By Railroad Model Craftsman Staff

Athearn Trains announced this month that it will be producing HO scale models of Union Pacific’s “We Are One” commemorative SD70M. The locomotive, UP 1979, was painted by UP in the spring of 2021 to honor the railroad’s nine Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) and the work they do in supporting diversity, inclusion and equality. The unit commemorates the year Union Pacific’s first ERG – the Black Employee Network – was established in 1979.

This special locomotive will be part of Athearn’s high-end Genesis product line. Along with the 1979, Athearn will also produce UP SD70Ms in the railroad’s lightning stripe scheme, including UP 4015 with silver trucks and a green anti-glare panel atop the nose. SD70M 4015 was updated with these retro-inspired details in Summer 2021 when the locomotive was paired with Union Pacific’s “Big Boy” 4014 during its summer tour). Athearn will also release SD75I locomotives for Canadian National and spartan-cabbed SD70s for Norfolk Southern. It also plans to release a few fantasy “what if” schemes for Illinois Central, Illinois Central Gulf and Rio Grande. 

DC+DCC ready silent locomotives will retail for $234.99 MSRP, while DC+DCC Sound versions with Soundtraxx Tsunami2 sound will be $334.99. The models are expected to arrive in January of 2023.

Athearn • 2904 Research Road • Champaign, Illinois 61822 • www.athearn.com.