Long hood forward

The term Long hood forward (LHF) comes from operating a hood unit diesel locomotive with the long hood toward the front and the short hood toward the rear.

United States

In the USA it is a practice of Norfolk Southern's predecessors Southern Railway (SOU) and Norfolk & Western (NW). When Southern Railway received their first EMD GP7s, they were delivered with a high, short hood, and Southern Railway pointed the locomotive LHF for crew safety. After the first GP7s hit the Southern Railway System, subsequent locomotives were ordered with the high, short hood and the long hood designated (starting after the SD45 order) as the front. Here is a list of each locomotive Southern ordered with a high, short hood, and operated LHF.

General Motors Electro-Motive Division
* GP7,
* GP9,
* GP18,
* GP38,
* GP38-2,
* GP40X (SOU 7000-7002),
* GP49 (SOU 4600-4605),
* GP50 (SOU 7003-7092),
* SD7,
* SD9,
* SD35,
* SD40,
* SD40-2,
* SD45(note: the SD50 and the GP59 are the first units ordered with the low, short hood, and pointed LHF)

General Electric Transportation Systems
* B30-7,
* U23B,
* B23-7,
* U30C,
* U30B,
* U33C,

The Norfolk and Western Railway (NW) operated as Southern Railway did, with the long hood toward the front; the only difference between NW locomotives and the Southern Railway locomotives was the position of the bell. NW had the bell on the short hood while Southern had the bell on the long hood.

It should also be noted that many early diesel locomotive builders designated the long hood end of their road switchers as the front. Examples include models manufactured by the American Locomotive Company and Baldwin Locomotive Works.

Long hood forward is a fading practice. Most modern production of locomotives in the USA feature wide cabs, which bar the ability to run the unit LHF, due to the fact that most modern production locomotives have desktop style controls. The desktop style prevents the engineer from turning in his or her chair to face the other end of the locomotive.

Great Britain

The term Long hood forward is not used in Britain and the hood would be described as a "bonnet" or "engine compartment". Most British diesel locomotives have a cab at each end so the term does not apply. Where a single-cab design was used it was designed to be operated long hood forward but, in practice, it might operate in either direction, like a steam tank locomotive. Apart from shunters, the only single-cab class still in service in Britain is the British Rail Class 20. These are now usually operated cab forward (often in pairs) to give the driver a better view of the road ahead and some have been fitted with nose-mounted video cameras for use when working long hood forward.