Amtrak No. 281 is an EMD F40PHR built in 1978 for Amtrak. It currently resides at the California State Railroad Museum in operation.
281 was originally based in the Eastern United States, and was leased to Norfolk Southern Railway in 2001 along three other Amtrak EMD F40PH(R) units. Around the same year, it was donated to the California State Railroad Museum as an example of second generation passenger diesel locomotives in the United States. In 2005, alongside Southern Pacific No. 6051 and 2467, it held a charter train to San Francisco via Santa Clara. From 2005-2020, the locomotive sat dormant at the museum, though was serviceable. However, in May 2020, the locomotive was fired for the first time since 2005 for a test run, though did not become part of the excursion rotation until October of that same year.