This is a picture of a traditional Thai long-tail boat. These interesting boats are the main watercraft in Thailand and called long-tails because the engine operates the propeller via a long, open tail shaft. These runabouts are double-ended hulls, and vary in size from 15-40 ft. The engines (see the insets) are usually automobile engines, and can have 200 horsepower (hp)! They generally don't have a muffler so you know when they are around (loud). The engine is mounted on gimbals and is swivelled to steer the boat. Just a hand crank to start them, no gears, just a simple chain driven reduction gear arrangement, and nothing electrical (which means no running nights at night either). Watching Thais maneuver these long-tails in tight spaces is fascinating. They are perfect for the shallow water as they have hardly any draft. A definite advantage for avoiding the many drift nets - just lift the prop out of the water and slide right over them. Long-tails are used for fishing and island-to-island transportation.
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