#oc 727 (n7017u)

[greatwesternway]

How did Pioneer and U-505 start talking? What made U-505 allow himself that friendship?

It's important to understand that U-505's not denying himself friendship in being stand-offish. And this is also not related to the rules he has to observe as a war machine because Pioneer is a civilian engine.

U-505 allowed Pioneer to start teaching him English within a month or two of his arrival in May in 1960. Up until then, U-505 had gleaned a few words on his own, but he'd been set up outside by himself since 1954 and the museum would have someone who could speak German talk to him if needed. He didn't need to speak to the visitors really so it just wasn't something he'd ever sought to learn.

But having Pioneer installed next to him... trains are social machines. They work closely with one another and they talk. And Pioneer was built to be especially talkative as Burlington's flagship engine.

But moreover, the reason U-505 made the effort is because he admired the way Pioneer took to preservation.

It was obviously a much different scenario for U-505, since his preservation is not one celebrating his existence and it also involved the loss of his sea-worthiness. In that regard, Pioneer was in a much better position. Still, he struggled, as most engines do, with the change in duties. It's why early on in his letters to Pilot, before he realizes he's been rescued from scrap and is grateful to be at the IRM, that Pioneer says that preservation can feel like a demotion. It's hard for an engine to have to come to terms with the end of his service life.

The way Pioneer responded to this, though, was to set those feelings aside and put his best effort into being a good and engaging exhibit. As we've said, he's already got a lot of transferable skills to do this, but U-505 had never seen a machine like this. He didn't know much English, but he could still tell that Pioneer was trying very hard to adapt and not to complain or be ungrateful.

Pioneer would sometimes talk at U-505 just to entertain himself or to make a gesture at including him in conversation with his cars, but U-505 made the first actual attempt at talking. He asked Pioneer, in very broken English, how fast he went. And Pioneer told him; 112 miles per hour. Then Pioneer asked U-505 how fast he went. Which U-505 could not tell him because his speed is measured in knots. They got their guides to help the next day.

Things would have been quite friendly in the yard by now if it weren't for 2903.

See, the problem is, 2903 is wartime build. Because light metals were needed to build airplanes, all that railroad works could get was heavy metal. Too heavy for diesel motors to carry. So they made the 2900 class fuck-off big steam engines instead. Unfortunately, because steam is very costly to run and maintain, this meant that 2903's service life was incredibly short compared to most engines, only 11 years. He is resentful of the effect the war had on his service life and U-505 is a very broad target for those feelings.

He also did not take to preservation as well as Pioneer did, being that he is literally Just Some Guy and had no expectation of ever being put in this position. Having watched Pioneer's transition to preservation work comparatively, 2903's refusal or inability to meet the job left U-505 with a poor impression of him. What little English U-505 had at his disposal could be used to toss a glib barb or two 2903's way.

2903 (and 999 when she joins the yard the next year) hassled Pioneer a lot for fraternizing with an enemy unit. It doesn't bother Pioneer because it's not that serious in the grand scheme of things. U-505 does not like being a source of trouble for him though and regrets that Pioneer got put in the yard with him first.

This is the reason why he's reluctant to entertain 727. It's not that he doesn't like her or isn't flattered (if bewildered) by her attentions. It's that he thinks she's better off not getting herself involved with him. It hasn't done Pioneer any favors.

But by the time 727 arrives at the museum, 2903 has been moved to the IRM, 999 has been away for a couple years for refurbishment, and the social dynamic in the museum has changed for it.

It's actually 999 that convinces him to give in. Asks if there isn't something in his prize rules about having to accept when an American wants a smelly old boat for reasons she couldn't possibly fathom. There's not - 727 isn't a war machine - but it says something that 999 is trying to find a justification for the idea.

[greatwesternway]

Ray was kind enough to leave it to me to actually go through 2903's dynamics one by one. He's got such a great and unique position compared to just about everybody which is why he definitely wins the Best Dynamics Award.

(We've also realized that what you asked was not which character's dynamics do we like the best, but rather which dynamics in and of themselves were our favorites, but being real, 2903 would be all over that list anyway.)

999: Having the Queen of Speed placed next to him was a blessing and a curse.

It was one thing to just be a steam engine next to a diesel train and a submarine. They were a motley assortment at that point and even if there were tenuous comparisons between the three of them, there wasn't anything really be said about any of them in relation to each other. They were simply examples of their kind.

Adding 999 to the mix though put 2903 in stark contrast to her and he came up short on everything but size (oi oi oi).

She's famous, she attended both of Chicago's World's Fairs as well as others, she broke a speed record (supposedly), and she has decades of service life. And worst of all, she knows how valuable all this makes her, not only in her own right, but in relation to the MSI's collection of outdoor exhibits. Now it's not just a steam engine, a diesel, and a submarine out on the east lawn. It's the singular Queen of Speed No. 999, the one-of-a-kind yet often referred to Pioneer Zephyr, notorious (and rare) captured Nazi U-boat U-505... and in much smaller billing underneath, some null number Santa Fe engine who barely had time to do anything, spent a decade in storage, and isn't even rare in preservation since his railway was practically giving his siblings away to anyone who would take them.

But 999 is also quite canny when it comes to yard dynamics, having been in practically every kind of yard there is over her seventy years of service. She knows the highs, she knows the lows, and where Pioneer never thought 2903 had anything to feel less than for and U-505 never thought he had any right to complain, 999 best understands where his standing puts him in the collection.

It takes a while to smooth things over between them - 999 is still a star and expects to be treated as such, no matter how common engines might feel about it - but steam solidarity wins out eventually.

Pioneer: Not since The City of Salina has Pioneer had such a complicated relationship with another engine that he yet remains oblivious to. As with Salina, Pioneer represents what 2903 feels he coulda shoulda woulda been. It's not necessarily that he dislikes being a steam engine or that he wishes he'd been built a diesel. He would just have rather been a steam engine when steam was king, rather than being built ten years after Pioneer and still being a dinosaur compared to him. He was built from the start in obsolescence and has a disadvantaged service life to show for it.

But... it's not Pioneer's fault that he was built when and as he was and 2903 knows this. While he does occasionally give Pioneer grief for his idealized world view (which 2903 sees as a result of a light workload and service life of being fawned over), he knows he can't be actively hostile; no one would side with him on it, even if they might understand. Pioneer has rarely compared himself to others and even rarer still found himself lacking, so he remains blithely unaware of how much strife comparison to him causes others. That he acts as though he's on even railing with any other engine when he's led such a charmed life can be exasperating for this reason. However Pioneer sees 2903 as a friend and has always treated him as such so it would be unbecoming to spit on his olive branches or laurels or however he puts it his fancy Roman mythology.

And truthfully, 2903 doesn't want to. It'd be impossible to maintain a grudge when the guy is talking you up just as much as he does any of his other friends, much as he's able with what little there is to say about you. Even if 2903 thinks it's an act, that Pioneer makes the effort to spin him as being just as interesting and important as the rest of the yard still reliably amounts to him being a good friend and colleague. Being a little short with Pioneer when he's on his Burlington Bullshit is fine because everyone in the yard (even Pioneer himself) enjoys that to an extent; that's just good yard banter. Taking out any feelings of inadequacy on him would not be. It'd be letting his worse nature get the better of him. It'd be undignified.

On the occasion that 2903 were so foolish to try, the U-boat looming behind Pioneer would be quick to bust him down a peg further...

U-505: Less than the fact that his own service life was hampered by the war, 2903's more particular beef with U-505 is that Pioneer was so immediately friendly with him and that an enemy unit (who should be grateful to have been spared at all, let alone put up in a museum like this) would criticize his approach to a job he didn't ask for.

2903 and U-505 actually have so much in common as to be comical. They are both wartime builds, built the same year in fact. Neither of them expected to be preserved and do not particularly prefer it to the idea of being scrapped. They are even somewhat similar in how they approach their duties as exhibits. U-505 also does not interact with visitors in the way that 999 and Pioneer do, which makes his criticism of 2903's lackluster approach to guest relations rather ironic.

He has the excuse that he's better explained by his guides than trying to do so himself, whereas 2903 just feels he has not much to say. There is - unfortunately for steam engines with unremarkable work histories - so much to say about U-505 that he merits a paid tour which not only brings in extra money but is also the museum's most popular exhibit. Additionally, it means he's experienced a lot and so any step out of line on the part of 2903 gets met with some sharp comment or observation or barb to shut him down, particularly if 2903's is cutting a little too close to Pioneer. That U-505 acts as a bit of a guard dog when the banter gets a little too cutting does little to convince 2903 that Pioneer isn't some snake charmer who immediately recognized the opportunity of having an enemy warship for an ally rather than the reality that they were the only two things in that yard for a year and Pioneer was just built to befriend.

We do have one scenario we go back and forth on depending on how devoted we want to be to the grudge match, in which 2903 and U-505 weren't immediately hostile to each other. Because U-505 was painted in a rough U.S. Navy livery until just before he was moved underground and 2903's railroad was mostly inland so he was not familiar with boats, 2903 did not initially realize that U-505 was an enemy unit. U-505 just assumed 2903 understood and shared the war machine sentiment that all of them on both sides were just doing their jobs, Pioneer didn't realize that 2903 wasn't just being friendly in the same way that he is, and 2903 knows there are pockets of German settlement in America and just assumes U-505's accent has something to do with that. It's not until 999 arrives and comments on it that 2903 finds out he's been pallin' around with an enemy unit. And he feels deeply embarrassed for having fallen for this "spy trick" and Pioneer's treachery in colluding with it, despite it actually just being a farcical misunderstanding.

For his part, U-505 finds 2903's antagonism to be a small annoyance - alles kliene fishe - but it does bother him significantly that Pioneer's friendship with him precludes him from a more solid friendship with 2903. He rather thinks 2903 would be a better friend, if only for being a locomotive too. Pioneer's made his choices though and the only thing is to do what he can to make his life easier for it. U-505 is also overestimating how much trouble this causes Pioneer; he'll step in to cut 2903 down to size if he's getting too comfortable being rude, but Pioneer's got a pretty thick shotwelded hide as is. He's been politely deflecting rudeness his whole life.

Despite all of this, there is a sense of respect on both sides of this equation, although neither of them are aware that it's mutual or would admit to it out loud. 2903 does get that U-505's role is much harder to serve and there's a large measure of indignity to it. U-505, even if he does not think 2903 has any place to be ungrateful, does also relate to the feeling of not necessarily wanting the gift and responsibility of preservation. Even if he doesn't like him as an engine, U-505 does like seeing him taking to his disposition much better once he's at the IRM. Hearing some of his new stories (eavesdropping on them, which is also ironic because 2903 always listens to U-505's stories too, even if he pretends to sleep through them), U-505 rather thinks 2903 might have made a crafty war unit if he'd been built to it.

Spitfire and Stuka: These guys didn't have much to do with 2903 until the mid-70's when Stuka was sent off site for a couple years to be refurbished. Without Stuka to keep him busy, Spitfire became a bit of a nuisance to the rest of the museum, most of whom aren't sturdy enough to play with him or won't out of principle.

2903, in perhaps a prelude to his role as Yard Dad at the IRM, took it upon himself to keep Spitfire engaged and out of other engines' hair. Despite not being a war machine, he was uniquely suited to playing with Spitfire, being built quite heartily and not particularly precious about his paint.

Stuka... actually quite likes 2903 for this, which is a unique distinction among the museum's American engines. 2903 will never know because Stuka will not deign to speak English nor does he feel it's particularly important to express the sentiment. He nonetheless appreciates 2903 helping Spitfire through his absence. Plus, he thinks it's good for Spitfire to have a friend in the museum the way that he has U-505 (lol).

Pilot: As I've said before, Pilot really puts preservation into perspective for 2903. Having had Pioneer to walk him through every step of his post-service service, Pilot has always approached the job in Pioneer's fashion with some adjustments for the different nature of the IRM compared to the MSI. While the change in venue itself also did a lot for adjusting 2903's attitude by taking a lot of the downward pressure off and giving him a distinction in their collection, watching Pilot do his best every day in gratitude for that he even gets to is a humbling experience for 2903.

It's an attitude shared by nearly every piece of equipment at the IRM actually, but Pilot also has the benefit of being analogous to Pioneer here. If Pioneer was a shiny stainless steel mirror reflecting what 2903 could have been if only the world had been different, Pilot is a mirror reflecting what he could be if he were different, if he made efforts where he didn't before.

Sante Fe 92 and Silver Mate: Another big difference in his new disposition is that at the MSI, he was one of the youngest exhibits in the collection. That everyone else was older, wiser, and more worldly than him meant that he was always at a disadvantage that way too. Upon his arrival at the IRM, however, he found that now he was older than a lot of the other stock, yet still young enough to seem aspirational. Santa Fe 92 particularly admires 2903 for being from the same railroad and for being mixed traffic like him. He also shares Pioneer's admiration for steam so he thinks 2903 being there to represent both sides of their flag's motive powers is cool.

The proofing of Pilot's offsite excursions along with 999's campaign to start visits to the IRM so she can keep up with 2903 reveals another area in which he has more experience and wisdom than just about everyone else: dealing with famous engines. Especially coping with the surprise of finding that they aren't actually that different from not-famous engines at all, much to your newly rebuilt chagrin.

727: 2903 actually doesn't interact that much with 727 practically. When he is at the MSI, 727 is often taking the opportunity of 999 being busy with him to steal away somewhere herself with U-505 (a conflict of interests since U-505 does not want to be too hidden in case Pilot wants to see him). Her taste in engines is just as baffling to 2903 as it is to 999, but he thinks if U-505 was supposed to belong to someone this whole time, then it's better that he's not running around free anymore. (He is as unclear on these war machine rules as 999 is.)

More than that though, he appreciates 727 filling the social gap that his move to the IRM has left for 999. Much like his taking up with Spitfire in the 70's, it's nice to know 999 has someone to gossip with and keep her entertained since he's not there to do it himself anymore.

And she has great hair.

quick TFISSAB question for DJ and you!

which character dynamics of your museum crews do you personally enjoy most? who are the most fun to bounce off of each other?

cheers!

This is such a wonderful question. Thank you!

We threw this one back and forth a bit over discord, because the honest truth is that we love all our little guys and each one of them has at least one relationship worthy of the reams of words we tend to devote to them. Characters and their relationships to one another is the foundation upon which this entire structure is built, after all!

DJ's first instinct was U-505 ("unfortunately" lol), which makes sense. The submarine is at once wholly unique as the only large seagoing craft, but he also has a surprising amount of commonalities with just about everybody if you look closely. He's a war machine, but so are Stuka and Spitfire. He's big and worldly, but so is 727. He's a deft communicator, but so is Pioneer. The parts of his character that alienate him are also the parts that resonate well with others.

It doesn't help that we've written him to be extremely funny in that darkly German way, which DJ and I both have a weakness for. This makes him fun to put into Scenarios, as the results tend to be unpredictable and - more often than not - humorous. And everyone loves a character with a sad backstory. But it's hard to talk about the submarine, right? The optics are, shall we say, not the best.

Fortunately for us, we get to avoid talking about the submarine further by the undisputed champion of Scenarios, 2903.

2903 has a lot going for him just on paper. He's the only engine who lived at both the IRM and the MSI, making the sheer number of characters he has a history with a simple numbers game. But it's more than just that. 2903 has an *arc*.

We've talked a bit before about how going from being Just Some Guy at a museum of famous engines to being one of the main draws at a local railway museum in the middle of nowhere was just about the best thing that could have happened to 2903. At the MSI he was unsure of his place in preservation; overshadowed by his more famous and historically significant cohort. He would pick fights, act out, and generally display behavior considered unbecoming of an exhibit engine. He felt out of his depth! When he came to the IRM though, he found himself suddenly the biggest and (by dint of his time at the other museum) the engine with the most perspective on preservation. By complete accident, he became wise. He grew up.

That sort of development comes with all kinds of implications and baggage. He gets to be the yard dad at the IRM, where before he was the one causing headaches for staff and volunteers. He gets to have 999 on his arm, but also gets time away from her to develop on his own. His background as an average dude means he's the only guy who isn't taken with Pioneer and Pilot's inherent Burlington Charm, a mostly unique trait he shares only with Stuka (who doesn't speak English, and so never really makes his opinions on the matter known). He gets to be the voice of reason in his new home while still holding a somewhat misguided grudge against the submarine.

2903 is the most Just Some Guy out of all our characters. He has so little documentation, we were thrilled to bits when the museum unveiled a new (or at least new to us) sign for his display detailing the time his driver got a citation for going over the speed limit. Compare that to Pioneer and Pilot, who both have similar anecdotes like that in the double-digits. But because 2903 is so average, it makes him perfect for bouncing off other characters, and his history with both museums makes it easy to do so.

And he has great hair.

[greatwesternway]

what does U-505 think about the IRM? has he ever been there or is he not allowed to leave?

He's never been.

He's been invited, as everyone else at the MSI has been, but for a number of reasons, he's never taken them up on it. His diplomatic reason to refuse is that he is still technically a prisoner of war and thus is meant to stay where his wardens can keep track of him. While U-505 does genuinely believe his circumstances imply he shouldn't leave the property, it's also a very convenient excuse.

His experience with steam engines thus far has been that his presence is problematic for them (and not unjustifiably so). He'd expect he'd not be welcomed warmly among much of the IRM's stock. He knows he'd not be welcome by a Certain Engine living there now. Even if 2903 still comes back to the MSI to visit, U-505 does not feel he has the same right to intrude on 2903's new home.

For what it's worth, the museum itself would let him go if he wanted to. While U-505 considers his disposition to be an obligation and consequence of being captured, the museum has never thought of him that way. When he arrived at the MSI, the war was ten years over and the general attitude was that we wanted to move on from it. He's therefore treated with the same regard and care as any of their other exhibits. That he has such a spartan existence is his own doing. Indeed, the museum would give him anything he wanted, if only he'd ask. Everyone who learns about him properly - from museum visitors to Captain Gallery himself - comes to love him.

Speaking of, another reason he never goes to the IRM is that 727 never goes either. She's had forty years of traveling nonstop and prefers not to spend her retirement traveling too. (To be fair, all the stock at the IRM also have a standing invitation to visit the MSI, but most of them don't for the same reason.)

727 is also - as we once saw described in some article - "married" to the building. She's perfectly whole while human, but she doesn't really care to leave the building now that she's been welded to the railings. So nowadays, U-505 has the better excuse that the gentlemanly thing to do is stay home with her. He gets fewer pitying looks and attempts to negotiate with that answer. It's hard to argue that he should let a day with fewer little planes buzzing about go to waste.

Together too, neither of them are that keen on terrestrial travel. Locomotives are obviously built to navigate land. They and their rails were integrated into the world around them. Even the little planes are used to being moved about on trucks or trains from time to time. U-505 and 727 are so large that, with the exception of their arrival at the museum, they almost always operated in places specifically built for their use. They just look at riding the train a lot more dubiously than smaller engines do since they lack the experience of it.

That said, if there was an event important enough, they would go. They have friends there and if their presence was requested, they'd make the effort. It's just hard to think of something the IRM is doing that seems that necessary.

Despite having never been there, U-505 thinks it's good for Pioneer to get to visit his letter friend in person and to visit other engines again. He's not sure what the value of a place that keeps retired trains en masse is exactly, especially if they are all just common stock like 2903 with no story and most of them don't even run. He knows better than to say as much, but it sounds like a scrapyard behind on its work. But it's a place that took the effort to preserve Pilot, who he likes and who makes Pioneer happy, so it's the rare time when U-505 will let inefficient means to justify valuable ends.

[greatwesternway]

How did 727 wind up in charge of the little planes? Is it just because she’s the biggest?

It wasn't specifically that she's the biggest, but about what that necessarily says about her as a plane.

You have to remember that she doesn't arrive at the MSI until 1994. These little planes have had decades in this museum before she came along. And as I've said, they're not as bright as other kinds of larger machines and they have their squabbles, but for the most part, they're just as motivated to provide a good exhibit as anyone else there, even if it's a little disorganized. Which it was until 727 came along and had the Transportation Gallery built around her. Before that, the little planes were displayed hither and thither; now they are a unified fleet. (Mostly. Texaco was given her own spot over the coal mine exhibit in the next hall.)

727 is big, much bigger than any of the rest of them. And she's a passenger jet, which means she has very high and exacting standards for the experience she offers and yet could keep 145 potentially entitled people in line. Having a 40-year-service life which saw the gradual decline in decorum in airline travel (from people wearing their Sunday best to... how people are on planes now), 727 is generous and accommodating and yet no-nonsense and authoritative. She's also the star attraction of the Transportation Gallery, but is gracious enough not to act like it because like the rest of the planes, she also feels the experience of their gallery is a collaborative effort on all their parts.

All these things combined, the little planes all love 727 and want her approval. If there's one thing war planes respond to, its recognition of achievements and being given their marching orders. Jenny and Texaco like seeing those warplanes kept in line and they think 727 classes up the place with her slick livery and attention to little things. To the point, 727 makes a point to keep a watch on 40B too, since he tends to be overlooked otherwise. They are also both Boeing planes who flew for United on the same route, Chicago to San Francisco. As the previous odd-man-out, he likes having so much in common with her.

Basically, 727's presence unifies the plane fleet and brings order to the gallery and she does it effortlessly. Perfect passenger service, even now.

[greatwesternway]

We know 999's favorite exhibit is the fairy castle, do any of the other engines have a favorite exhibit (besides each other)?

Kinda mean, throwing the "besides each other" caveat in there! Even excepting engines with personal reasons to favor another engine's exhibit, lots of them just really enjoy each other's exhibits for their own merits.

Texaco's a big fan of Pioneer's exhibit, for instance. She likes racing the trains, other planes, and vacuum cleaners on the big panorama displays. She also thinks the Zephyr Fleet film is cool looking, but the questions it begs about who is who leave Pioneer trying to explain his complicated family tree to a little plane who just cannot follow it and loses interest as quickly as she asked. He doesn't mind though; he knows it's a lot.

Every ten years or so, Spitfire will get a little jealous of U-505's exhibit. It's not that he doesn't think U-505 shouldn't have an exhibit that big and detailed. There's a lot to say about him. Spitfire just has wartime stories too! He shot down five Nazi planes and he's got the stamps to prove it. (And he was on the right side of the war so his exhibit could be more fun). But we don't really have a lot of substantiated information about Spitfire, not enough to make an entire exhibit out of. You can't just go by what the plane himself says.

The most expeditious way to get him to let go of the idea is for U-505 to remind him that if he had a big exhibit all to himself, he would have to leave the Transportation Gallery fleet. A submarine is meant to work alone, but a small plane is meant to work in a group. It would be tactically disadvantageous then, both for him and the rest of the little planes, to leave them all to fly solo. (Texaco almost always ruins this because she is used to working alone and her display is appropriately separate of the other little planes. It's nothing an elbow in the ribs from Jenny won't stifle though.)

U-505 enjoys the Dome Theater, if he has claimed it before Stuka and Spitfire can. He particularly likes if the film is about the ocean. When he was in the ocean, it was usually too dark to see everything that was apparently down there with him. They can also go deeper now than he could. He finds films about space intriguing too, because space and the ocean are very similar (expect that one is finite and full of life and the other isn't). He'll watch anything in there though, as long as he's alone or with engines who know how to sit there, shut up, and watch the film.

Mate is not such an engine, so while all these guys were learning about tide pools or some shit, he was left in front of the Swiss Jolly Ball. Which he took as an insult at first, but the Jolly Ball is actually quite enthralling all told. You lean at the railing and watch the ball go on its Rube Goldberg journey and you get to thinking about how one guy put all this together and then you get to thinking about how a railway is a lot like the Jolly Ball except it needs everyone doing their job to run effectively (which is maybe why the Jolly Ball is out of order half the time you visit) and that maybe you yourself are just a large metal ball bearing on your second trip through the Swiss Alps, all thanks to the work of lots of people together. But the Jolly Ball, Mate suddenly realizes, is actually on its fifteenth trip through since he got there, proving... something about why he was left here in the first place, but he's sure it's not anything he wants to bring attention to.

The space wing has just been updated (per billionaire donor interests) and 40B rather likes the new SpaceX capsule room when the video isn't running. The dim lighting when the starfield attract mode is on the screen reminds him of flying at night in the snow. Ray and I have not put much thought into the MSI's space artifacts because we are not billionaires, but I expect most of them (those that might be engine enough to be sentient) also share 40B's sense of seriousness with regard to their work. They weren't just doing exhibition runs.

727 likes to take a stroll through the Ships Gallery from time to time. Aviation borrows a lot from naval tradition and now she's even got a boat to give her a personalized tour (although he doesn't actually know much about sailing).

And Pioneer... well, Pilot's favorite exhibit is the baby chicks. So Pioneer's come to be quite fond of them too. Before that, though, he also enjoyed watching films with a quiet friend who knows theater etiquette, but he preferred the silent comedies of the Yesterday's Main Street Nickelodeon. He wishes they'd thought of the seating they have in the Dome Theater a little sooner though.

[greatwesternway]

How much interaction with visitors do the engines have? Pioneer seems very social—is he the exception or the rule?

Pioneer is an exception in general, but the MSI curates in such a way that he is the rule there. Many of the MSI's exhibits have experience showing off and selling themselves as interesting and exciting to crowds of new people every day. Pioneer, 999, Jenny, and Texaco all had background in this before coming to the museum. The MSI, which is housed in the only building remaining from the Columbian Exposition's White City and founded in time to take advantage (and possession of much) of the Century of Progress, largely selects for exhibits like this.

Stuka also had prior exhibition experience, though his context is obviously different. He's not especially talkative to guests unless they speak German and to him directly, but he's got a winning attitude about staying in character as a losing but formidable opponent to Spitfire so he gets on fine.

Pioneer and 999 are obviously the masterclass on courting a crowd, both being speed record breakers and Worlds Fair alumni. 999 has been displayed at several Worlds Fairs, in fact. Pioneer only edges 999 out on this in terms of the MSI because he debuted at the Century of Progress same as his museum did and he came up during the dawn of modern advertising so he's got a bit of salesmen to him that 999 lacks. That's why he makes for the ideal first exhibit. If you somehow weren't planning to pay to see the rest of the museum, Pioneer can convince you it'd be a good investment.

Like Stuka, U-505 will also answer questions posed directly to him, but given his context, he prefers to let his guides speak for him. Makes everyone's lives easier that way.

2903 is also a bit reserved with guests, but this is because he is a regular working engine. He was not brought up to sell himself the way Pioneer and 999 were and unlike U-505, he doesn't have any work stories to relate either. There's not a lot for him to really say for himself beyond what his placard already states.

Which is why eventual his move to the IRM is good for him. There, there's not any expectation of being notable (nevertheless, he does become notable there for being the largest engine in their collection). IRM stock comes from a wide variety of backgrounds, but very few of them are show ponies in the way that the MSI seeks out.

Pilot probably interacts more with guests than anyone else at the IRM does, but even if he's not a famous engine, he is a passenger engine and Burlington besides and that gives him an immediate leg up on everyone else. Obviously a passenger engine is going to have more experience and innate talent at talking to people. 727 similarly has this advantage in her exhibit.

There is the thing too, that not all people can or want to talk to engines. It's not difficult to become the sort of person who knows how to talk to engines; all of their guides do and pretty much everyone who works at the IRM is this sort of person. But a working engine is generally preferred to be seen and not heard. Engines therefore do not usually speak to people unless spoken to first. Pioneer's good enough at gauging this that he can take the liberty to initiate (especially since many of the people he'd talk to these days are shy children), but most engines wouldn't want to risk seeming impertinent. The vast majority of IRM engines are like this, but they also see more specific train enthusiasts who are seeking them out so they still have some facetime to serve.

However, the IRM closes over the winter and when the MSI still had its east lawn exhibits outside, they were also closed for winter (save for U-505's interior tours which were accessed from inside the building). So interaction with people outside of their guides/volunteers would drop significantly along with the temperature.

[greatwesternway]

Are war machine-civilian interactions governed by different rules than war machine-war machine interactions?

There's not really any rules about how military units should interact with civilian engines so much as that, at least in the museum, there is a sense of decorum that war machines observe around civvies. Intra-miltree rules are mostly for the sake of having a pecking order that's easy to observe, but this is not applicable to engines not built to fight in the first place.

In a normal situation, these kinds of machines wouldn't really interact much to begin with. It's only that they're being placed together in the museum that this even comes into question at all. Even here, civilian engines are usually somewhat wary of war machines and war machines are not terribly keen on burdening civilian engines with all the difficulty of them. Aside from just having unrelatable experiences, war machines also tend to have domineering personalities and can be overly defensive of civilian engines because they don't have defenses of their own.

Certainly somewhere, though, unfortunate matches are happening. Imagine for a moment if Stuka/40B was a thing. You feel bad just thinking about that, don't you? A war machine and a civvie engine with a gentle, unassertive personality? Terrible combo. Fortunately, most war machines do not find civilian vulnerability attractive. Those that might... one hopes they're smart enough to know it's a bad idea.

Of course, not all civilian engines are doormats. A civvie who knows what they want and has the will demand it? Now that's intriguing!

This is why 727/U-505 works. It helps that while 727 herself is civilian, commercial aviation is military adjacent so she's not completely ignorant to war machine mentality. Aviation also borrows much from naval tradition as well. The important thing though is that, military influences or not, 727 is formidable enough to keep the power balance in her favor, despite her accommodating passenger service sensibilities.

And ironically, the very same things U-505 disliked in Guadalcanal, he loves about 727.

[greatwesternway]

Okay so, I wonder what the Meigs Field landing was like for 727. Like obviously she knew it was her last flight, but does she feel the Just Some Girl to the same extent that, say, 2903 did?

Love, love, LOVE that you are asking about this in comparison to 2903.

727 has a lot of advantages over him, both in terms of the work history she came in with as well as how the MSI handled her exhibit. One might even wonder if they did so well this time around because they learned from their experiences with 2903.

For one thing, 727 has one of the longest service lives of any engine in the MSI's collection, 40 years. I think only 999's was longer. 40 years is a very respectable service life and for 727's part, she was satisfied with the work she did. While most engines leave service wanting for more, 727 was fully onboard with retirement. Especially since by the 90's, preservation was a lot less of a new frontier and the job could actually be explained to her beforehand. As a passenger plane, 727 is also already well used to dealing with the public so staying in place and entertaining people wasn't as daunting a prospect for her as it would be for non-public engines.

The last landing at Mieg's Field then would have been bittersweet as any other engine's last run, but she was much more prepared for it than many of her predecessors were. She was looking forward to her next assignment, in fact.

While she doesn't have any particular distinctions in her career (which would normally be a disadvantage at the MSI), she was given a parting gift in being named for Captain William R. Norwood, the first black man to become a captain for United Airlines. (We actually didn't know this when we were designing 727's character, but clearly we have good instincts!) The Transportation Gallery is also set up as a vignette so 727 isn't expected to carry the entire thing herself. Her exhibit, Take Flight, is distinct from the gallery and specifically about her (well, her and jets like her to fill it out), while also placing her as the centerpiece in the tableau of planes.

So while 727 is Just Some Gal, it's never been a detriment to her abilities because she's been set up in such as away as to compensate for it. That many of her fellow planes (if you disregard their current rarity) are also Just Some Guy/Gal is a consideration 2903 didn't get when he was placed in a yard with two one-of-a-kind engines and a notoriously singular prisoner of war.

[greatwesternway]

What made 727 interested in U-505?

Initially, it was the he was available. Or seemed to be. 727 was a late addition to the roster and all the other reasonable options in the museum already had regular situations or extenuating circumstances. 999 did make a small effort to pitch Pioneer to her, but 727 feels much the same way about him as 999 does.

Once she was actually installed in the museum and learned more about U-505, she made up her mind.

U-505, despite his short official service life, has had sooo many experiences. He's been a hunter, he's been hunted. He was captured by the enemy, and survived the war because of it. He was hidden away, repainted and even given an unofficial designation of the USS Nemo, effectively conscripted into an enemy navy, until Germany surrendered. Then he was shown off to the public to sell warbonds to fund that enemy navy's continued efforts for the rest of the war. He was slated to be scuttled and was given a stay of execution... twice! And he's even left the water and traversed land.

727's service life, comparatively, is much longer but without incident. A good thing for a passenger plane, of course, but now that she's in her retirement, she wants the fun and adventure she's provided to everyone else for herself.

U-505's got adventure in spades. Fun? He's a military unit so she's certain he can be trained.

[greatwesternway]

Yes! The trains were moved to be placed together in the 80's to allow for the construction of the Henry Crown Space Center, leaving U-505 all on his lonesome. (Don't worry about him though. He's used to it. Submarines are meant to be alone anyway and he spent ten years on that lawn by himself before Pioneer showed up.)

The yard remains configured this way until the early 90's, when the 727 arrives. With her arrival in 1992, plans are made for her Take Flight Exhibit and broader Transportation Gallery around it where 999 will be moved, so the girls are both undergoing restoration for two years for the 1994 opening.

Pioneer also eventually leaves the museum for three years for his own restoration. You'll notice in your photos, he's got his big modern headlight. He no longer has the taller light and his front windows are no longer symmetrical; they've returned he and his coaches to their original 1934 state (including rebuilding 505's buffet-grill and seating, much to her great happiness.)

Howeveur...

One thing we did not know is that the steam engines were originally at an obtuse angle to Pioneer and U-505. We'd never seen that aerial shot before! We thought they'd be at a right angle.

We describe the steam engines in the letters as being set at an angle from Pioneer and U-505 and while 90 degrees is an angle, it's not the historically accurate one apparently. The text doesn't need to change, but now we know. All thanks to

Also noting that 2903 was placed as far away from U-505 as possible. Once 999 and Pioneer are moved, it's just him and the U-boat, but they're placed back to back in the shed yard with a building between them to keep them peaceable.

doing Train Math