Sidings Summer 2019 Issue
BR Prototype Diesels Part 3
This issue of The Sidings follows on for early diesels introduced by BR.
D0260 LION
Lion was a prototype Type 4 mainline diesel locomotive built in 1962 by the Birmingham Railway Carriage and Wagon Company in association with Sulzer at their Smethwick works in Birmingham. It had a maximum speed of 100mph and weighed 114tons. It was painted white with five gold stripes along the bottom half of its bodywork. BR tested it initially on the Western Region out of London Paddington based at Wolverhampton Stafford Road Shed. Later it moved to Finsbury Park on the Eastern Region for services from Kings Cross. However BR decided to purchase the new type 4 fleet from Brush Traction and so D2060 was withdrawn.
HS4000 KESTREL
Was a one off prototype locomotive built by Brush Traction of Loughborough in 1967. It was designed as technological showcase to attract buyers from both British Rail and overseas, and with a power output 4000hp it remains the most powerful diesel locomotive ever to run in service on British Railways it also had a top speed of 125mph. The locomotive entered service in 1968 and was used mainly on heavy freight trains. The main reason Kestrel was not deployed on passenger work was its axle loading of 22tons as a result the bogies were changed for modified class 47 bogies. This resulted in Kestrel being deployed on express trains on the East Coast Mainline on Deltic Diagrams. The locomotive was sold to Russia in the early 1970's the locomotive was eventually sold for scrap and was cut up in the Mid 1990s .
Falcon D0280
Falcon was the first of a new breed of light weight Type 4 Diesel Locomotives built in 1961. During its 14 year tenure Falcon covered 635,000 miles making it the most travelled of the three prototypes that were introduced in the early 1960's. Falcon was a popular loco with enthusiasts, BR train crews and maintenance staff. Under the BR it was given the ID of class 53.