SWAKOPMUND, Africa: When Dennis Quaid first found out he’d be spending four months filming in the African desert, he had his doubts. Shooting for a remake of the 1965 action adventure ‘The Flight of the Phoenix’ turned out to be “really great”.

The movie, set in Mongolia’s Gobi Desert, is being filmed in the colourful Namib dunes, a pleasant palm-lined seaside resort. In the film, Quaid’s plane crashes in the desert, and survivors try to build a new aircraft from the wreckage. The original, starring James Stewart, had little action and few special effects. The remake uses four different planes and makes liberal use of pyrotechnics.

John Moore is directing the movie. Filming started in November. The film will be released later this year. His 12-year-old son, Jack Henry, from his former marriage to actress Meg Ryan, joined him recently on the set. — AP