Nostalgia & History > GM's AeroTrain

A resurrected Ektachrome transparency and we get a fairly decent view of General Motors AeroTrain (Train Y project) heading under the signal tower as it heads into LA Union Station.  The AeroTrain ran on both the ATSF and UP and I'm guessing this is a UP run - I know Elmer also had shots of the train coming over Cajon (8 mm movies, even) when it was running between LA and Las Vegas in 1956.  The AeroTrain was anything but a sterling success being a bit under-powered and reports had it that it was rather hard to ride in with its airbag suspension.  Photo Elmer K. Hall, my collection.  Don Hall, Yreka, CA

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I did not realize there were that many cars to the train! My Varney version was much shorter!
Great shot! Thanks for posting!

Didn't UP put a UP shield on the front when it was running as the City of Las Vegas?

Thanks for posting this rare image of what GM thought would be part of railroading's future.
Bob

Makes me think of the Disneyland monorail. Cool looking train, too bad it wasn’t successful.

Nathan

Posted from iPhone

PHall Wrote:
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> Didn't UP put a UP shield on the front when it was
> running as the City of Las Vegas?

Yes.   A shield with wings on the pilot and the words “City of Las Vegas” just above them. A friend of mine who caught some runs on the train as its fireman said it was “junk”.

Updated with extra pix:  My memory is clouded perhaps.  My pictures from Las Vegas show it with the shield, but not lettering and without a shield but with lettering.

JB - Omaha
 



Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 07/24/19 12:52 by Copy19.

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The cars were GM bus bodies. BTW, I rode a Talgo from DC to Baltimore in the '80s and it rode rough.

Bill Deaver
Tehachapi, CA

What would one expect for two-axle cars.  GM did much better with Chevrolet '55 and '57 2-door hard tops previous to their train production!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/26/19 13:27 by rrman6.

MojaveBill Wrote:
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> The cars were GM bus bodies. BTW, I rode a Talgo
> from DC to Baltimore in the '80s and it rode
> rough

I rode the NYC Xplorer between Dayton and Cincinnati which was also a Talgo-like train. Leaving Dayton the car dropped, there was a loud bang and I though we had derailed but apparently it was just the train going through one of the track switches as we left. When we got to Cincinnati I looked for signs of damage to the car bottoms but could see none, so apparently it was just a "ride" situation going through the crossovers leaving the Dayton station.

The locomotive also had a habit of gyrating at low speeds with the ride likened by crews to that of being on the back of a drunken duck.

DaleR

I always nicknamed this train the Norelco Razor train.

Victor A. Baird
http://www.erstwhilepublications.com

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My thoughts on this photo.  Just a fun Sunday activity.

With no markings  on the train set that it was the  UP City of Las Vegas, that this may have been a shot during the demonstration runs to San Diego, and that the train was making a backing out move from LAUPT, to reach the northern Y track at Mission Tower, (SFE 2nd district) in order to return to the Santa Fe yards or on to San Diego. This move was made by every San Diego train to be headed  proper direction south.

Here's why.  The train is on at least the toward the northern tracks of the six track lead out of the station,  which would have been track 5 or 6 to reach the Santa Fe Y connection of the SFE 2nd district..

It would not be arrival from the Santa Fe from the south which had to be lead 1 or 2,  Could have been arriving on the UP on lead 3 or 4. If it was going to or from the UP yards, then a switcher would have been attached.

Do not recall that it ever made a demo run on the SP, either going east and/or north, which would have been on lead 3 - 6.

Thoughts to jog the old memories.  No need to rant and rave.

Ed