I made this with Alias Power Animator way back in 1998. Everything in the scene was modeled (except for the Alias clouds which were part of the Power Animator sky environment). The ground was made with a layered procedural shader cutting into some puddles for added drama.

The idea is that this plane can land and take off on really hostile terrain. So, I wanted to show a flight crew prepping for an early morning take off in a very inhospitable landscape.