GE "ES44AC" Locomotives: Data, Specs, Roster

Last revised: January 1, 2025

The ES44AC was General Electric's successor to its very popular AC4400CW model of the 1990s, which sold nearly 3,000 examples between 1994 and 2004.

The ES44AC featured the company's new GEVO prime mover, a 12-cylinder power plant that met the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Tier II standards which went into effect on January 1, 2005.

The AC4400CW had established a new standard in main line locomotives, one that utilized more efficient and powerful AC traction motors in place of DC motors.

Direct current technology had been the industry standard since Electro-Motive's first FT's rolled out of La Grange, Illinois in 1939.

GE changed the game in the 1980s when it not only surpassed EMD as the industry's top manufacturer but also continually pushed the envelope on locomotive efficiency.

The AC4400CW signaled the end of DC traction motors in main line locomotives although some railroads continued to request them into the early Evolution Series, notably the ES44DC and ES40DC.

GE stopped producing locomotives with DC traction motors after wrapping up production on these locomotives. Its "ET" Tier IV locomotives are produced only as AC traction variants.

Photos

CSX ES44AC-H #864 leads empty coal hoppers westbound as the train crests the grade at Alleghany, Virginia on the former Chesapeake & Ohio main line. Loyd Lowry photo.

Background

As Greg McDonnell notes in his book, "Locomotives, The Modern Diesel & Electric Reference: 2nd Edition," the Evolution Series was a seven year program to develop a new engine capable of meeting EPA Tier II emissions standards.

GE's tried and true engine, the FDL, was able to meet EPA's Tier 0 (1973-2001) and Tier I (2002-2004) standards. These had originally been established in December, 1997 and made retroactive to locomotives produced after 1973.

With more stringent standards under Tier II emissions set to take effect on January 1, 2005, GE realized it needed a new engine. The company no longer felt the FDL could do so without seriously sacrificing performance and efficiency.

GEVO Prime Mover

Following hundreds of millions of dollars in research and development, GE unveiled its new GEVO prime mover in March, 2002 when testbed #2005 rolled out of Erie.

This engine was a 12-cylinder power plant that could still produce the same 4,400 horsepower as its predecessor. In addition, GE engineers had designed the GEVO to meet future emissions standards, notably Tier III (January 1, 2012) and Tier IV (January 1, 2015).

By the 2000s, GE was the industry standard in locomotive production. The company had surpassed EMD long ago, thanks largely through its efforts of employing technology to lower operational costs and improve locomotive efficiency.

Union Pacific ES44AC #5611 leads an intermodal freight over Cajon Pass as the train rounds Sullivan's Curve. Loyd Lowry photo.

As a result, railroads were willing to purchase its latest products almost immediately. Most notably was GE's AC6000CW of the 1990s, which could produce 6,000 horsepower.

These monsters featured a redesigned engine, the 7HDL, a product built in conjunction with renowned engine manufacturer Deutz-Motoren Werke Mannheim (MWM) of Germany.

Ultimately, this power plant ran into reliability issues while railroads discovered a single 6,000 horsepower behemoth was too much for their needs.

However, this did not stop Union Pacific from placing orders immediately, even before the new engine was ready for production by acquiring "Convertible" variants that sported a standard 4,400 horsepower 7FDL engine.

The idea here was that these locomotives could later be refitted with the new 7HDL once it was ready (in the end, this never occurred).

In the case of the ES44AC, General Electric produced some 35 examples of what could be described as demonstrators. The locomotives sported the liveries of the respective railroads on which they tested, similar to its approach with the "Dash 8" line.

These demonstrators were impossible to distinguish as testbeds but remained wholly-owned GE products during the 2003-2004 trials and ultimately were purchased by their respective railroads.

Once again, Union Pacific was the first to test GE's latest AC traction product (what GE initially dubbed as "A.C. V12 Tier II Preproduction"), acquiring five of the locomotives in early 2003 (#5695-5699). Next, BNSF acquired a whopping thirty units between August, 2003 and January, 2004 (#5718-5747).

Data Sheet

Entered Production	3/2002 (General Electric #2005)
Years Produced	3/2002 - 10/2019
GE Class	ES44AC
Engine	GEVO-12 (12 cylinder)
Engine Builder	General Electric
Horsepower	4400
RPM	1050
Length	73' 2"
Height (Top Of Rail To Top Of Cab)	15' 5"
Width	9' 11"
Weight	416,000 - 432,000 Lbs
Fuel Capacity	5,000 Gallons
Air Compressor	3CDC (Westinghouse)
Air Brake Schedule	26L (Westinghouse)
Trucks	C-C
Truck Type	Hi-Ad Bolsterless Or Steerable (GE)
Truck Wheelbase	13' 2"
Wheel Size	42"
Traction Motors	GEB13 (6), GE
Traction Alternator	GMG205, GE
Auxiliary Alternator	GYA30A, GE
MU (Multiple-Unit)	Yes
Dynamic Brakes	Yes
Gear Ratio	83:20
Tractive Effort/Starting	183,000 Lbs
Tractive Effort/Continuous	166,000 Lbs at 13.7 mph
Top Speed	70 mph

Production Roster

(Total Built = 3,764)

Owner	Road Number	Serial Number	Order Number	Completion Date	Quantity
General Electric (Demo)	2005	53681	1939	3/2002	1
Union Pacific	5695-5696	53878-53879	1952	12/2002	2
Union Pacific	5697-5699	53976-53978	1952	2/2003	3
Burlington Northern Santa Fe	5718-5747	54400-54429	1962	8/2003-1/2004	30
Union Pacific	5354-5553	55510-55709	1982	1/2005-7/2005	200
Canadian Pacific	8700-8739	55956-55995	1990	10/2005-11/2005	40
BNSF Railway	5748-5797	55996-56045	1988	7/2005-9/2005	50
Union Pacific	5353	56146	1982	8/2005	1
BNSF Railway	5798-5837	56156-56195	1988	9/2005-10/2005	40
Canadian Pacific	8740-8759	56340-56359	1990	11/2005-12/2005	20
Union Pacific	5248-5347	56592-56691	1998	2/2006-8/2006	100
BNSF Railway	5844-6043	56692-56891	1900	10/2005-7/2006	200
BNSF Railway	6044-6086	57019-57061	1900	8/2006-9/2006	43
BNSF Railway	6087-6138	57104-57155	1900	9/2006-10/2006	52
Canadian Pacific	8760-8839	57156-57235	2003	9/2006-12/2006	80
Canadian Pacific	8840-8859	57236-57255	2003	5/2007	20
Ferromex	4600-4659	57426-57485	1904	10/2006-12/2006	60
Kansas City Southern	4650-4679	57486-57515	1912	11/2006-1/2007	30
Union Pacific	7600-7699	57536-57635	1913	6/2007-9/2007	100
BNSF Railway	6139-6238	57636-57735	1900	1/2007-4/2007	100
Union Pacific	7700-7799	58008-58107	1913	1/2007-6/2007	100
Kansas City Southern	4680-4729	58128-58177	1919	9/2007-10/2007	50
Ferromex	4660-4699	58193-58232	1904	8/2007-10/2007	40
CSX Transportation	700-799 (ES44AC-H)	58294-58393	1924	10/2007-12/2007	100
Canadian Pacific	8860-8899	58446-58485	1980	1/2008	40
Arcelor Mittal (Cartier Railway)	301-302	58714-58715	1923	2/2011-3/2011	2
Cemex	81	59101	1939	3/2008	1
General Electric (Demo)	2012	59418	1937	7/2008	1
CSX Transportation	800-899 (ES44AC-H)	58486-58585	1924	1/2008-5/2008	100
Union Pacific	7345-7469	58588-58712	1953	1/2009-7/2009	125
Norfolk Southern	8024-8048	58861-58885	1979	10/2010-11/2010	25
Union Pacific	7800-7924	58946-59070	1931	4/2008-6/2008	125
Kansas City Southern	4730-4759	59071-59100	1938	4/2008-6/2008	30
Iowa Interstate	500-511	59419-59430	1947	7/2008	12
CSX Transportation	900-949 (ES44AC-H)	59431-59480	1948	7/2008-9/2008	50
Norfolk Southern	8000-8023	59504-59527	1957	9/2008-10/2008	24
Iowa Interstate	512-513	59528-59529	1951	8/2009-9/2009	2
CSX Transportation	950-997 (ES44AC-H)	59530-59577	1951	12/2011	48
BNSF Railway	6239-6299	59578-59638	1960	10/2008-11/2008	61
BNSF Railway	6400-6415	59639-59654	1960	12/2008	16
BNSF Railway	6416-6438	59892-59914	1952	8/2009	23
BNSF Railway	6300-6399	59915-60014	1964	8/2009-11/2009	100
Norfolk Southern	8049-8090	60233-60274	1979	1/2011-3/2011	42
Union Pacific	7470-7529	60465-60524	1984	4/2011-8/2011	60
Ferrocarril del Sureste (Ferrosur)	4709-4722	60607-60620	1987	7/2011-9/2011	14
Seaview Transportation	1912, 1982, 1986	60621-60623	1989	10/2011-11/2011	3
Kansas City Southern	4765-4789	60624-60648	1992	11/2011-12/2011	25
Kansas City Southern de México	4760-4764	60649-60653	1801	12/2011	5
Canadian Pacific	8900-8960	60654-60714	1980	8/2011-11/2011	61
Canadian Pacific	9350-9379	60715-60744	1980	1/2012-2/2012	30
Norfolk Southern	8091-8115	60745-60769	1991	1/2012-3/2012	25
Union Pacific	7925-8051	60996-61122	1995	3/2012-9/2012	127
CSX Transportation	3000-3064 (ES44AC-H)	61123-61187	1996	3/2012-6/2012	65
Kansas City Southern	4790-4809	61246-61265	1992	9/2012-10/2012	20
Canadian National	2800-2824	61266-61290	1806	11/2012-12/2012	25
Citicorp Railmark (CREX)	1201-1215	61406-61420	1939	9/2012-11/2012	15
CSX Transportation	3065-3174 (ES44AC-H)	61596-61705	1812	2/2013-11/2013	110
Norfolk Southern	8116-8140	61706-61730	1814	9/2012-12/2012	25
Norfolk Southern	8141-8165	61811-61835	1814	8/2013-9/2013	25
Union Pacific	8052-8111	61868-61927	1813	6/2013	60
Citicorp Railmark (CREX)	1301-1350	61944-61993	1821	8/2013-12/2013	50
Canadian National	2835-2864	61994-62023	1820	12/2012-1/2013	30
Union Pacific	8112-8171 (ES44AC-H)	62457-62516	1827	3/2014-5/2014	60
Union Pacific	8172-8238	62587-62653	1827	5/2014	67
Canadian National	2865-2909	62654-62698	1831	9/2013-11/2013	45
Citicorp Railmark (CREX)	1401-1435	62723-62757	1833	6/2014-8/2014	35
Union Pacific	8239-8267 (ES44AC-H)	62813-62841	1827	12/2014	29
Canadian National	2910-2939	62842-62871	1831	12/2014-1/2015	30
Canadian National	2940-2950	62893-62898, 63381-63385	1831	2/2015-3/2015	11
CSX Transportation	3175-3249 (ES44AC-H)	62899-62973	1844	7/2015-12/2015	75
Iowa Interstate	514-516	62986-62988	1837	11/2014	3
Union Pacific	2520-2569 (ES44AC-H)	63331-63380	1846	2/2015-4/2015	50
Kansas City Southern de México	4870-4894	63386-63410	2107	4/2015-7/2015	25
Canadian National	2951-2975	63414-63438	2108	3/2015-4/2015	25
Citicorp Railmark (CREX)	1501-1525	63833-63857	1854	12/2015	25
Norfolk Southern	8166-8168 (ES44AC-TC4)	64090-64092	1858	5/2016	3
Ferromex	4800-4849	64250-64299	2109	4/2016-10/2016	50
Canadian National	2976-2983	64403-64410	1851	10/2016-11/2016	8
Cerrejón (Columbia)	1015-1025	64235-64242, 66304-66306	-	11/2012, 6/2015, 12/2020	11
Norfolk Southern	8169-8184	64608-64623	1814	2/2017-3/2017	16
Canadian National	2984-2999 (ES44AC-TC4)	64635-64650	1880	10/2017	16
Canadian National	3800-3805 (ES44AC-TC4)	64651-64656	1880	11/2017	6
Canadian National	3806-3835	64744-64773	-	5/2018-5/2019	30
Canadian National	3836-3875	65818-65857	-	1/2019-6/2019	40
Canadian National	3876-3895	66068-66087	-	5/2019-7/2019	20
Iowa Interstate	517-519	66132-66134	1837	8/2019-10/2019	3
Canadian National	3896-3912	66235-66251	-	10/2019-1/2020	17

Sources

McDonnell, Greg. Locomotives: The Modern Diesel & Electric Reference, 2nd Edition. Buffalo: Boston Mills Press/Firefly Books, 2015.

Solomon, Brian. GE and EMD Locomotives: The Illustrated History. Minneapolis: Voyageur Press, 2014.

CSX ES44AC-H #3233 leads the company's Office Car Special eastbound past the former Chesapeake & Ohio yard and coaling tower at Ronceverte, West Virginia. Loyd Lowry photo.

BNSF also went on to acquire the first production ES44AC's (#5748-5837) and ES44DC's (#7650-7799) between January and July, 2005.

General Electric has largely standardized its road-switcher carbodies since the 1990s featuring the North American Safety Cab (wide cab), followed by a long carbody, and wide, rear flared radiators.

As such, at first glance it is difficult to distinguish an ES44AC from the earlier AC4400CW; both are 73' 2" in length, sport an "Aux Cab" on the left side of the carbody for A.C. traction circuitry, and are equipped with either GE's HiAd or Steerable truck.

Perhaps the only reliable identifier, aside from the road numbers themselves, is a small bulge along the top of the radiator wing which is not present on AC4400CW's.