EMD GT26 Series

The EMD GT26 Series is a family of export diesel locomotives that debuted in 1967 after the success of the American SD40. It used the turbocharged EMD 645 engine and six-axle HT-C trucks for traction at low speed, and was sold to First, Second and Third World railways under designations that spelled out each customer's choices: C for six axles, then U for narrow gauge traction motors or W for broad gauge, a -2 suffix for Dash 2 electronics from 1972, H for head-end power and -MP for microprocessor control. Models include the GT26CW, GT26CW-2, GT26HCW-2 built for Algeria, the lightweight-frame GT26MC for South Africa, the GT26CU-2 and the GT26CU-MP built only for the Vitoria a Minas railway. With the 16-645F3B engine the series became the GT36, built for Zambia and Algeria.