Santa Fe U30CG's |
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 U30CG #8002 at Argentine, Kansas City, KS, ca.1970. Vincent J. Porreca photo. |
Santa Fe U30CG's |
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U30CG #8002 at Argentine, Kansas City, KS, ca.1970. Vincent J. Porreca photo. |
A General History | |
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In the mid-60's, before the Post Office cancelled its railroad mail-hauling
contracts and sent passenger train profitability plummeting, Santa Fe began to order new
second-generation passenger power to replace aging first-generation units. Ten General Electric
U28CG's were delivered in 1966, basically standard hood-unit U28C's with a steam generator installed in
the room provided for that purpose behind the cab on all GE Universal-series locomotives. Desiring
something more streamlined on the point of its passenger trains, Santa Fe next took delivery of six
cowl-bodied U30CG's, #400-405, from GE in late 1967. Inside, the units were standard U30C's with a
steam generator, but outside, the short rounded nose and fluted carbody were like nothing
seen on the rails before or since. Even when new, the big GE's almost never showed up on Santa Fe's premier, extra fare transcontinental passenger trains. Instead, they were assigned to power the Texas Chief, the Grand Canyon Limited, and the Tulsan, as well as various secondary Texas trains. In the summer of 1968, Steve Gillings photographed what is believed to be Tr. 24, the eastbound Grand Canyon, arriving at Belen, NM behind U30CG's 400 and 404. From September 1968 until February 1969, the big GE's also worked the San Diegan schedules as part of a power pool between that train and the Grand Canyon. |
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The tracking characteristics of the big GE's at passenger speeds were called into question following the derailment of the U28CG-powered Grand Canyon near Chillicothe, IL on February 9, 1969. Tests were conducted the following month, and in the meantime, the U28's and U30's were reassigned to freight duties. The units saw extensive use on Santa Fe's premiere 79 mph hotshot piggyback train, the Super C, throughout 1969, and showed no particular propensity for leaving the rails. The GE's began returning to the point of the Texas Chief and the Tulsan in the second half of 1969, but their brief careers as passenger units were almost over. The U30CG's were renumbered to the 8000-series in April 1970 as part of the 1969/70 general renumbering, and in the remaining 12 months before Amtrak, they were seldom seen on passenger trains. The photo at left shows passenger-painted 8005 on a manifest in May 1970. (R.R. Wallin photo, Bill Weibel collection) |
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Following Amtrak's takeover of Santa Fe's remaining passenger service in May 1971, the U30CG's were gradually repainted into freight colors. Two of the units, 8000 and 8004, received the old blue and yellow pinstripe freight scheme worn by the F45's before Santa Fe adopted the blue and yellow warbonnet scheme in 1972. At least one unit, 8002, lasted in red and silver into 1973. When the U30CG's were first painted in blue and yellow warbonnet, they received huge, "hollow" nosebands similar to the ones they wore in the red and silver scheme (see 8003 above and 8005 at left). During subsequent repaints, the 8001, 8002, and 8005, at least, received smaller, hood-unit sized, solid blue nosebands. Randy J. Williams recorded these views of the 8003 at Ft. Madision, IA in September 1979 and 8005 westbound at Galesburg, IL in August 1973. |
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The use of U28 and U30CG's on the Super C didn't last long into the 1970's. They were assigned to the general Kansas City - Chicago freight pool, keeping them close to the maintenance base at the Argentine Shops in Kansas City. Over the course of the decade, U30CG's did manage to stray further west into Kansas, south into Texas, and occasionally all the way west to California. Jim Bartolotta was lucky to catch U28CG 7904 and U30CG 8001 well outside their usual territory on a westbound at Barstow, CA in May 1978. Note the red and silver passenger paint gradually reappearing on the 7904 as the blue and yellow flakes off. |
| As was the case with most of Santa Fe's U-boats, the U30CG's didn't manage to outlive their financing. After 13 years of service, all six U30CG's were retired in September 1980. Along with the 10 U28CG's, they were traded in to GE for 16 B36-7's and scrapped. | |
References |
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| Goen, Steve Allen, Santa Fe in the Lone Star State, Four Ways West, 2000. |
| Pope, Dan and Mark Lynn, Warbonnets, Pentrex, 1994. |
| McMillan, Joe, Santa Fe's Diesel Fleet, Chatham Publishing Co, 1975. |
| Priest, Cinthia, The Santa Fe Diesel, Vol.2, Paired Rail Railroad Publications, 1998. |
| Shine, Joe, Santa Fe 1988 Motive Power Pictorial, Four Ways West, 1989. |