I believe the A&O may be qualified to be a Class II operator (45,000 carloads of coal in 5 months), so I'll go ahead and post here. WAMX 5115 (A&O), formerly Union Pacific 5072, leads a 90-car loaded coal train around a curve near Crawford, WV. Working the Burnsville helpers is probably the dirtiest job on the A&O. In other news, 11 cars of an eastbound loaded coal train derailed at Mile Post 83.5 near Burnville on Wednesday night, putting 11 cars on the ground. Traffic should resume today so it will be very very busy. Good thing I'm going home to Buckhannon today! Five more ex-B&A GP38-3's are bound for the A&O. Last spotted in Willard, OH three days ago.
Interesting to see that "shield" style logo. It's more than they've done here. But seeing how the UP goes after everyone on trademarking issues, I wonder if they needed permission to use it? Boxcab E50
Well, every SD50 (except the two ex-conrail ones) has the A&O shield now. Not sure what that means trademark-wise. I don't think it is close enough to cause problems. If it doesn't Say Union poacific or a heritage road, then it should be ok.
Wow... And I thought the I&O was a scrawny-looking operation. I'll take my mongrel units any day. At least they're clean! Cool shots. Don't get to see too many of this start-up. Keep 'em coming!
Thanks Brian, They're scanned shots, so they're about as good as they're gonna get. lol. They aren't afraid to railroad , unlike CSX.
I wish! Then the A&O could sue UP for trademark infringement. Give 'em a taste of their own screwy policies. Boxcab E50
An awful lot of units retired or lease-returned from previous railroads still have the original paint schemes with minimal lettering. And since they don't always run in pristine condition, this is where the term "rent-a-wreck" comes into play. The units may look grimy and clapped-out, but as long as they load up & pull freight, they'll do. Wonder if they'll come out with a paint scheme later on.....
They had a lot of problems with the 50's when they started up, mostly electrical problems. I also was told me an employee who workes on the locomitives that 4 of them came missing generators! NREX wouldn't fix it so they sent 3 back and got the 2 ex conrail units. The pictures I posted were taken around mid-June. As of August 16th, all but 5 SD50's were powerwashed and "APPALACHIAN & OHIO" spelled out on the long hoods applied. Most likely they will retain their UP paint for sometime. WATCO's standard paint job included yellow nose and ends with yellow trim and lettering all on a black carbody. I would expect the former BAR GP38-3's to be repainted first when the car shop is built. I believe this since all of the SD50's have been renumbered at atleast patched with "WAMX" on the sides below the cab windows. They have been that way since the start up back in March. The GP38-3's have not been patched and the paint is a little rough and thin in places, and they still call out the locomotives in their actual numbers (353, 355, 360, 363) instead of the WAMX numbers that haven't been painted on yet (3824-3827) For those curious about which 5 have not been lettered for the A&O: WAMX 5106, WAMX 5107 (ex NS 5451; Exx CR 6???), WAMX 5111 (ex CNW 7005 still in CNW paint), WAMX 5116, WAMX 5117 (ex NS 5459; Exx CR 6???) Good Railroad to railfan if you know your way around the area. Many backroads to excellent viewpoints. Also, there is no WAMX 5100. the class unit here is 5101 and goes thru 5120. I had been told three stories about it whereabouts: "working the K&O", "Mission Mountain" and "received by the A&O and later returned to NREX due to faulty equipment" [ August 29, 2005, 02:26 PM: Message edited by: CP&E 3207 ]
I'm just out of eyesight for the Mission Mountain. See it nearly daily. No SD50 here. Just an ex-BAR GP. There was an NREX SW1500 around a couple of months ago. Power on the northern end is still, or at least it was, ex-Chessie GP30 EIRR 4301. Rails on these lines wouldn't support an SD. This is old stuff. The original GN main line, which was severed in 1904. A few disused spurs being removed in recent years, have been seen with rail dates back to pre-1900! Boxcab E50
