Throwback Thursday

Csalem

Hi all,
I thought for 2016 I might post a photo from the archive every Thursday, showing buses from the past.
The first shot was taken on this day in 1995, but I cannot guarantee all future shots will be from the same day as they are posted.

RH 145 at Bray Station with an 84 to Kilcoole. 07/01/1995:
Throwback Thursday (1) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

Enjoy!

Csalem

This week we are going back to 1997 and the W Class on the 300. W 3 is seen at the Omni Shopping Centre, 11/01/1997:

Throwback Thursday (2) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

tabbey

I had forgotten the W. How many did they have? and for how long?

Csalem

tabbey wrote: »

I had forgotten the W. How many did they have? and for how long?

They only had a handful of them. About five or six. Were meant to be tested on some DART Feeders but instead ended up on the 222 from Tara Street to St. Stephen's Green via O'Connell Street, before moving to the 300 from Omni Park. Think they lasted until about 97/98 when the 103 and 104 from Omni started.

For this week we are only going back to 2009 and to WV 19 on the 53A. The bus is now gone and the route is now gone. The bus is seen on New Wapping Street on the 1st April 2009.

Throwback Thursday (3) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

Csalem

This week for Throwback Thursday we are going back to 2008. RV 460 is seen at the bus terminus in Dundrum with a 44C from the City Centre to Ballyogan:

Throwback Thursday (4) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

Csalem

This week for Throwback Thursday we are going back to 2008. RV 460 is seen at the bus terminus in Dundrum with a 44C from the City Centre to Ballyogan:

Throwback Thursday (4) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

Csalem

This week for Throwback Thursday we are going back to 1984. KC 78 is seen at Howth Summit on route 88. This route was introduced to replace the Hill of Howth Tram. It later became a DART Feeder service in 1984 before being withdrawn in 1988. In more recent times the 31C connected Sutton, Howth Summit and Howth but this service too was withdrawn a number of years ago. Today the 31A is the route that is closest to the 88. 06/08/1984

Throwback Thursday (5) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

Csalem

This week for Throwback Thursday we are going back to 1984. KC 78 is seen at Howth Summit on route 88. This route was introduced to replace the Hill of Howth Tram. It later became a DART Feeder service in 1984 before being withdrawn in 1988. In more recent times the 31C connected Sutton, Howth Summit and Howth but this service too was withdrawn a number of years ago. Today the 31A is the route that is closest to the 88. 06/08/1984

Throwback Thursday (5) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

Csalem

This week for Throwback Thursday we go back to 1992 and 98FM was still Classic Hits. RH 63 is seen parked between duties on the 31 on Marlborough Street. This stretch of road is currently being dug up for Luas Cross City. Abbey Park on the destination was regularly served by the 32B before being withdrawn from there in 2012. Now no route directly serves Abbey Park. 04/05/1992

Throwback Thursday (6) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

Csalem

This week for Throwback Thursday we go back to 1992 and 98FM was still Classic Hits. RH 63 is seen parked between duties on the 31 on Marlborough Street. This stretch of road is currently being dug up for Luas Cross City. Abbey Park on the destination was regularly served by the 32B before being withdrawn from there in 2012. Now no route directly serves Abbey Park. 04/05/1992

Throwback Thursday (6) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

Csalem

For this week's Throwback Thursday we go back to 1982 and the first Leyland Atlantean in the CIE fleet. D 1 entered service in February 1967 so was already fifteen years old when this photograph was taken. It was withdrawn eighteen months later, Although the first bus in the fleet it was not the first to enter service, that honour falling to D 4. D 1 was the first out of an eventual fleet of 840.
D 1 is seen in Parnell Street with a 40C to Finglas. 18/02/1982
Throwback Thursday (7) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

Csalem

Just travelling back a mere six years for this weeks update but even so there has been a lot of change in that time. RV 531 loads up on College Street with a 77 to Jobstown. A handy piece of A4 paper in the front windscreen shows it goes "via Airton Road". In August 2011 RV 531 was withdrawn from service. It was one of the last buses deivered with rollerblind destinations (RV 540 being the last). Route 77 was merged with the 27 in September 2011 becoming one long cross-city route from Clare Hall to Jobstown, and adopted the 27 route number. Finally this part of College Street is currently being converted into a tram line for Luas Cross City and will become a tram stop next year. 26/02/2010

Throwback Thursday (8) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

Csalem

It is a trip back to 1997 this week and a look at a test new livery for Dublin Bus. When it started in 1987 the company adopted a two-tone green livery with an orange stripe. Ijn 1996 when it made its first attempt at a new fleet livery it experimented with...two-tone green and an orange stripe. This experimental livery was applied to RH 86 and AD 24 and following the trial was not deemed a success and Dublin Bus ended up adopting a livery of blue/orange/cream. RH 86 is seen on O'Connell Street with an 11 from Kilmacud to Wadelai park. 03/03/1997

Throwback Thursday (9) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

LastStop

I'm glad they didn't go with that colour scheme. I was a fan of the green they had in the early 90s.

And the orange back in the 80s. Was it the D class that had the sort of spiral stairs?

Csalem

It is the tenth of March and the tenth Throwback Thursday. And we are going back twenty years to 1996.
KC 9 is seen at the 44A terminus on Mount Prospect Avenue in Clontarf. This route, along with similar route 30, was replaced on the 17th March 1996 by City Imp route 130. This was the era of when some of the city bus routes were being replaced with more frequent minibus services under the brand of City Imp.
The 44A was one of those numbering oddities within Dublin Bus as the 44, 44B, and 44C all operated on the southside while the 44A was confined to the northside.

09/03/1996

Throwback Thursday (10) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

Csalem

17th March of St. Patrick's Day and in the American date format that is 03 17 so what better way to celebrate the day than with a shot of AV 317. Another aspect of St. Patrick's Day is that it brings a lot of diversions for bus routes with the city centre shut down for the parade. Gardiner Street becomes the main cross city route for buses that usually use O'Connell Street. AV 317 is seen operating one such route, the 19A. This operated from Jamestown Road in Finglas to Limekiln Avenue in Greenhills but at this point it did not have much life left to it. Network Direct replaced the 19A with the 9 in August 2011.
AV 317 is seen in Mountjoy Square. 17/03/2011

Throwback Thursday (11) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

Csalem

Throwback Thursday this week is going back to 1982 and the end of rear-entrance buses in Dublin. RA 138, R 1 and KD 52 are seen on Drimnagh Road at the terminus of the 23 while on a special run to mark the end of these buses. The actual last day was over a week later on the 2nd April.
The 23 eventually became route 123 under the City Imp brand and extended to Kilnamanagh Road. 27/03/1982

Throwback Thursday (12) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

Csalem

For Throwback Thursday this week are going back to 1987 and Dublin Bus is just two months old. The new compnay had settled on a colour scheme in the form of adding an orange stripe to two-tone green CIE livery but the logo had not been settled yet. KC 200 is seen at Blackrock with the first attempt at a logo on the side of the bus. This bus is also in the DART Feeder livery and route 114 to Sandyford Industrial Estate was one of those routes.
The bus was also assigned the registration XZV 200 when delivered in 1986 but was registered with the new style number plate prior to entering service. 31/03/1987

Throwback Thursday (13) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

tabbey

Csalem wrote: »

Throwback Thursday this week is going back to 1982 and the end of rear-entrance buses in Dublin. RA 138, R 1 and KD 52 are seen on Drimnagh Road at the terminus of the 23 while on a special run to mark the end of these buses. The actual last day was over a week later on the 2nd April.
The 23 eventually became route 123 under the City Imp brand and extended to Kilnamanagh Road. 27/03/1982

Throwback Thursday (12) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

I look back at open platform buses with great affection and nostalgia, but have to admit that today's buses are more solid and safe, as well as more driver friendly.
Quite apart from the enormous effort needed to steer the older buses out of a stopping place, before power assisted steering.
R an RA buses were also built quite flimsily. I recall in 1980, sitting upstairs, and as the bus bounced over the bumps, the roof was lifting from the rest of the body at the front.

The roof front and about five feet at the sides, was severed from the window frames

Csalem

For Throwback Thursday this week we are going back just four years and to a bit of Italy...in Bray. Route 185 is one of those odd routes within Dublin Bus as it is really two routes: One from Bray to Shop River via Enniskerry and the other from Bray to Palermo. The latter terminus is within a housing estate in the northern part of Bray, near the Wicklow/Dublin border. This route is significantly shorter than the Shop River one. Today AX 616 has lost its dot matrix destination and has a LED display instead. Bray 07/04/2012

Throwback Thursday (14) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

Csalem

For Throwback Thursday this week we are going back to 1988 and a bus route that is no longer with us. KC 111 is seen loading up on Abbey Street with a 51A to Beaumont Hospital. This route survived just over twenty years before being abolished on the 24th April 2009. The route was one of those oddities within Dublin as the rest of the 51 family served Clondalkin, but the 51A came no closer to it than O'Connell Street and Abbey Street. It ran to Beuamont Hospital via Ballybough, Griffith Avenue and Grace Park Road.
The bus has also two pieces of extra branding. One is for the DART as it was also used on DART Feeder services, though the 51A was not one of those routes. The second is the Dublin Millenium logo towards the rear which was to mark 1000 years of Dublin City in 1988.
Abbey Street has also undergone some change since then too with the lane the bus stopped at now the only road lane and the two in the forefront now used by the trams on the Luas Red Line tram.14/04/1988

Throwback Thursday (15) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

Csalem

For Throwback Thursday this week we are going back to a scene that is no longer with us. KD 157 is seen arriving at Dun Laoghaire harbour. Although the display is showing 46A, it is in fact arriving to bring ferry passengers from the Holyhead car-ferry into Dublin City Centre. Beside it is the old harbour building that was attached to the original harbour railway station. This building was demolished a few years ago. The ferry also originally moved a few metres to a new port building when it became the HSS service. This service too has ceased. The bus service too ceased too when the HSS started as the new building was close to the railway station. 21/04/1992

Throwback Thursday (16) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

LastStop

Csalem wrote: »

Although the display is showing 46A, it is in fact arriving to bring ferry passengers from the Holyhead car-ferry into Dublin City Centre.

The good old days when you could throw anything up on the scroll and get away with it. Also the passenger always knew what the bus was and where it was going.

Csalem

This week we are going back to 1998 for Throwback Thursday. RH 125 is seen at the bus stop outside Trinity College on Grafton Street while operating a service on route 10 from Phoenix Park to Belfield. This was one of the most famous bus routes in Dublin, taking many families to the Zoo in the Phoenix Park and many students to UCD in Belfield. This route ceased in 2010 when the northside leg was taken over by the 46A and the southside leg by the 39A. This location no longer has any bus stops as it is the route of the Luas Cross City.
Finally the bus is in an All-Over Ad for Carlsberg Lager. 28/04/1998

Throwback Thursday (17) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

Cookie_Monster

Fancy wheels as well, is that an ex wedding bus?

Csalem

Cookie_Monster wrote: »

Fancy wheels as well, is that an ex wedding bus?

I don't think so. Think it spent most of its early years in a variety of All-Over Ads so may have been a consequence of that.

Csalem

This week for Throwback Thursday we are going back to 2010 to revisit a long lost friend. WH 1 was delivered to Dublin Bus in 2008 and was the first electric-hybrid bus delivered to the company. It was based in Summerhill. Normally it operated on cross-city route 6 though it could stray onto other routes. (Famously it once made it to Balbriggan on the 33 but failed not far from the terminus). It is seen here in Belfield after arriving from Swords on the 41X. At the time this was just the Xpresso terminus but is now the main terminus for the university.
WH 1 survived until January 2012 when it was shipped off to the UK and Ensignbus. Sadly it only lasted six months there before being completely destroyed by fire on the 9th June 2012.
Dublin Bus did not give up with electric trials with DM 2 arriving in 2014 but it only made it to 2015, a considerably shorter period in service than WH 1. Belfield 05/05/2010

Throwback Thursday (18) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

Csalem

This week for Throwback Thursday we are only go back four years, but it was a significant day. Network Direct was in full swing and bus routes were changing all over the city. As part of the changes we had to say goodbye to some very well known routes. On this day in 2012 we said goodbye to the 1,2 and 3. The next day we said hello to a new 1.
The old 1 operated from Parnell Square to the power station at Pigeon House. The 2 operated from Parnell Square to Sandymount and UCD. The 3 operated from Larkhill to Sandymount and UCD. AX 483 is seen beside the sea at Sandymount. It had just operated the last 1 to the Pigeon House, which can be seen in the background. It then operated as 2 from there to Sandymount and then became a 3 to Larkhill. Today the 1 operates from Sandymount to Santry, the power station has shut down and no bus route serves it. 12/05/2012

Throwback Thursday (19) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

rx8

Csalem wrote: »

This week for Throwback Thursday we are only go back four years, but it was a significant day. Network Direct was in full swing and bus routes were changing all over the city. As part of the changes we had to say goodbye to some very well known routes. On this day in 2012 we said goodbye to the 1,2 and 3. The next day we said hello to a new 1.
The old 1 operated from Parnell Square to the power station at Pigeon House. The 2 operated from Parnell Square to Sandymount and UCD. The 3 operated from Larkhill to Sandymount and UCD. AX 483 is seen beside the sea at Sandymount. It had just operated the last 1 to the Pigeon House, which can be seen in the background. It then operated as 2 from there to Sandymount and then became a 3 to Larkhill. Today the 1 operates from Sandymount to Santry, the power station has shut down and no bus route serves it. 12/05/2012

Throwback Thursday (19) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

Love the Pic, but I think you are mistaken about the Power Station.
It is still supplying power to the grid, as a friend of mine works there..
https://www.esb.ie/our-businesses/generation-energy-trading-new/generation-asset-map#poolbeg, Also imminent is another new timetable for Route 1 although it won't include a return to the Pigeon House.
Keep up the nostalgia photo's, maybe one of these days I'll be the driver in it.

Csalem

rx8 wrote: »

Love the Pic, but I think you are mistaken about the Power Station.
It is still supplying power to the grid, as a friend of mine works there..
https://www.esb.ie/our-businesses/generation-energy-trading-new/generation-asset-map#poolbeg, Also imminent is another new timetable for Route 1 although it won't include a return to the Pigeon House.
Keep up the nostalgia photo's, maybe one of these days I'll be the driver in it.

Cheers for that. I thought the full station had shut down but I see it is just the thermal part which used the chimneys.

Could be worse routes to drive than the 1. It is very scenic and goes through some nice parts of the city. One of my favourite routes.

tabbey

Csalem wrote: »

Cheers for that. I thought the full station had shut down but I see it is just the thermal part which used the chimneys.
)

The Poolbeg power station is closed, that is why the ESB wanted to demolish the two chimneys.
However it has been replaced by the Shellybanks gas fired power station, the smaller structure with four metal chimneys immediately east of the old station.

Csalem

For Throwback Thursday this week we are going back a mere twenty-six years to 1990. At the time there was only bus service from the Dublin city to Dublin Airport and it was operated by Dublin Bus. Summerhill Garage provided the buses and it operated from Bus Aras to the airport. It had no fleet number, buses were in standard livery, and the timetable was not very frequent. Three years after this picture was taken and the route was transformed into "Airlink", with a distinctive livery, an increase in frequency and new single-deck buses. It also became route 747. Today it is still running, with double-deck buses and operates every ten-minues from Heuston Station to Dublin Airport. It also still serves this bus stop at Bus Aras. KC 30 is seen at Bus Aras (note the destination spelling on the bus) after arriving from the Airport. 19/05/1990

Throwback Thursday (20) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

Csalem

A day late this week but I am sure that will not result in a major crisis, though does make this Throwback Friday.
It is a short trip back to 2008 and RV 461 is seen heading south on O'Connell Street with a 14 to Ballinteer. This was before Network Direct made it into a cross-city route shared between two garages. At this time is was a Donnybrook route and only reached as far north as Parnell Square. On the southside it also only made it to Ballinteer, though the 14A did make it all the way to Dundrum where the 14 goes today. The bus is also passing Clery's which was still open for business at the time. The final RV bus was withdrawn in 2012. 26/05/2008

Throwback Thursday (21) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

tabbey

95% punctuality is a record most operators can only dream off.

thomasj

Csalem wrote:

For Throwback Thursday this week we are going back to a scene that is no longer with us. KD 157 is seen arriving at Dun Laoghaire harbour. Although the display is showing 46A, it is in fact arriving to bring ferry passengers from the Holyhead car-ferry into Dublin City Centre. Beside it is the old harbour building that was attached to the original harbour railway station. This building was demolished a few years ago. The ferry also originally moved a few metres to a new port building when it became the HSS service. This service too has ceased. The bus service too ceased too when the HSS started as the new building was close to the railway station. 21/04/1992

Some great photo csalem.

One thing about these that had me curious as a kid was the little black panel, below the 46a in the destination blind in that photo.

I'm pretty sure they were not on all KD buses and I never saw one once on any of phibsboros KD fleet.

What was the purpose of it and why not on all buses?

clunked

It was an illuminated sign saying BUS FULL. The one on the side was either 'Pay as You Enter' or 'Pay Conductor' as OPO was been introduced at that time. The 46A being one of the first major routes to be converted in Summer 1987.

liger

Csalem wrote: »

a 14 to Ballinteer. This was before Network Direct made it into a cross-city route shared between two garages. At this time is was a Donnybrook route and only reached as far north as Parnell Square. On the southside it also only made it to Ballinteer, though the 14A did make it all the way to Dundrum where the 14 goes today.

Throwback Thursday (21) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

The 14 & 14A both went to dundrum. The bill also contained the 48A which went to ballinteer. This poor bus is just scrolled incorrectly.

Another nod to the old days of the attitude of "sure the skulls know where the bus goes", an attitude that spawned a culture of nobody paying attention to the destination scrolls today. 145 to UCD.... UCD last stop.... passengers in disbelief...... " But this is a 145!!!!! "

LXFlyer

liger wrote: »

The 14 & 14A both went to dundrum. The bill also contained the 48A which went to ballinteer. This poor bus is just scrolled incorrectly.

Another nod to the old days of the attitude of "sure the skulls know where the bus goes", an attitude that spawned a culture of nobody paying attention to the destination scrolls today. 145 to UCD.... UCD last stop.... passengers in disbelief...... " But this is a 145!!!!! "

Both the 14 and 14a did actually terminate in Ballinteer until 2004 just before the roundabout at the junction of Stonemasons Way and Broadford Road - it was only when the LUAS opened that they were both extended to Dundrum.

The main scrolls didn't have Dundrum on them as a destination, so the general practice was to have Ballinteer on the main one and "via Dundrum" on the lower one.

Csalem

Throwback Thursday this week is going back to 1985. KC 82 is seen sitting outside the station at Bray prior to working a route 85 to Shop River. When the local routes around Bray were reorganised in the 1990s, this became the 185 to Shop River (via Enniskerry). Later some 185 departures were introduced to just Palermo. 01/06/1985

Throwback Thursday (22) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

thomasj

liger wrote:

Another nod to the old days of the attitude of "sure the skulls know where the bus goes", an attitude that spawned a culture of nobody paying attention to the destination scrolls today. 145 to UCD.... UCD last stop.... passengers in disbelief...... " But this is a 145!!!!! "

And actually the destination scroll says ucd campus, but the bus only goes as far as the flyover.

McAlban

Csalem wrote: »

Throwback Thursday this week is going back to 1985. KC 82 is seen sitting outside the station at Bray prior to working a route 85 to Shop River. When the local routes around Bray were reorganised in the 1990s, this became the 185 to Shop River (via Enniskerry). Later some 185 departures were introduced to just Palermo. 01/06/1985

Throwback Thursday (22) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

Tis Like a Dart on Wheels

Csalem

thomasj wrote: »

And actually the destination scroll says ucd campus, but the bus only goes as far as the flyover.

It is better now with just the two options for the destination display :"UCD Belfield" and "UCD Campus" but I recall up until about six years ago there was five or six display options for UCD. It seemed every garage had their own version.

Csalem

Throwback Thursday this week is going back to 1993 and a time of great change in Dublin Bus. In 1992 Dublin Bus introduced the City Imp concept onto the streets of Dublin. The yellow/red minibuses took over routes were passenger numbers were falling and operated at high frequencies, serving the housing estates on the north and southside of Dublin. The following year Dublin Bus introduced the concept of Dity Swift. Again it operated at high frequencies, up to every six minutes, but served destinations further out from the city centre. New buses were introduced on the route in an eye-catching new livery, as well as new style bus shelters, some of which contained pay-phones.
The first route to go over to CitySwift was the 39 on the 6th June 1993. Other routes eventually included routes such as the 25A, 27, 46A and the change normally happened as the Quality Bus Network was rolled out. The City Swift concept only lasted about a decade. P 17 loads up at the Abbey Street terminus prior to departing for Clonsilla. 09/06/1993

Throwback Thursday (23) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

dfx-

That's still my favourite major livery, especially on the RAs, RVs and AVs. It looked terrible when retrospectively applied to the RHs.

Csalem

dfx- wrote: »

That's still my favourite major livery, especially on the RAs, RVs and AVs. It looked terrible when retrospectively applied to the RHs.

It and City Imp were quite a revolution in livery terms when introduced, breaking up the two-tone green monopoly.

john boye

lxflyer wrote: »

Both the 14 and 14a did actually terminate in Ballinteer until 2004 just before the roundabout at the junction of Stonemasons Way and Broadford Road - it was only when the LUAS opened that they were both extended to Dundrum.

The main scrolls didn't have Dundrum on them as a destination, so the general practice was to have Ballinteer on the main one and "via Dundrum" on the lower one.

With the "via" part taped over.

Csalem

This week for Throwback Thursday we are going back to 1999 and visiting a route that survived four months. on the 14th June route 61A commenced though it was more commonly known as "Hotel Link". It ran in a loop to/from Bus Aras and served Mount Street, Lansdowne Road, Leeson Street and Christchurch and was designed to connect the hotels with the City Centre. It was advertised as "A chauffeur driven Merc for £1" and the minibuses for the route were painted in a modified Airlink livery. Sadly it did not last and the route was withdrawn on the 17th October 1999.
The buses then transferred to a new bus route, 321, which commenced on the 6th December 1999 but this route only lasted until 1st April 2000.
Today Dublin Bus operate route 705 which is a hotel shuttle that operates in connection with the City Tour. ME 23 is seen at Bus Aras. 15/06/1999

Throwback Thursday (24) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

Csalem

This week we are going back to 2003. That was the year when then Special Olympics came to Dublin. The games took place in a number of venues around the city from the 21st-29th June. Dublin Bus provided a shuttle bus service between the venues with the Red and Yellow routes running from the Phoenix Park. The WV-class of buses were used as they were low-floor and easily accesible which resulted in some unusual buses on the routes the WVs normally operated on.
WV 25 is seen at the Phoenix Park terminus while operating the Yellow Route. 22/06/2003

Throwback Thursday (25) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

Csalem

A trip back in time this week of twenty-six years to 1990. KD 1 is seen at a bus rally in the Phoenix Park. This was the first of 366 KD buses delivered to CIE between 1980 and 1983. These buses were built in Shannon by Bombardier and an extra one was built for and shipped to Baghdad. KD 1 itself was built in Hamburg in Germany by FFG. The last KD was withdrawn by Dublin Bus in 2000. KD 1 was based in Donnybrook Garage and that is reflected in the scrolls for route 8 in the photograph. This was the first route to have a KD operate on it. In light of recent sporting events, the ad for the World Cup in Italy is quite topical. Phoenix Park 30/06/1990

Throwback Thursday (26) by Cathal O'Brien, on Flickr

liger

Csalem wrote: »

an extra one was built for and shipped to Baghdad.

Really. What was the story behind that? 1990 would be gulf war era.

Csalem

liger wrote: »

Really. What was the story behind that? 1990 would be gulf war era.

It was built around 1982. Details and photos here:
http://garaiste.yuku.com/topic/9653#.V3Y3VDUmOfg