Nostalgia & History > F-unit Friday: Let's play Army!

I guess we can call this “F-unit Friday... on steroids”! This F45 image was scanned from a trader slide I absolutely don’t remember getting from longtime pal & fellow KS Gangster Dave Franz. I know I didn’t shoot the slide because on December 8, 1980 I was on a work train around Salina, KS. I would be checking into the Flamingo Motel that evening and would learn that the Beatles’ John Lennon had been murdered in NYC ( Workin' on the RR the day... (trainorders.com) ). And to perfectly balance this equation, in a phone call Dave doesn’t specifically remember shooting this slide either. But I’m betting when he sees his handiwork he just might remember a few more details... ;^)

1. AT&SF 5913 leads 6 military tank loads + a waycar. The train is departing the depot at Emporia, KS in a crew-change situation on December 8, 1980.
Original Kodachrome slide by David A Franz, aka ‘monaddave’ here on TO.

Thanks for trying to remember!
Lance Garrels
santafe199

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Great photo by the unknown photographer.  The loads are the M1 Abrams Tank and had to be brand new as the production of the tank just started in 1980.  Each tank weighed 54 tons, hence the heavy duty design of the DODX flatcars.  It would be interesting to know the train symbol to see where the tanks were headed-Ft. Carson, Colorado or Fort Hood, Texas would have been contenders.

jtwlunch Wrote:
<< Great photo by the unknown photographer. >>

Steady now JTW, steady.

So this sent me on a wild goose chase to find my box of little chest pocket sized spiral notebooks I used back in the day to write every little note down. For the life of me, I can't find it. Lost in the abyss known as my hobby and storage room. But just a thought, in 1980, was Santa Fe still using the three letter code for extra trains? Could it have been an AYW, for Argentine West.
Unknown... Montana

The date would allign with 2nd Battalion; 5th Cavalry Regiment; 1st Cavalry Division @ Fort Hood, TX receving the M1.
The 1st 3 arrived at the motor pool in October of 1980. 

Kris

Great shot!

RC Lundgren