GE AC4400CW

GE AC4400CW

CSX AC4400CW #209 in Newport News, Virginia, next to a former C&O coal tower.

Type and origin Power type Diesel-electric Builder GE Transportation Systems Model AC4400CW Build date 1993 – 2004 Total produced 2,598

Specifications AAR wheel arr. C-C Gauge 4 ft 8 ^1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge Wheel diameter 42 in (1,067 mm) Wheelbase 13 ft 2 in (4.01 m) Length 73 ft 2 in (22.30 m) Height 15 ft 6 in (4.72 m) Loco weight 426,000 lb (193,000 kg) Fuel capacity 5,000 US gal (19,000 L; 4,200 imp gal) Traction motors 6

Performance figures Power output 4,400 hp (3,300 kW) Tractive effort 180,000 lbf (800 kN) Starting 145,000 lbf (640 kN) at 13.7 mph (22.0 km/h)

Career Operators Various, see table Locale North America

The GE AC4400CW is a 4,400 horsepower (3,300 kW) diesel-electric locomotive that was built by GE Transportation Systems between 1993 and 2004. It is similar to the Dash 9-44CW, but features AC traction motors instead of DC, with a separate inverter per motor. 2,598 examples of this locomotive were produced for North American railroads. These locomotives are similar in appearance to GE's more powerful locomotive the AC6000CW. As a result of more stringent emissions requirements that came into effect in the United States on January 1, 2005, the AC4400CW has been replaced by the GE ES44AC.

As of 2005, every Class I railroad with the exceptions of Norfolk Southern, Canadian National, and Amtrak owns at least one AC4400CW. These units quickly gained a reputation as powerful freight haulers, especially in heavy-haul applications.

The AC4400CW was the first GE locomotive to offer an optional self-steering truck design, intended to increase adhesion and reduce wear on the railhead. This option was specified by Canadian Pacific, Cartier Railway, CSX, Ferromex, Ferrosur, and KCS.

CP AC4400CW #9560 and CP SD40-2 #6029 head west towards the NS Elkhart Yard, 2009.

Kansas City Southern AC4400CW no. 4575 with self-steering trucks in October 2014

Design variations

CSX ordered many of its AC4400CW locomotives with 20,000 lb (9,100 kg) extra weight to increase tractive effort. These same units were also modified in 2006-2007 with a "high tractive effort" software upgrade.^[1] CSX has redesignated these modified units from CW44AC to CW44AH. Union Pacific ordered many of their AC4400CW's with Computerized Tractive Effort software, giving them the designation of AC4400CW-CTE. This software was carried on from their AC4400s and is now standard on Union Pacific ES44AC's.

Operators

AC4400CW current operators, as of February 27, 2016 include:

Railroad	Qty	Notes
Union Pacific	1338	A handful patched from Southern Pacific and Chicago and North Western
CSX Transportation	615	CSX designation CW44AC, or CW44AH with HTE software
BNSF	121	5600-5717, 5838-5840, 40 units leased to Metrolink and converted to PTC.
Canadian Pacific	438	9751, 9758, 9777, and 9782 were used in the 2010 film Unstoppable, and retain the "caution stripe" painted snowplows from their movie liveries, Number 8500-8580, 8600-8655, 9500-9683, 9700-9740, 9750-9784, 9800-9840
Cartier Railway	17
Cerrejón	5	10010-10014
Ferromex	75
Ferrosur	38
Kansas City Southern	175
Quebec, North Shore and Labrador	12	Numbered 415 to 426
Metrolink	40	Units leased from BNSF Railway. Will be used to temporarily replace Rotem cab cars while they are being investigated following the 2015 Oxnard train derailment.

References

1. Potter, Jay (November 2006), "CSX's mountain climbers", Trains