United States Army Transportation Corps class S118

The United States Army Transportation Corps (USATC) S118 Class is a class of 2-8-2 steam locomotive. Built to either 3 ft (914 mm), 1,000 mm (3 ft 3 ³⁄₈ in) metre gauge or 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) gauge, they were used in at least 24 different countries across the World.

USATC S118 class
SPAP Δ108, later SEK 7108, a post-war S118 copy, displayed at Corinth Old Station, April 2007
Type and origin Power type Steam Builder American Locomotive Company (338), Baldwin Locomotive Works (253+33), Davenport Locomotive Works (67+6), H.K. Porter, Inc. (25+5), Vulcan Iron Works (58+8) Build date 1942–1945 (for USATC), 1945–1948 (copies) Total produced 741 for USATC, 52 copies
Specifications Configuration: ​  • Whyte 2-8-2  • UIC 1′D1′ h2 Gauge 3 ft (914 mm) 1,000 mm (3 ft 3 3⁄8 in) metre gauge 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) Leading dia. 26 in (660 mm) Driver dia. 48 in (1,219 mm) Trailing dia. 30 in (762 mm) Length 59 ft 5 1⁄2 in (18,123 mm) Adhesive weight 80,000 lb (36,300 kilograms; 36.3 metric tons) Loco weight 119,000 lb (53,980 kilograms; 53.98 metric tons) Tender weight 96,700 lb (43,860 kilograms; 43.86 metric tons) Fuel type Coal or fuel oil Fuel capacity 18,000 lb (8,160 kilograms; 8.16 metric tons) Water cap 5,000 US gal (18,927 l; 4,163.4 imp gal) Firebox:  • Firegrate area 27.7 sq ft (2.57 m2) Boiler pressure 185 lbf/in2 (1.28 MPa) Heating surface 1,371 sq ft (127.4 m2)  • Tubes and flues 1,256 sq ft (116.7 m2)  • Firebox 115 sq ft (10.7 m2) Superheater: ​  • Heating area 374 sq ft (34.7 m2) Cylinders Two, outside Cylinder size 16 in × 24 in (406 mm × 610 mm) Valve gear Indirect Walschaerts
Performance figures Tractive effort 20,100 lbf (89.4 kN) Factor of adh. 3.98
Career Operators USATC Numbers 3000–3029, 130–249, 257–639, 661–788, 811–890 Locale North America, South America, North Africa, West Africa, East Africa, Middle East, South and South East Asia, Australia

Based on Australia's new C17 class locomotives, their specifications were forwarded to the United States where the United States Army Transportation Corps (USATC) drew up plans for a 2-8-2 with specifications similar to a C17 class. 741 were built in the period late 1942–1945 with a further 52 appearing between 1945 and 1948. They were built by Baldwin (253+33), Alco (338), Porter (25+5), Davenport (67+6) and Vulcan (58+8) in the United States. The first thirty were numbered 3000–3029, with subsequently locomotives numbered 130–249, and 257–889. Locomotives 640–660 and 789–810 were cancelled.

The S118 class were the most widespread of all the locomotives of the Second World War. The first twenty locomotives (3000–3019) were sent to Nigeria. Eleven, (190–200), were converted to 3 ft (914 mm) gauge by putting 3 in (76.2 mm) wide spacers (rings) between the wheels and the truck side frames on same length axles, and delivered to the White Pass and Yukon Route in Alaska. Twenty (216–235) were delivered to Queensland where they formed the Queensland Railways AC16 Class. Others were sent to North Africa, Gold Coast, Iraq, India, and Burma.

After the war, surplus locomotives were sold to Malaya, the Philippines (as Manila Railroad 850 class),[1] Siam, Cambodia, Cameroun, Tanganyika,[2] and the United Fruit Company operations in Costa Rica and Honduras.