How long will the Mexican Amfleets last?

John_Perkowski wrote:GBN: That Lw Budd car has plating, not fluting. That means it was built relatively late. It might be UP, NP, or GN. NOT ATSF, and I don’t know about east coast roads.

If its the dome, it's likely CB&Q 558, built 06/1954 to NP specs as a pool car for the North Coast Limited. Amtrak 9406, stayed in private ownership from 1983-1998 and then went to the GCRY for a couple years.

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Is there that much of an insurmountable gap between caring for these and caring for the younger NdeM-origin coaches elsewhere in Mexico?

David Benton wrote: ↑Tue Jan 23, 2024 7:28 pm Paxman engines have all been replaced , the MTU's are downrated , so should be reliable.

I don't doubt the MTU, I doubt the shop forces. A while back I posted a youtube video by an American that was contracted to go down there and help start the railway. The practices and institutional knowledge were wanting to say the least. I absolutely love the 43 class but perhaps it wasn't the best choice for this operation. The 43 is a stunning high performance machine that requires good maintenance and track.

Frankly I wish we would've bough the HST sets for use in Michigan and Cascades, but the platform heights at crash worthiness probably aren't going to make it feasible.

Yes, maybe they can convince a few British maintenance engineers to semi retire to Mexico.
I do wonder how the aircon will handle the Mexican climate, they could turn to the Australians for advice on that.

I heard at least one or more SPVs were sold to Mexico, with one being used on the 2023 Polar Express at St. Louis Union Station.

R36 Combine Coach wrote: ↑Mon Jan 29, 2024 9:35 pm I heard at least one or more SPVs were sold to Mexico, with one being used on the 2023 Polar Express at St. Louis Union Station.

I think they have three in Mexico now. Last time I was in STL I was surprised to see a couple amfleets and horizons in a black/blue window band that we now know is for the Mexicans. I didn't like it becauase we have this huge coach shortage and meanwhile we're wholesaling our working fleet to Mexico. Makes no sense.

Tadman wrote: ↑Mon Jan 29, 2024 10:34 pm Last time I was in STL I was surprised to see a couple amfleets and horizons in a black/blue window band that we now know is for the Mexicans. I didn't like it becauase we have this huge coach shortage and meanwhile we're wholesaling our working fleet to Mexico. Makes no sense.

The SPVs were ConnDOT, and sold by State of Connecticut through surplus sales. They were stored in New Haven since 2004-2005. Some had not been touched since Rowland was in office.

What is the plan for the Uk's car coupling system v. regular Janey couplers?

I believe this HST sets were always using the knuckle coupler versus conventional consists using the hook/buffer system. That hasn't stopped the Mexicans from removing the doors on the front of the HST and pulling the hidden coupler out to be a permanent coupler as you can see in this pic. THey have also painted the coupler which I understand to be a no-no in the US (and probably UK) because one cannot visually inspect the coupler for cracks.

The HSTs used tow bars on the locomotive cab ends, but Janney couplers between coaches.

Watch the BR training video on how to tow a dead HST on Youtube.

Yes , easy to forget the "HSTs" are just Mk3 cars between 2 locomotives in a push pull configuration. Originally a real dumbing down of the over complicated APT trains , but , oh so successful.

David Benton wrote: ↑Fri Feb 02, 2024 5:01 am Yes , easy to forget the "HSTs" are just Mk3 cars between 2 locomotives in a push pull configuration. Originally a real dumbing down of the over complicated APT trains , but , oh so successful.

This is a really good point. Like the post of the month.

Look at how many tres successful trains and planes were unplanned or even black sheep.

The 747 was supposed to be a stopgap until the SST came online, and they would all be converted to cargo. None of that happened and now the 747 is the "queen of the skies" for decades.

The F40 was supposed to be a stopgap and corridor engine while Amtrak figured out there next great engine after the SDP was dis-preferred. Turns out it rivals the E7 as a top passenger engine of all time.

The HST was supposed to be a cheap replacement for the APT using Mk3 cars and a higher speed set of engines that would last until the ECML and WCML had enough wires and electric motors. It turned out to be the best thing for passenger trains in Britain in a very long time.

Also see: Horizon/comets, amfleets, 66 class freight engines, gallery cars...

That leads me to a point. Sometimes simplicity and attainable goals are the best idea, not trying to shoot the moon. While the above three examples were excelling, how many experimental failures have we seen? Oodles.

The HST worked in part because the Mk3 was a great coach. Perhaps the next Acela or corridor stock should've been another set of Horizon cars with a set of bracketed engines that share the same profile. See, it looks fast!

The Arlanda express is a great example of this. My neighbors would thinks this is an Acela or TGV if you put the right decals on it. The average guy doesn't know the difference.

Mr. Dunville, I get your point; but every major airline in this world has withdrawn the 747 from scheduled passenger service.

Not so, at this very moment, according to Flight Aware, Lufthansa flight LH 402 is inbound to EWR from FRA, aircraft is B748 (Boeing 747 800 series). This flight operated daily and I usually see LH 747s when I drive past EWR on the NJ Turnpike depending on the time I drive by.

I do consider Lufthansa a major airline.

In addition, https://simpleflying.com/boeing-747-pas ... te%202025. says:
Despite the end of Boeing's 747 program, there are still 50 active passenger aircraft operated by five airlines.
Air China, Korean Air, Lufthansa, Asiana Airlines, and Saudia will continue to offer regular flights with the 747 through 2024.
Asiana Airlines is set to retire its 747 later this year, while Lufthansa's older 747-400s are likely to be retired in late 2025.

Sorry for "hijacking" this thread to become airline.net!