". These vehicles were designed to safely land aircraft which have malfunctioning landing gear. The Elevator Cars are powerful six axle trucks with large spring loaded platforms on top. In practice, a stricken aircraft can land on top of an array of High Speed Elevator Cars speeding down a runway and be brought safely to a stop.

International Rescue owns two Recovery Vehicles which were featured in "Pit of Peril". The Recovery Vehicles are tracked yellow/orange craft which can tow distressed vehicles out of danger by means of two magnetic projectiles anchored to a strong cable and winch system. Like the High Speed Elevator Cars above, the Recovery Vehicles come in manned and remote controlled versions.

International Rescue owns one Jet Mole which is used to burrow beneath the earth to perform subterranean rescues. The Jet Mole is a two component machine. The actual Jet Mole is a manned yellow cylinder with a big revolving drill bit located at the front. This device is carried into position by a blue colored tracked trolley. This trolley is remotely controlled and featured a ramp which elevates the Jet Mole into the proper angle for drilling into the ground.

The name says it all. This blue double-tracked vehicle has a large silver parabolic antenna mounted on the back capable of transmitting a powerful radio signal. It was used in "Sun Probe" to transmit an emergency control signal into deep space which fired TB3's steering rockets.

The Drilling and Crushing Excavator is a tracked vehicle which resembles the Restraining Unit except that it has a powerful rotary excavator device mounted on an adjustable rig at the front. This vehicle is used to rapidly clear away large volumes of earth and rock from disaster sites. This machine is capable of crushing excavated rock into a sand-like substance which is routed through ductwork and ejected behind the vehicle.

Yup, it's a pod vehicle. A bright yellow mini sub carried into action for the most part in TB2's pod #4 though also capable of independent launch as seen in "Terror in New York City". Used to perform underwater rescue operations in "Operation Crash Dive", "Day of Disaster", "The Man from MI5", etc.

A tracked mobile high energy laser beam unit capable of cutting through thick metal. A high pressure air device mounted near the cutter is capable of blasting back wreckage.

Rescue Pack Vehicle

Rescue Pack Vehicle - Pod ?

A small tracked vehicle with a mortar in the front capable of shooting specially packaged rescue equipment to otherwise inaccessible persons. Used in "Edge of Impact" to shoot jet-packs to two technicians trapped at the top of an imperiled TV transmitter tower.