Kraków's Magic Carpet Ride on the Last Train to Clarksville

[StainlessSteelCynic]

I don't recall seeing many railway tunnels in northern Poland when I was there in 2010 but there were enough cases of tracks passing under a traffic bridge or situations where trees grew close to the line even at bends on the tracks, for the same principle to apply. There were also cases where the tracks ran between tall walls/fences in the outer areas of towns.
I'll stress again, that what I saw was mostly northern Poland, I didn't check any rail lines in the south of the country.

I think you could probably successfully pass through some of these locations with the helo's tail hanging over the back of the rear flatcar but you'd want to be aware of them in advance to ensure you could get the clearance needed. Which would require scouting ahead or the like, all of which would slow the pace of travel for as long as it's necessary to do a recce - and then you might have to cut down trees or shift the helo to move the tail out of the way. In a worst case scenario you would have to remove the tail, so it might be worth doing that right at the start anyway.

[Legbreaker]

Another issue with putting it at the rear is you're sacrificing the chance of properly defending the rear arc of the train. Sure you can put a couple of machineguns and sandbags there, but not a lot more. Having a box car, or even just an empty flatcar at the rear allows building up a decent strong point.
Probably not a huge concern while the train is moving forward, but as we know in 2000 Poland there's a LOT of bridges and tracks destroyed or damaged - the train will be motionless, or even travelling in reverse more often than not while repairs are made, or an alternate route found.

[recon35]

Good points. I agree, that if you have the expertise, removing the tail boom is best. I know in the US, active rail rights of way are generally kept clear of trees, so I just assumed the same was in effect in Europe. These shouldn't have grown to the point of serious hindrance from the start of war to the present. As for rear security, another flat car, followed by third flat with fortifications or box with same should suffice.

[Legbreaker]

Bear in mind though that there are only limited cars available as per the module, and their order, at least to begin with, isn't exactly ideal for most purposes (although adjustable with a little time and effort). Also two of the three flatcars are already loaded with rails and sleepers.