By Railfan and Railroad Staff 

DES MOINES — Iowa Interstate’s Chinese-built 2-10-2 QJ locomotive 6988 will be leading a series of excursions out of Des Moines over Labor Day Weekend. 

The excursions are being run in partnership with the locomotive’s caretaker, Central States Steam Preservation Association, Operation Lifesaver and the Science Center of Iowa. On Saturday, September 4, the locomotive will be on display at the Science Center of Iowa between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. On Sunday, September 5, the locomotive and its train will make five runs between 9:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m.. On Monday, September 6, it will make four runs between 9:00 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. Each train ride will last approximately 50 minutes and will depart from 4th  Street in front of the Science Center.

For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit the Science Center of Iowa’s website. 

Locomotive 6988 is one of two QJs that Iowa Interstate purchased from China in 2006. Over the years both locomotives have been used for community events. Locomotive 6988 has been altered to look more like an American locomotive but the second one — QJ 7081, which is presently out of service — looks as it did when it was running on Jitong Railway in China in the 1990s and early 2000s. 

The locomotive will also lead a series of excursions out of Oxford, Iowa, on August 21, to benefit a local fire department.