Long-disused Grand Canyon Railway MLW FPA4's 6773 and 6871, both still in green GCRY paint but with fresh reporting marks spray-painted on them, were set out on the line's interchange track for pick-up to head east on Monday.

So it's not like I'm revealing any big secret as to their intended destination.

Reports indicate/suggest that release of the other FPA4s to the CVL will occur as soon as the GCRY's "new" ex-LTE/Amtrak F40FH rebuild is road-tested and certain inspections, payment, etc. occur.

UPDATE on this:

Spoke with a rep of the GCRY Mechanical Department yesterday.

Long story short: The transition to CVSR of the other MLW FPA4's will take a while. The last one will not leave until "enough" EMD F40PH's are rebuilt to F40FH standards. This COULD take until early 2026. Two of the surviving ones are "stored serviceable" but will need some shop work and prep prior to shipment. The shop guy was saying, "We have to teach the other guys how to start [the MLWs] if we need to use one these days!"

The mechanical guys have been trying to convince management to offer a "Farewell to the MLWs" event/excursion, but so far have not convinced Xanterra that it would be a feasible (i.e profitable) event. So, IF a charter operator wants to book this as a farewell run, OR if enough Alco/GCRY/etc. fans want to see this happen, they'd better start writing Xanterra management and proving their interest! (Another idea that was floated was tying in such an event to the Route 66 Centennial, being observed throughout 2026.)

One other update:

The CVSR has (thus far) declined any interest in the two "cadaver" parts-donor FPA4 bodies, both VERY well stripped, out behind the GCRY shops. It is being suggested that one could be cosmetically restored and put on display in Williams or South Rim, but my source said "we may have to come up with parts like handrails, horns, windows, etc. to complete such a restoration--a lot of those parts are in use or being acquired." The implication is that the second FPA4 body may be available for static display preservation, as they are not "authentic" Arizona rail relics aside from their 30+ years on the GCRY......... and, yes, the trucks are somewhere nearby.

I would hope that someone is able to arrange a charter with 6793 and 6860. Those two units saved our asses several times when everything else went down. Funny enough, I hostled them several times (and somehow still remember how to start them despite it being almost fifteen years since I last did it) but never got to take the A unit up to Grand Canyon. I feel like that's my biggest missed opportunity from my brief sojourn on the GCRY.

The 2 remaining serviceable ALCO's at Grand Canyon Railway, 6793 and 6860, were both started today. The B unit was in service last year, and may have made 1 or 2 trips. The A unit has not been used in several years. However, we are anticipating a very busy Polar Express Season, and our 6th F-40 is being delayed by parts suppliers, so it was decided to dust off the ALCO's just in case the need arises. Whether or not they see revenue service is questionable.

The display unit, 6776, was brought back from the Grand Canyon a few weeks ago to have it's paint touched up. It will likely be taken back up to the Canyon in October at the conclusion of the Steam Season. It's possible that we may use 6793 to run it back up there, which would at least give the appearance of an ALCO A-A lash-up.