Norfolk Southern Heritage Units.

That letter is a check code. Southern Railway included it to enhance the accuracy of equipment reporting. For example, in the event an employee was recording a unit number and made an error in a numerical character, it was unlikely an additional error would be commited when recording the alpha character.

Thanks!

I wonder if we'll see the 8099 running long-hood-forward in the near future?

Trains News Wire wrote:NS spokesman Robin Chapman told Trains News Wire the next unit to be painted at Chattanooga will be in the colors of Central of Georgia, No. 8101. The paint shop at Altoona, Pa., will release a unit painted in Nickel Plate Road colors next, possibly by the end of this week.

Full article, which IS available to everyone, including non-subscribers: http://trn.trains.com/Railroad%20News/N ... 0next.aspx

Original word was that the Norfolk & Western unit would be next out of Altoona, but apparently not.

Locations:
Conrail: Conway,PA
Southern: Chattanooga
Central of Georgia: Chattanooga
Norfolk and Western: Altoona
Nickle Plate: Altoona

MEC407 wrote:Since I'm not well-versed in Southern Railway traditions, can someone tell me the reason for the small letter "K" to the right of the road number?

Earle Baldwin wrote:That letter is a check code. Southern Railway included it to enhance the accuracy of equipment reporting. For example, in the event an employee was recording a unit number and made an error in a numerical character, it was unlikely an additional error would be commited when recording the alpha character.

...That's a nice touch of detail to add, I wonder if that means the Penn Central logo on the heritage engine will be painted over a faded New York Central logo.

8104 has been delivered and is tentatively the Lehigh Valley unit.
8114 has been delivered and is tentatively the original Norfolk Southern unit.

Southern 8099 made its first revenue run today leading manifest 38Q from Knoxville to Roanoke. Photo by NS, as seen on their Flickr page:

That's Sweet! GREAT JOB NS!
The green goes good with today's going green campaigns. Maybe a standard NS paint job with the dress black replaced with the same color green used on the 8099 white stripes with lettering on the sides in yellow.

Seeing that photo, all I can think of is the old company motto, "Southern gives a green light to innovation."

Nickel Plate Road heritage unit unveiled: http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=393441

MEC407 wrote:Nickel Plate Road heritage unit unveiled: http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=393441

Very, very Nice!!!! Can't thank the boys over at NS enough!!

They are doing a great job, and it's really neat to see historic paint schemes tastefully adapted to modern locomotives. (That's not a dig at UP -- I think whoever came up with their "inspired by" heritage schemes did a great job.)

Another shot of the NKP unit, this time in daylight: http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=393493

What a class act! These engines looks amazing in their heritage colors. One can almost imagine their respective fallen flag still flying as a modern railroad.
A great image to the well known question "what if ______ Railroad survived through to modern times"

That NKP unit looks sweet, but would look sweeter next to or coupled behind the Berk.
Only thing better would be the PRR coupled behind or next to the 1361 under steam!

That's the most the Norfolk Southern has acknowledged the Nickel Plate since the eve of the N&W merger.

I doubt I'll be seeing many of these units by my place - maybe NS will send them out to work off horsepower hours or do run-throughs - but it's really fun to see them.