English Electric Company diesel electric locomotive 'Deltic' Co-Co 3300HP, 1955
Diesel-electric locomotive, prototype English Electric 3300HP "Deltic", 1955, BR number 'DP1"
The Deltic was a gamble by the private English Electric Company who hoped that fast and powerful diesel locomotives would prove an attractive alternative to expensive railway electrification. This Deltic was a prototype, but 22 locomotives were built in 1961–2 to take over from steam on express trains such as The Flying Scotsman and to offer the first services regularly running at 100mph.
The locomotive was rated at 3300 horsepower and weighed 106 tons, which gave a horsepower per ton measurement which was a 150% improvement on English Electric’s previous designs.
Deltic takes its name from the triangular opposed piston arrangement in the diesel power unit; it being in the form of the Greek capital letter ‘Delta’.
Deltic has a distinctly American style, curved chevrons on each nose and cream with aluminium beading down each side. This style was designed with future export sales in mind; however, this was not to be. In the United Kingdom the Deltic prototype brought English Electric an order for a fleet of twenty-two deltics to work the East Coast Mainline. The deltics dominated the East Coast expresses until they were increasingly replaced by InterCity 125s in the late 1970s.
Deltic was withdrawn in March 1961 after failing in service. In April 1963 it was presented to the Science Museum and was then transferred to the National Railway Museum in 1993. Prior to donation, parts of the locomotive had been removed for spares for Deltic engines which were then in use in Royal Navy Ton class Minesweepers.
Today, there are six production deltics preserved, with normally at least two registered for running on the mainline.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Railways_DP1
Details
- Category:
- Locomotives and Rolling Stock
- Object Number:
- 1963-80
- Materials:
- steel (metal) and aluminium (metal)
- Measurements:
-
overall: 107701 kg
length over buffers: 3531 mm
- type:
- diesel locomotive
- credit:
- English Electric Valve Company Limited