The ALCO FA is a family of B-B

diesel locomotive A diesel locomotive is a type of railway locomotive in which the prime mover (locomotive), power source is a diesel engine. Several types of diesel locomotives have been developed, differing mainly in the means by which mechanical power is con ...

s designed to haul

freight train A freight train, also called a goods train or cargo train, is a railway train that is used to carry cargo, as opposed to passengers. Freight trains are made up of one or more locomotives which provide propulsion, along with one or more railroad ...

s. The locomotives were built by a

partnership A partnership is an agreement where parties agree to cooperate to advance their mutual interests. The partners in a partnership may be individuals, businesses, interest-based organizations, schools, governments or combinations. Organizations ...

ALCO The American Locomotive Company (often shortened to ALCO, ALCo or Alco) was an American manufacturer that operated from 1901 to 1969, initially specializing in the production of locomotives but later diversifying and fabricating at various time ...

and

General Electric General Electric Company (GE) was an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 1892, incorporated in the New York (state), state of New York and headquartered in Boston. Over the year ...

Schenectady, New York Schenectady ( ) is a City (New York), city in Schenectady County, New York, United States, of which it is the county seat. As of the United States Census 2020, 2020 census, the city's population of 67,047 made it the state's ninth-most populo ...

, between January 1946 and May 1959. Designed by General Electric's Ray Patten (along with their

ALCO PA The ALCO PA was a family of A1A-A1A diesel locomotives built to haul passenger trains. The locomotives were built in Schenectady, New York, in the United States, by a partnership of the American Locomotive Company (ALCO) and General Electric (G ...

cousins), they were of a

cab unit In North American railroad terminology, a cab unit is a railroad locomotive with its own cab and controls. "Carbody unit" is a related term, which may be either a cabless booster unit controlled from a linked cab unit, or a cab unit that con ...

design; both cab-equipped lead (

A unit An A-unit, in railroad terminology, is a diesel locomotive (or more rarely an electric locomotive) equipped with a driving cab and a control system to control other locomotives in a multiple unit, and therefore able to be the lead unit in a c ...

) FA and cabless booster (

B unit A B-unit, in railroad terminology, is a locomotive unit (generally a diesel locomotive) which does not have a control cab or crew compartment, and must therefore be operated in tandem with another coupled locomotive with a cab (an A-unit) ...

) FB models were built. A dual-service passenger-freight version, the FPA/FPB, was also offered. That model was equipped with a

steam generator Steam is water vapor, often mixed with air or an aerosol of liquid water droplets. This may occur due to evaporation or due to boiling, where heat is applied until water reaches the enthalpy of vaporization. Saturated or superheated steam is inv ...

for heating

passenger car A car, or an automobile, is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of cars state that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people rather than cargo. There are around one billio ...

s. ALCO's designation of F marks these locomotives as being geared primarily for freight use, whereas the P designation of the PA sets indicates that they were geared for higher speeds and passenger use. However, beyond this their design was largely similar - aside from the PA/PB's both being larger A1A-A1A types with an even more striking nose - and many railroads used FA and PA locomotives for both freight and passenger service. Several examples of FAs and FBs have been preserved. While most are now in the care of railroad museums, a few remain in operational status on such lines as the

Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad is a Class III railroad operating diesel-electric and steam-powered excursion trains between Akron, Ohio and the greater Cleveland, Ohio, Cleveland area, through the scenic Cuyahoga Valley National Park. History ...

Grand Canyon Railway The Grand Canyon Railway is a heritage railroad which carries passengers between Williams, Arizona, and the South Rim of Grand Canyon National Park. The railroad, built by the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway, was completed on September ...

and the Napa Valley Wine Train.

Service history

Three different models were offered. The FA-1/FB-1, which featured a rating, was built from January 1946 to October 1950, with a version produced between March and August 1950 (many early models were subsequently upgraded to 1,600 hp). The FA-2/FB-2 (along with the FPA-2/FPB-2 variants) was built between October 1950 and June 1956. Finally, the FPA-4/FPB-4, powered by the

251 __NOTOC__ Year 251 (Roman numerals, CCLI) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, in the Roman Empire, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Traianus and Etruscus (or, less frequently, year 1004 ''A ...

V-12 engine, was built between October 1958 and May 1959 by ALCO's Canadian subsidiary,

Montreal Locomotive Works Montreal Locomotive Works (MLW) was a Canadian railway locomotive manufacturer that existed under several names from 1883 to 1985, producing both Steam locomotive, steam and diesel locomotives. For many years it was a subsidiary of the American ...

(MLW). The FAs, as well as their cousins, the

s, were born as a result of ALCO's development of a new diesel engine design, the Model 244. In early 1944, development started on the new design, and by November 1945, the first engines were beginning to undergo tests. This unusually short testing sequence was brought about by the decision of ALCO's senior management that the engine and an associated line of road locomotives had to be introduced no later than the end of 1946. In preparation for this deadline, by January 1946, the first four locomotives with the 244 engines had been built. Two FA-1s and an FB-1 were painted in ALCO Demonstrator colors and were released for road tests for a month and a half on the

Delaware and Hudson Railway The Delaware and Hudson Railway (D&H) is a railroad that operates in the Northeastern United States. In 1991, after more than 150 years as an independent railroad, the D&H was purchased by the Canadian Pacific Railway (CP). CP, which would it ...

. A strike at ALCO delayed production beyond the first four units and the three demonstrator units began working on the Gulf, Mobile, and Ohio Railroad in mid February 1946. The demonstrators were returned to Schenectady when the remainder of the order began delivery in May 1946. The GM&O order was completed in April 1947 for a total of 80 units. Before the end of this production run, ALCO upgraded the generators and traction motors in the locomotives, with the first of these models entering service in February 1947 for the

New York Central The New York Central Railroad was a railroad primarily operating in the Great Lakes and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The railroad primarily connected greater New York and Boston in the east with Chicago and St. Louis in the Midw ...

. In 1950, the

, an affiliate of ALCO, began production of FAs as well. In the fall of 1950, an upgraded model, the FA-2, was launched. This model featured an uprated Model 244 engine, with an output of 1,600 horsepower. Additionally, the carbody was lengthened, making possible the addition of a steam generator in the A unit to allow for use in passenger service. Models equipped as such were designated the FPA-2/FPB-2. The first FA-2s were delivered in October 1950 to the Baltimore and Ohio and the Erie. By this time, however, the cab unit had fallen out of favor due to the greater versatility of road switchers, and US production of the FA line ended in 1956, with Canadian production ending in 1959. From the 1970s until 1999, the

Long Island Rail Road The Long Island Rail Road , or LIRR, is a Rail transport, railroad in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, stretching from Manhattan to the eastern tip of Suffolk County, New York, Suffolk County on Long Islan ...

used 20 FA units converted into "power packs". The traction motors were removed, and original prime movers replaced with 600 horsepower (450 kW) engines/generators solely for supplying

Head-end power In rail transport, head-end power (HEP), also known as electric train supply (ETS), is the electrical power distribution system on a passenger train. The power source, usually a locomotive (or a generator car) at the front or 'head' of a train, ...

(HEP). The engineer's control stand was left intact, allowing the engines to be used in push-pull service with other locomotives, which usually lacked HEP. By the late 1990s and early 2000s, the railroad began retiring the ALCOs in favor of new bi-level cab cars and locomotives with HEP installed.

Original production

Units produced by ALCO and the Montreal Locomotive Works (1946–1956)

Almost 800 FA units were built by ALCO and MLW, with just over 15% of them sold to

New York Central Railroad The New York Central Railroad was a railroad primarily operating in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The railroad primarily connected New York metropolitan area, gr ...

, and another 5% each to

Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad is a Railroad classes, Class I freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Pacific is the second largest railroad in the United Stat ...

Gulf, Mobile and Ohio Railroad The Gulf, Mobile and Ohio was a Class I railroad in the central United States whose primary routes extended from Mobile, Alabama, and New Orleans, Louisiana, to St. Louis, Missouri, St. Louis and Kansas City, Missouri, as well as Chicago, Illin ...

and

Missouri Pacific Railroad The Missouri Pacific Railroad , commonly abbreviated as MoPac, was one of the first railroads in the United States west of the Mississippi River. MoPac was a Class I railroad growing from dozens of predecessors and mergers. In 1967, the railroad o ...

. About half as many FB units were produced and sold in similar ratios.

Units produced by ALCO and the Montreal Locomotive Works (1950–1959)

ALCO and MLW built 152 of the various FP models with the largest quantity, 38% of the total production, sold to

Canadian National Railway The Canadian National Railway Company () is a Canadian Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern and Southern United States. CN is Canada's largest railway, in terms of both revenue a ...

Surviving examples

Some 20 units of various designations exist today in a preserved state. Several excursion railways own operating examples which are in regular service, including MLW units received from Via Rail Canada. *The

owns two FPA-4s, and one FB-1, of which two (one FPA-4 and one FB-1) currently remain in service. *The Napa Valley Wine Train owns 4 FPA-4s. However all are expected to be withdrawn from service in favor of new locomotives. *The

in Peninsula, Ohio, owns four FPA-4s, of which three are in operation as of 2008. *The New York and Lake Erie Railroad owns one FPA-2 and one FPA-4. Ex-CN/VIA Rail 6758 was FPA-2 but rebuilt and is now a FPA-2U. Locomotives not sold to tourist railroads have been sold to museums and other owners. *The

Illinois Railway Museum The Illinois Railway Museum (IRM, reporting mark IRMX) is the largest railroad museum in the United States. It is located in the Chicago metropolitan area at 7000 Olson Road in Union, Illinois, northwest of downtown Chicago. Overview ...

owns former Louisville & Nashville FA-2 #314. *The Western Maryland Railway Historical Society owns former Western Maryland FA-2 #302. *The Railroad Museum of New England owns former New York, New Haven, & Hartford FA-1 #0401. *Western NY HS in Buffalo, New York owns a former New York Central FA-2, #1102/ PC1302. *Spokane Portland & Seattle FB-2 868B is owned by a private owner in NJ. *The

Canadian Railway Museum The Canadian Railway Museum () ''Musée ferroviaire canadien''), operating under the brand name Exporail in both official languages, is a rail transport museum in Saint-Constant, Quebec, Canada, on Montreal's south shore. Collection Establishe ...

in Delson, Quebec owns CN FPA-4 #6765 and CN FA-1 #9400. *The

Danbury Railway Museum The Danbury Railway Museum RailincSearch MARKs, accessed September 2009 is a railway museum housed in the former Union Station on the east end of downtown Danbury, Connecticut, United States. It was established in the mid-1990s following ...

owns an FPA-4 and FPB-4. They have been restored as Canadian National FPA-4 6786 and FPB-4 #6867. Also at the Danbury Railway Museum is ex-New Haven FA-1 0428. *The

Monticello Railway Museum The Monticello Railway Museum (initialism, initialized MRYM, reporting mark MRMZ) is a non-profit railway museum, railroad museum located in Monticello, Illinois, about 18 miles west of Champaign, Illinois. It is home to over 100 pieces of railro ...

houses privately owned CN 6789, an MLW FPA-4, and CN 6862, an MLW FPB-4. The A-B set was restored into operating condition and CN 6789 is used on museum trains. Both have been repainted into the green/yellow scheme that CN used early on. *Canadian Pacific FA-2 4090 and FB-2 4469 survive as static displays at the Canadian Museum of Rail Travel. *The Anthracite Railroads Historical Society owns former Louisville & Nashville FA-2 #315. *Western Maryland FA-2 #303 is stored in Barton, MD on the Georges Creek Railway. It was recently sold to a railroad shop in Kansas City. *Canadian National 6854 is owned by a private owner in Bridgeton, NJ. *Canadian National 6783 has recently moved to Tennessee.

ALCO "World Locomotive"

Pakistan

Alco built 23 A1A-A1A trucked FCA-3s for

Pakistan Railways Pakistan Railways is the state-owned railway operator in Pakistan. Founded in 1861 as the North Western State Railway and headquartered in Lahore, it owns of operational track across Pakistan, stretching from Peshawar to Karachi, offering bot ...

in 1951 and 1953. These were the equivalent of an FPA-2 riding on A1A trucks. ALCO's "World Locomotive", the DL500 (introduced in 1953), originated as a newly designed demonstrator based on the FA-2. The first 25 DL500s used the model

244 __NOTOC__ Year 244 ( CCXLIV) was a leap year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Armenius and Aemilianus (or, less frequently, year 997 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denomination 2 ...

engine rated at . Later DL500s were like the FPA-4 and utilize the ALCO model 251B diesel engine as the prime mover and are rated at . All DL500s were built with C-C trucks, but B-B or paired A-1-A trucks were offered as an option.

Americas

The only locale within the Americas where ALCO-built cab units, such as All America Latina Logistica (ALL), still see daily usage in freight duty is Argentina. A total of 369 DL500 locomotives were built by ALCO, AE Goodwin, and MLW between May 1953 and December 1967.

Australia

Variants of the ALCO "World Locomotive" saw service in Australia, where it was built under license by AE Goodwin,

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

. Six single-cab locomotives were delivered to the

South Australian Railways South Australian Railways (SAR) was the organisation through which the Government of South Australia built and operated railways in South Australia from 1854 until March 1978, when its non-urban railways were incorporated into Australian Natio ...

(SAR) in 1955 as the 930 class. In 1957, the SAR received the first of an eventual 31 built to a two-cab design, the end with the second cab being flat-fronted. A few months later, the first of an up-rated version of the two-cab design arrived on the

Department of Railways New South Wales The Department of Railways New South Wales was the agency of the Government of New South Wales that administered rail transport in New South Wales, Australia between 1932 and 1972. Management The Department of Railways was under the control ...

as the 44 class, of which 100 were in service by 1968.4490
New South Wales Rail Transport Museum

Europe, Asia and Latin America

Similar DL500 locomotives were also used in Greece, Pakistan, Peru, and Spain.

India

In India the DL500 were introduced as the Indian locomotive class WDM-1 in 1957. They were in service until the early 2000s.

References

* * * * *

Specific

12. Craig, R. (2010, December 29). ''Alco DL500 World Locomotives''. www.the diesel shop.us. Retrieved April 5, 2023, from http://thedieselshop.us/Alco_DL500.HTML

External links

Alco FA-1/FB-1 Roster

Alco FA-2/FB-2 Roster

Alco FCA-3 Roster

MLW FPA & FPB Roster

Preserved Alco Cab Units

— documents the restoration efforts of the Western New York Railway Historical Society.

— documents the restoration efforts of the Western Maryland Railway Historical Society regarding Western Maryland Railway No. 302, an ALCO Model FA-2. {{DEFAULTSORT:Alco Fa B-B locomotives FA FA Schenectady, New York Railway locomotives introduced in 1946 Locomotives with cabless variants Freight locomotives Standard-gauge locomotives of the United States Standard-gauge locomotives of Canada Standard-gauge locomotives of Cuba Standard-gauge locomotives of Mexico Standard-gauge locomotives of Pakistan Standard-gauge locomotives of Brazil Diesel–electric locomotives of the United States Diesel–electric locomotives of Brazil Diesel–electric locomotives of Iraq Diesel–electric locomotives of Pakistan Diesel–electric locomotives of Canada Diesel–electric locomotives of Cuba Diesel–electric locomotives of Mexico Streamlined diesel locomotives Baltimore and Ohio locomotives Canadian National Railway locomotives Canadian Pacific Railway locomotives Erie Railroad locomotives Great Northern Railway (United States) locomotives New York Central Railroad locomotives New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad locomotives Pennsylvania Railroad locomotives Philadelphia and Reading Railroad locomotives Soo Line locomotives Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway locomotives St. Louis–San Francisco Railway locomotives Union Pacific Railroad locomotives