#2853

FM H-20-44

🇺🇸 United States ·built by Fairbanks-Morse· from 1947· model of American 2000hp diesel locomotives

4 photos from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences

1. Union Pacific -1366: The original uploader was Can't Undo at English Wikipedia .· CC BY-SA 3.0
2. PRR FM H20-44 at Streigels, Baltimore, MD on August 22, 1970 (25772188115): railfan 44· Public domain
3. Southwest Portland Cement -409 (Fairbanks-Morse H20-44) - 10570621845: Gary Lee Todd, Ph.D.· CC0
4. Southwest Portland Cement -409 (Fairbanks-Morse H20-44): Gary Lee Todd, Ph.D.· CC0

what is it?

The FM H-20-44 was a diesel locomotive manufactured by Fairbanks-Morse from June 1947 – March 1954. It represented the company's first foray into the road switcher market. The 2,000 hp (1,490 kW), ten-cylinder opposed piston engine locomotive was referred to by F-M's engineering department as the "Heavy Duty" unit.

who runs it

Union Pacific Railroad New York Central Railroad Fairbanks-Morse Akron, Canton and Youngstown Railroad Pennsylvania Railroad Pittsburgh and West Virginia Railway

base stats

speed 113 km/htop speed
power 1.5 MWpower output
weight 115 tin working order
built 96made in total

Bars compare against all trains: 600 km/h (maglev), 1,700 seats; power, weight and number built on a log scale up to 20 MW, 1,000 t and 20,000 built.

fun facts

First built 79 years ago, in 1947.
1.5 MW is about 18 family cars (~85 kW each) flat out.
Weighs about as much as 19 African elephants (~6 t each).
15.5 m long: about 3 cars parked nose to tail.

diesel locomotive: A diesel engine on board drives the wheels, usually through a generator (diesel-electric).

spec sheet

built: 1947–1954
status: preserved
number built: 96
kind: Diesel-electric
traction: diesel
origin: 🇺🇸 United States
builders: Fairbanks-Morse
operators: Union Pacific Railroad, New York Central Railroad, Fairbanks-Morse, Akron, Canton and Youngstown Railroad, Pennsylvania Railroad, Pittsburgh and West Virginia Railway
top speed: 113 km/h
power: 1.5 MW
gauge: 1,435 mm standard gauge
wheel arrangement: B′B′
length: 15.5 m
weight: 115 t

From the Wikipedia infobox and Wikidata. Blank means the sources don't say.

Sources: Wikidata Q5426724, Wikipedia: FM H-20-44 (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-25.