H16-44 Diesel Locomotive

Prototype Information

The Fairbanks-Morse H16-44 rolled out in 1950 as a 1,600-horsepower road-switcher built to challenge EMD and ALCO. Its opposed-piston 38D8 1/8 engine gave it a unique edge, while the low-hood design improved crew visibility and made it useful in both road and switching service.

Between 1950 and 1963, Fairbanks-Morse built around 300 H16-44s. Railroads like the New Haven, Norfolk & Western, and Canadian Pacific put them to work on freights and locals, but the complex opposed-piston prime mover proved harder to maintain than EMD’s simpler engines.

Most railroads retired their H16-44s by the late 1960s, though a few lasted longer on short lines. Only a handful survive today, remembered as distinctive locomotives that showed both the strengths and the limits of Fairbanks-Morse’s diesel designs.