MoW Red Tide Questions

[Dogness]

I have been trying to find answers to the following questions, but information is hard to come by. I am on the 13th mission of this game (Judgement day for the 688th), and I just discovered that the scout unit has the special ability to sneak by the enemy. However, that is not one of my question.

1. Does the radio backpack do anything? Or, can I dump it to make room for other stuff?
2. Does the commander/sniper need to keep his binoculars? I have tried equipping and unequipping them and I see no difference in my spotting distance?
3. Can my guys climb onto train flatbeds? In my current mission, the level designers seem to have provided me with 3 empty, enterable tanks on a train that is easily ambushed. When I choose one of my men and hover the cursor over the tanks, I get the "enter" symbol. However, the men seem to be unable to climb up onto the flatbed. Is there some control that I am missing?

Thanks in advance.