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(erielack) DL&W FT "sky lights"



Hi folks,

	On my flight out to San Francisco, I was reading an article
about a mini-streamliner built for the New Haven by the
Goodyear-Zeppelin Corp. (seriously!) called "The Comet." While I won't
bore you with details of this train, one thing stuck out to me - it had
a safety feature where it had a strong beacon light atop the cab that
shined straight up into the sky. The assumption was that people driving
towards a railroad crossing would see this beam of light approaching
them at night and know they had to stop.

	Now, I remembered reading about this many moons ago, but didn't
the DL&W have one or two FT's with a similar beacon light installed atop
their roofs? I even remember seeing an overhead photo of one that shows
the bolt holes where the beacon was once installed? (apparently they
were pretty short-lived).

	Does anyone else have details about why they were installed (I
assume the same as the aforementioned Comet), or whose idea it was?
Better yet, are there any photos that show the beacon in action? (yeah,
doubtful, but it never hurts to ask :)  It would certainly make for an
interesting model, too!

	- Paul


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