High orbit guardian angel

Not the first Tbird that people think of and, lets face it, not the most sexy. However, the scene cut to TB5 in high orbit over the Earth with the snare and kettle drums over the spacey keyboard music always touches the spot. You see the same analogue gauges, switches and reel to reel tape recorder with John Tracy listening to the transmissions in almost every episode but it grabs you like the first time.

Seeing TB3 dock with TB5 is always pretty cool too and makes an otherwise uninteresting 3D render less boring but don’t tell anybody that’s why I put it in.

Apparently TB5 is in geosynchronous orbit 22,400 miles above the Pacific ocean. She is apparently electronically cloaked so that she is invisible to other craft radar and sensors. What could possibly go wrong?

But there are of course realism problems with some aspects of Thunderbird's believe it or not. One aspect I really have problems with is that John Tracy is always immaculately and dressed in full IR uniform. Well maybe he was for a couple of days after his break back on Earth but come on, I bet most of the time he’s wandering about in a his boxers and needs a shave and the place is a bloody mess ... or is that just me ?

Of course, in our more sophisticated digital age there would be no need for a crew . When you called you would get “Thank you for calling International rescue, your call is really important to us. We are currently experiencing a high level of calls and you are number 1965 in the queue. This is followed by the sort of looped Elevator music that saps the will to live.

Anyway, for those that give a damn about such things:

Power: Atomic batteries and reactors
Mass: 976 tons
Length: 400 feet
Width: 296-foot diameter
Height: 272 feet