Man, I have soooo many memories of riding in third row seats like that as a kid. It was the “kid preferred” way to get home from Little League baseball, town soccer and basketball/hockey games. Hanging out those huge, roll-down rear windows at 35-50 mph was a blast. Viva 1980s!

Came for this, was not disappointed.

IIRC, the tail boom houses an APU and the drag chute. The rear facing radar arrangement was only built on a test aircraft.

You would think driving would be easier, but there are precious few roads in Frank Church and the rest of the federal wilderness areas out West. Much like Alaska and Northern Maine, it’s often far more efficient and cheaper to fly in a bush plane. Also goes to show you the value assigned to beavers (known as…

By design!

The darker smoke is likely IR-blocking smoke from exterior grenade launchers. Intended to block vision and prevent targeting with IR or laser systems.