The EMD GP38AC is a 4-axle

diesel-electric locomotive A diesel locomotive is a type of railway locomotive in which the power source is a diesel engine. Several types of diesel locomotives have been developed, differing mainly in the means by which mechanical power is conveyed to the driving whee ...

built by General Motors Electro-Motive Division between February 1970 and December 1971. It was basically a GP38 with an AR10

alternator An alternator (or synchronous generator) is an electrical generator that converts mechanical energy to electrical energy in the form of alternating current. For reasons of cost and simplicity, most alternators use a rotating magnetic field wit ...

instead of the GP38's normal generator. 261 examples of this model were built; railroads that purchased this model include CP, DT&I, GTW, GM&O, IC, LV, L&N, N&W, SLSF, SOU and Pacific Power and Light. Many were upgraded to full GP38-2 status with the Dash 2 modular electrical cabinet. BNSF 2116 EMD GP38AC

Original buyers

Preservation

In June 2020,

BNSF BNSF Railway is the largest freight railroad in the United States. One of six North American Class I railroads, BNSF has 36,000 employees, of track in 28 states, and over 8,000 locomotives. It has three transcontinental routes that provide ...

2127, originally Frisco 650 built in February 1971, was donated to the Galveston Railroad Museum, in Galveston, Texas.

References

* * * Sarberenyi, Robert.
EMD GP38 and GP38AC Original Owners
' GP38AC B-B locomotives Diesel–electric locomotives of the United States Railway locomotives introduced in 1970 Freight locomotives Standard-gauge locomotives of the United States Standard-gauge locomotives of Canada Diesel–electric locomotives of Canada Canadian Pacific Railway locomotives Illinois Central locomotives Norfolk and Western Railway locomotives Diesel locomotives of Southern Railway (U.S.) St. Louis–San Francisco Railway locomotives {{diesel-loco-stub