Thomas the Jet Engine

"Hi Gordon! Bye Gordon!"

- Thomas

Thomas the Jet Engine, retitled Thomas and the Jet Engine in American and Australian releases, is the twenty-second episode of the sixth season.

Plot
Gordon is boasting about how fast he can go, when Thomas has given the job of delivering a jet engine to Dryaw; he now wishes he could go faster than Gordon.

Thomas is very excited when he arrives at the Docks and is soon ready to leave, but Cranky is taking his time. Thomas tells him to hurry up and Cranky gets cross because he does not like to be told what to do by an engine. Suddenly, Cranky carelessly turns the jet engine on with his hook. The jet engine is soon rocketing Thomas along the track. Thomas' driver tries to apply the brakes, but Thomas cannot stop.

Signals were changed and points were switched for the runaway Thomas, who is very excited and soon flies by James, Henry and Percy, who were all very amazed. When Bertie sees Thomas, he asks Thomas to have a race, but when Thomas whooshes past him, he quickly changes his mind. Gordon, who is pulling the Express, does not know Thomas is racing on the main line. Soon Thomas whooshes past Gordon, who is very surprised.

At last, the jet engine runs out of fuel and Thomas is back to his normal speed. He steams gently into Knapford and teases Gordon by saying that he is the fastest engine. Henry and James agree, Percy feels sorry for Gordon and tells the engines that he does not have to go as fast as a jet engine even though James says that Gordon is full of hot air and Gordon fumes away.

Characters

 * Thomas
 * Henry
 * Gordon
 * James
 * Percy
 * Bertie
 * Cranky
 * Sir Topham Hatt
 * Donald (cameo)
 * Tiger Moth (cameo)
 * Dowager Hatt (cameo)
 * Jeremiah Jobling (cameo)
 * Cyril the Fogman (cameo)
 * Farmer Trotter (cameo)
 * Alicia Botti (mentioned in poster)

Locations

 * Crosby Tunnel
 * Knapford
 * Maron
 * Dryaw
 * Lower Tidmouth
 * Brendam Docks
 * Sodor Shipping Company
 * The Viaduct
 * The Watermill
 * Gordon's Hill

Trivia

 * Stock footage from Bye George! and Gordon Takes a Tumble is used.
 * This is the first time that Knapford Station is referred to by name in the television series.
 * Inspiration for this episode could have come from the jet-powered rail-sleds used by the United States Air Force.
 * This is the second episode to have a rendition of the William Tell Overture, the first being Busy Going Backwards.
 * In the episode, Thomas is smiling when he races past Lower Tidmouth, but in a promotional photo, he is shocked instead.
 * Three posters at Knapford read "Alicia Botti in concert tonight at the Castle."
 * Toad's scrap model from Escape can be seen in one of the shots of Thomas racing out of the Docks.
 * The events of this episode were mentioned by Thomas in the eighteenth season episode Emily Saves the World.
 * Clips from this episode were used in a promo for Thomas & Friends and Ripley and Scuff on CiTV in 2003.

Goofs

 * When James says "Speed isn't everything," his brakepipe is severely damaged. Later, when he says "But he's still full of hot air!" the pipe appears to have been cut off, with only a small bit still attached. Also his tender is off-balance in one of the close-ups.
 * When Thomas says "But being reliable and really useful is!" the track he is on simply ends behind him.
 * The Fat Controller tells Thomas to take the jet engine to the air field, but at the end of the episode, he takes it back to Knapford.
 * When Percy asks what a jet engine is, there are fingerprints on the Fat Controller's hat and shoulder.
 * When Gordon is talking at Knapford, some wires are visible in Percy's cab window.
 * When Cranky knocks the switch, the chain holding the jet engine disappears.
 * The jet engine's switch is already on before Cranky hits it with his hook, so the engine would have been turned off.
 * When the jet engine starts some barrels and crates are beside it, but after Cranky says "Uh-oh," they have moved.
 * When Thomas rushes through Lower Tidmouth, the people are huddled close together, but in the next shot some have disappeared and the rest are spaced further apart.
 * In the shot of the girder bridge, the left-most track leads to the background shrubbery. This can be noticeable before Thomas overtakes Gordon.
 * Just after Bertie says "Want a race, Thomas?" the lines where Thomas came from lead to the bushes; when Thomas runs alongside Gordon the tracks up ahead lead to the bushes.
 * When Gordon's brake coach reveals Thomas, Thomas is not moving.
 * The jet engine is hollow: in the close-up of it running out of fuel, you can see the red tank through the nozzle.
 * In the last close-up of Percy, his left buffer has excess on the bottom and a girl in pink looks like she is boarding Percy's train of vans.
 * Because of stock footage, Gordon looks angry when the narrator says "He loves speeding across his line with the wind blowing across his funnel."
 * In the Russian narration, when the engines are at the station the second time, Michael Angelis' narration is heard in the background.
 * Just before Thomas overtakes Gordon, in the wide shot of Thomas before the point of view shot, Gordon's brake coach is seen at the edge of the screen showing that the train isn't moving.
 * When James gets covered in the dust, his body is crooked.
 * A chain can be seen pulling Gordon along as well as moving to it's right as the camera shows Thomas racing past him.

Quotes
_______________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________
 * Thomas: Whoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooa!
 * Bertie: Want a race, Thomas? (Thomas whooshes by) ... Never mind.
 * Cranky: (after he accidentally starts the Jet Engine) Uh-oh!

Merchandise

 * Wooden Railway
 * Capsule Plarail
 * Take Along (discontinued)
 * Motor Road and Rail (discontinued)
 * TrackMaster
 * Pocket Fantasy (discontinued)
 * Books - Thomas and the Jet Engine and Thomas and the Jet Engine (Germany only)
 * Egmont - Thomas and the Jet Engine
 * Magazine Stories - Rocket Power

Home Media Releases
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UK

 * The Chocolate Crunch and other stories
 * Bumper Party Collection!
 * The Complete Series 6
 * Thomas and the Jet Engine (Promotional DVD)
 * 1st Class Stories

DVD Packs

 * Classic Collection
 * Bumper Party Collection!/Truck Loads of Fun Double Pack
 * Pulling Together!/The Chocolate Crunch Double Pack
 * Brave Little Engines/The Chocolate Crunch Double Pack
 * Peep Peep Party, Engines to the Rescue, & The Chocolate Crunch Triple Pack
 * Double DVD Giftset

US

 * Thomas and the Jet Engine and Other Adventures
 * Thomas and the Jet Engine (Promotional DVD)
 * Thomas & Friends Classic Volume 6

DVD Packs

 * Totally Thomas Volume 8
 * Play Date Pack
 * Adventure On the Tracks

AUS

 * Thomas and the Jet Engine (Australian DVD)
 * The Complete Series 6

DVD Packs

 * 60th Anniversary - Limited Edition Boxset
 * Complete Series 1-10 (Boxset)
 * Series Five and Series Six Double Pack

SWE

 * Percy's Chocolate Dip

NOR/DK

 * Percy's Chocolate Crash

DK DVD Boxsets

 * Danish DVD Boxset

MYS

 * Scaredy Engines and Other Adventures

JPN

 * Thomas the Tank Engine Series 6 Vol.1
 * Will Not Stop

PHL

 * Edward, the Very Useful Engine (Philippine DVD)

ITA

 * The Jet Engine (Italian DVD)

THA
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 * Thomas and Friends - Volume 22 (Thai DVD)
 * Thomas and Friends Volume 15 (Thai DVD)