Valentine's Day Supper Train

Happy Valentine's Day

Several railroads have Valentine's Day dinner and brunch trains. 
Treat yourself and your Valentine to a train ride and a nice meal in a very special setting. 

Photos from New Hope and Ivyland Railroad in New Hope, PA.

Blog Hijack by Terry's Planes

The blog has been taken over by aircraft today. This WW II instructional video was just to neat and I had to share it.It is a little long at 40 minutes. I watched every minute of it.

Uncrating and Field Assembly of the P-47 Thunderbolt Fighter - 1944

"This truly remarkable step-by-step training film shows how a ground support crew of fifty men could assemble a P-47 fighter in a farm field using nothing more than muscle, unpowered hand tools and pieces of the shipping crate it came in. We're talking nothing more than hammers, wrenches and bicycle pumps. You'll get a unique look at the inner workings of the big Jug as it is bolted together. Then a pilot jumps in and flies it away"

 H/T Emil

Steam-Electric Locomotive

The Steam-Electric Arrives!

General Electric promotional film from 1938 chronicling the Union Pacific Railroad taking delivery of two unique pieces of motive power, steam turbine-electric locomotives #1 and #2.

Although they were the most advanced locomotives ever built up to then, they were not successful. Only in operation for six months, among the shortest operational careers in recorded railroading.

More information here . 

FEC with GE Evolution LNG Locomotive

Seen Southbound in Jupiter, Fl. operating as FEC Train #109 mixed freight January 4, 2017. Paced at 50 MPH so it went by quickly.
FEC 807 (ES44C4) , LNG Fuel Tender, GE Evolution NextFuel locomotive #3000.

From Wikipedia: In 2013, General Electric built one ES44AC, GECX 3000, as a test bed for their NextFuel natural gas power kit. The engine runs on liquefied natural gas from a fuel tender. The unit is currently part of BNSF's GE LNG test set, partnered with BNSF ES44AC no. 5815.

Some stills. Sorry for the quality, moving pretty fast and hard to find a decent spot to take pictures. 

FEC 807 was lead locomotive

Followed by the Liquified Natural Gas tender

Then the GE NextFuel locomotive.

Happy New Year 2017

Some steam to welcome the New Year. 

And some steam whistles.

 

His pick for #1 is also my favorite.  I have been in the cab of #12 but didn't get to blow the whistle.

Check last years New Year post for how to make a whistle from wood.

Christmas Trains

Merry Christmas

Spokane, Portland & Seattle #700 Holiday Express Train. Trains are operated on the Oregon Pacific Railroad and depart from Oaks Park Station adjacent to Oaks Park in southeast Portland. Ride in vintage rail cars behind Portland's historic steam locomotives.

Spokane, Portland & Seattle 700 is the only surviving example of the E-1 class 4-8-4 Northern type steam locomotive. Nearly identical to the A-3 class Northerns built for Northern Pacific Railway, it burns oil instead of coal.

"Christmas Trains" running in the western United States. Many are decked out with colorful lights and wreathes. Quite a variety, even a couple of steam locomotives.

FEC 428 Stuart, Fl.

FEC 428 in Stuart at A1A crossing 12-01-2016. (Approx. MM 262) EMD GP-40-2
FEC ordered 24, road numbers 411–434. 

Note the section crew just past the crossing. I was listening on the scanner and after the train passed I heard them call the dispatcher and tell him they were going back to work repairing the broken rail. It is single track here, just north of the Port Sewall passing track.

Bonus: If anyone is interested "A Railfan's Guide to the FEC, Version 32A, prepared 7/25/98" is available here.