GE U28C

The GE U28C emerged in the mid-1960s as General Electric's response to intensifying competition in the diesel locomotive market. During this period, both Alco and General Motors were pushing horsepower ratings upward, with Alco introducing the 2750-horsepower C628 and announcing the 3000-horsepower C630, while General Motors was testing its 3000-horsepower EMD SD40 demonstrators across various railroads. GE addressed this competitive pressure by first uprating a number of U25C units destined for the Northern Pacific, Atlantic Coast Line, and Pennsylvania Railroad in 1965, effectively previewing the capabilities that would define the U28C as a production model. The Northern Pacific received the earliest of these uprated machines between May and July 1965, initially rated at 2750 horsepower, while units delivered to the Atlantic Coast Line and Pennsylvania Railroad later that year achieved the 2800-horsepower output that would become standard. By early 1966, GE formally introduced the U28C as a distinct production model, and the type was delivered to several major American railroads over the following months. The Chicago, Burlington and Quincy and Northern Pacific received early examples built on the same 64-foot 4-inch frame that had characterized the U25C, these being known among enthusiasts and historians as Phase I units. Beginning in May 1966, GE transitioned to a longer 67-foot 3-inch frame for subsequent production, yielding the Phase II variants that went to the Louisville and Nashville, Pennsylvania Railroad, Southern Pacific, and Union Pacific. A passenger-configured derivative, the U28CG, was produced in a limited quantity for the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway and shared the longer Phase II frame. In total, 87 U28C units were constructed between 1965 and 1966. The U28C occupies a transitional place in the lineage of GE's Universal series locomotives, bridging the well-established U25C and the more numerous U30C that followed. Its production run was relatively brief, and the type was soon overshadowed by higher-horsepower offerings from all three major builders. Nevertheless, the U28C demonstrated GE's ability to extract greater performance from its FDL prime mover and helped maintain the company's competitive position during a critical period. At least one example has survived into preservation, with a former Union Pacific unit on display at the National Museum of Transportation in St. Louis, Missouri, where a portion of its carbody has been cut away to illustrate the internal layout of a diesel-electric locomotive.

The U28C was powered by GE's FDL16 prime mover, a 16-cylinder four-cycle turbocharged diesel engine producing 2800 horsepower, representing a 300-horsepower increase over the U25C that preceded it. The locomotive rode on a C-C wheel arrangement, meaning it used two three-axle trucks with all axles powered, providing excellent tractive effort and weight distribution suited to heavy freight service. Traction was transmitted through a direct-current electrical system, with the engine driving a generator that in turn supplied current to the traction motors on each axle. Phase II production units utilized either the General Electric GT 598 generator or the GTA 9 alternator, reflecting an incremental evolution in the electrical equipment employed across the production run. The two distinct frame lengths used during U28C production are a notable engineering detail that distinguishes early and late examples of the class. Phase I units retained the 64-foot 4-inch carbody of the U25C, making them visually and dimensionally similar to their predecessor, while Phase II units introduced a longer 67-foot 3-inch frame that allowed for a revised internal arrangement and became the basis for the subsequent U30C series. This longer carbody was shared with the U28CG passenger variant built for the Santa Fe and carried forward into early U30C production beginning in late 1966, illustrating how GE developed a common structural platform across several related models during this period.

Models by: Atlas