[Milsurplus] Destination Gobi

[Hue Miller]

I finally watched the DVD, a long time after seeing the movie on TV
in the early 1960s.  In "realism" I would rate this about 1 out of 10;
it's approximately on the level of some weekly TV serial.
The radio equipment on this US Navy SACO weather station in
the Gobi Desert is a TBW.  You do not see the full frontal view of
the transmitter but a side view showing handles and legs. In the
background you can see the side-by-side RBM receivers. In one
of the earlier scenese, one of the crew is listening via headphones
to a radio which you can only see the back side of.  I am not sure
what radio that is, IF it is a radio, as it has a handle on top and
the back is partly open. Maybe some USN troop entertainment
type radio?
Seeing the guy cranking a handcrank generator attached to the
TBW did not enhance my opinion of the movie. Earlier, you can
see someone starting up a gas engine generator to run the 
transmitter - maybe the idea was that the Japanese aircraft 
attack damaged the generator.  When the radio gives out and
won't transmit any more, for lack of an 807, you have to wonder
about their radio operator too. ( Actually, a spare 803 is harder
to find in the Gobi Desert than an 807. )
In summary a moderately entertaining movie built to 1960 
standards and budget.  -Hue Miller