LNER Peppercorn Class A1

The London and North Eastern Railway (LNER) Peppercorn Class A1 is a type of express passenger steam locomotive. Forty-nine original Peppercorn Class A1s were built to the design of Arthur Peppercorn (who was the last Chief Mechanical Engineer (CME) of the LNER) during the early British Railways era, but all were scrapped with the discontinuation of steam, with none of the original production run surviving into preservation. In 2008, a brand new 50th Peppercorn A1 locomotive, 60163 Tornado, was completed.

LNER Peppercorn Class A1
60155 Borderer by the coaling stage at Gateshead depot in April 1964
Type and origin Power type Steam Designer Arthur Peppercorn Builder Doncaster Works Darlington Works Build date 1948 - 1949, 2008
Specifications Configuration: ​  • Whyte 4-6-2 Leading dia. 3 ft 2 in (0.965 m) Driver dia. 6 ft 8 in (2.032 m) Trailing dia. 3 ft 8 in (1.118 m) Length 72 ft 11 ^3⁄4 in (22.24 m) Width 9 ft 2 ^7⁄8 in (2.82 m) Height 13 ft 1 in (3.99 m) Axle load 22.1 long tons (22.5 t; 24.8 short tons) Adhesive weight 66.55 long tons (67.62 t; 74.54 short tons) Loco weight 105.2 long tons (106.9 t; 117.8 short tons) Tender weight 60.9 long tons (61.9 t; 68.2 short tons) Total weight 166.1 long tons (168.8 t; 186.0 short tons) Fuel type Coal Fuel capacity 9.0 long tons (9.1 t; 10.1 short tons) Water cap 5,000 imp gal (23,000 L; 6,000 US gal) Firebox:  • Firegrate area 50.0 sq ft (4.65 m^2) Boiler Diagram 118 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) diameter 29 ft 2 in (8.89 m) length Boiler pressure 250 psi (1,700 kPa) Heating surface 2,461.4 sq ft (228.67 m^2)  • Tubes 1,211.6 sq ft (112.56 m^2)  • Flues 1,004.5 sq ft (93.32 m^2)  • Firebox 245.3 sq ft (22.79 m^2) Superheater: ​  • Heating area 697.7 sq ft (64.82 m^2) Cylinders 3 Cylinder size 19 in × 26 in (483 mm × 660 mm) Valve gear Walschaerts
Performance figures Maximum speed 100 mph (160 km/h) Power output 2,700 PS (2,000 kW) Tractive effort 37,400 lbf (166 kN)
Career Operators British Railways Power class BR: 8P6F Number in class 49 original, plus 1 completed 2008 Numbers 60114 - 60162, 60163 Locale North Eastern Region First run August 1948 Last run June 1966 Withdrawn October 1962 - June 1966 Scrapped 1962-1966 Disposition Original 49 withdrawn and scrapped, 1 built in 2008 and Mainline Registered

60133 Pommern passing Leeds-Holbeck High Level Station hauling Leeds Central to Kings Cross Yorkshire Pullman

60131 Osprey at Leeds Neville Hill locomotive shed on 18 April 1965

Background

Most of the former LNER Class A1 locomotives designed by Sir Nigel Gresley had been rebuilt as LNER Class A3 locomotives prior to this class being conceived. The few straggling LNER Class A1 locomotives that remained unrebuilt during the tenure of Peppercorn's predecessor, Edward Thompson, were redesignated by him as Class A10s in preparation for the construction of his new Class A1 locomotives. Thompson rebuilt the pioneer LNER pacific Great Northern in 1945; originally this was the new Class A1, but the rebuild was not repeated. Instead, initiated by Thompson but largely taken forward by his successor Arthur Peppercorn, Great Northern was designated Class A1/1, and a new class of Peppercorn A1s ordered.

The locomotives were designed to cope with the heaviest passenger trains in the post-war period on the East Coast Main Line (London – York – Newcastle – Edinburgh – Aberdeen) which consisted normally of trains with up to 15 coaches and up to 550 tons. The Peppercorn A1s were able to pull such a train on the flat at a speed of 60–70 mph (95-110 km/h). Like previous LNER pacifics, the class had a 3-cylinder arrangement. The chimney system was of the type Double-Kylchap.

Original locomotives

Construction

The new A1s were ordered by the LNER but delivered after that company had been nationalised to form part of British Railways at the start of 1948. The 49 engines were built at the Eastern Region's Doncaster and Darlington works between 1948 and 1949.

Construction details

Nos	Date built	Works	Order no.[1]	Notes
60114-22	1948	Doncaster	382
60123	1949	Doncaster
60124-9	1949	Doncaster	383
60130-43	1948	Darlington	—
60144-52	1949	Darlington	—
60153-7	1949	Doncaster	388	Built with Timken roller bearings on all axles
60158-62	1949	Doncaster

Withdrawal and preservation

By summer of 1966 all 49 class members had gone for scrap. The last to be withdrawn from stock was No. 60145 Saint Mungo after a working life of just 17 years. 60145 Saint Mungo was planned to be preserved by Geoff Drury, however, it ultimately was unsuccessful and none of the original locomotives were preserved. [2]

Year	Quantity in service at start of year	Quantity withdrawn	Locomotive numbers	Notes
1962	49	6	60115/22–23/35/37/53
1963	43	6	60136/44/59–62
1964	37	11	60114/19–20/25/39/41/43/47/49–50/58
1965	26	24	60116–18/21/26–34/38/40/42/46/48/51–52/54–57
1966	2	2	60124/45	60145 was subject to preservation attempt.

List of original locomotives

Below is a list of original Peppercorn A1 Locomotives[3][4][5][6][7][8][9]

No.	Name	Built	Works	Withdrawn	Notes
60114	W. P. Allen	August 1948	Doncaster	December 1964
60115	Meg Merrilies	September 1948	Doncaster	November 1962
60116	Hal o' the Wynd	October 1948	Doncaster	June 1965
60117	Bois Roussel	October 1948	Doncaster	June 1965
60118	Archibald Sturrock	November 1948	Doncaster	October 1965
60119	Patrick Stirling	November 1948	Doncaster	May 1964
60120	Kittiwake	December 1948	Doncaster	January 1964
60121	Silurian	December 1948	Doncaster	October 1965
60122	Curlew	December 1948	Doncaster	December 1962
60123	H.A. Ivatt	February 1949	Doncaster	October 1962
60124	Kenilworth	March 1949	Doncaster	March 1966
60125	Scottish Union	April 1949	Doncaster	July 1964
60126	Sir Vincent Raven	April 1949	Doncaster	January 1965
60127	Wilson Worsdell	May 1949	Doncaster	June 1965
60128	Bongrace	May 1949	Doncaster	January 1965
60129	Guy Mannering	June 1949	Doncaster	October 1965
60130	Kestrel	September 1948	Darlington	October 1965
60131	Osprey	October 1948	Darlington	October 1965
60132	Marmion	October 1948	Darlington	June 1965
60133	Pommern	October 1948	Darlington	June 1965
60134	Foxhunter	November 1948	Darlington	October 1965
60135	Madge Wildfire	November 1948	Darlington	November 1962
60136	Alcazar	November 1948	Darlington	May 1963
60137	Redgauntlet	December 1948	Darlington	October 1962
60138	Boswell	December 1948	Darlington	October 1965
60139	Sea Eagle	December 1948	Darlington	June 1964
60140	Balmoral	December 1948	Darlington	January 1965
60141	Abbotsford	December 1948	Darlington	October 1964
60142	Edward Fletcher	February 1949	Darlington	June 1965
60143	Sir Walter Scott	February 1949	Darlington	May 1964
60144	King's Courier	March 1949	Darlington	April 1963
60145	Saint Mungo	March 1949	Darlington	June 1966	Preservation attempt failed
60146	Peregrine	April 1949	Darlington	October 1965
60147	North Eastern	April 1949	Darlington	August 1964
60148	Aboyeur	May 1949	Darlington	June 1965
60149	Amadis	May 1949	Darlington	June 1964
60150	Willbrook	June 1949	Darlington	October 1964
60151	Midlothian	June 1949	Darlington	November 1965
60152	Holyrood	July 1949	Darlington	June 1965
60153	Flamboyant	August 1949	Doncaster	November 1962
60154	Bon Accord	September 1949	Doncaster	October 1965
60155	Borderer	September 1949	Doncaster	October 1965
60156	Great Central	October 1949	Doncaster	May 1965
60157	Great Eastern	November 1949	Doncaster	January 1965
60158	Aberdonian	November 1949	Doncaster	December 1964
60159	Bonnie Dundee	November 1949	Doncaster	October 1963
60160	Auld Reekie	December 1949	Doncaster	December 1963
60161	North British	December 1949	Doncaster	October 1963
60162	Saint Johnstoun	December 1949	Doncaster	October 1963

Notes on names

The names of the A1s[10] were an eclectic mix including:

• Racehorses: Bois Roussel, Silurian, Scottish Union, Bongrace, Pommern, Foxhunter, Alcazar, Boswell, King's Courier, Aboyeur, Amadis, Willbrook, Flamboyant
• Names of people: W. P. Allen (an LNER locomotive driver who became a member of the Railway Executive in 1948), Archibald Sturrock, Patrick Stirling, H. A. Ivatt, Sir Vincent Raven, Wilson Worsdell, Edward Fletcher (Locomotive Superintendents of pre-grouping railways), Sir Walter Scott, Saint Mungo
• Names related to the works of Sir Walter Scott: Meg Merrilies, Hal o’ the Wynd, Kenilworth, Guy Mannering, Marmion, Borderer, Madge Wildfire, Redgauntlet, Bonnie Dundee. Some of these names had previously been used on NBR J class locomotives
• Pre-grouping railway companies: North Eastern, Great Central, Great Eastern, North British
• Birds: Kittiwake, Curlew, Kestrel, Osprey, Sea Eagle, Peregrine
• Place-related names: Balmoral, Abbotsford (Sir Walter Scott's house), Midlothian, Holyrood, Bon Accord (motto of Aberdeen), Auld Reekie (a soubriquet for Edinburgh), Saint Johnstoun (an old name for Perth), Aberdonian

No. 60163 Tornado

60163 Tornado, August 2008, Darlington

None of the original production run of 49 Peppercorn A1s survived the scrapyard to be preserved. However, in 2008, a brand new 50th A1 based on the Peppercorn patterns, 60163 Tornado, was completed as the evolved member of the class.[11]

Accidents and incidents

• On 5 June 1950, locomotive No. 60153 Flamboyant was hauling an express passenger train which was derailed at Tollerton, North Yorkshire due to heat buckled track.[12]
• On 7 September 1962, No. 60123 H.A. Ivatt suffered harsh collision damage after running into a train at Offord. Four people were injured in the incident. It was withdrawn a month later and scrapped at Doncaster.[13][14][15]
• On 16 January 1964, No. 60120 Kittiwake collided with the rear end of a goods train in North Otterington. It was shortly withdrawn after the incident.[16]
• On 14 April 2018, locomotive No. 60163 Tornado was hauling an excursion train named "The Ebor Flyer" from London King's Cross to York. While traveling at 90mph around Sandy, south of Peterborough, the locomotive's inside motion failed.[17][18]

Models

Bachmann Branchline and Hornby make models in OO gauge, Graham Farish produce a model in N gauge and Accucraft (UK) make a live steam model in gauge 1.

References

1. Boddy, Neve & Yeadon 1973, p. 193
2. "60145 - Saint Mungo". A1 Steam. A1 Steam.
3. "The Peppercorn A1 Pacifics". LNER Encyclopedia.
4. Longworth (not including Tornado)
5. "Class Details". Railuk database. (not including Tornado)
6. Boddy, Neve & Yeadon 1973 (not including Tornado)
7. Yeadon 1991 (not including Tornado)
8. A1LST history section (not including Tornado)
9. Ian Allan ABC of British Railways Locomotives, part 4 (Summer 1961 ed.). pp. 26–27. Names of 60114-60162 are given but it also includes the LNER Thompson Class A1/1 60113 Great Northern in the list, making 50 locomotives.
10. "Names of A1s". 60163 Tornado. A1 Steam Locomotive Trust. Archived from the original on 23 July 2009.
11. "New steam loco ready for service". BBC News. 19 November 2008. Retrieved 19 November 2008. The first new steam engine to be built in the UK for almost 50 years is ready for service after successfully completing all its trial runs ... Tornado, a Peppercorn class A1 Pacific steam locomotive ...
12. Trevena, Arthur (1981). Trains in Trouble: Vol. 2. Redruth: Atlantic Books. p. 34. ISBN 0-906899-03-6.
13. "A1 60113 – 60162 4-6-2 LNER & BR Thompson & Peppercorn". Preserved British Steam Locomotives. WordPress. Retrieved 28 January 2021.
14. Champion, Phil; Langer, Graham (3 February 2010). "No. 60123 H.A. Ivatt". The A1 Steam Locomotive Trust. Retrieved 28 January 2021.
15. "Demise of the A1s". The A1 Steam Locomotive Trust. Retrieved 28 January 2021.
16. Champion, Phil; Whittaker, T.D.; Langer, Graham (3 February 2010). "No. 60120 Kittiwake". The A1 Steam Locomotive Trust. Retrieved 28 January 2021.
17. https://www.a1steam.com/2018/04/14/the-ebor-flyer-update/ Tornado motion failure
18. https://www.a1steam.com/2018/04/17/tornado-repair-update/ Repairs update

• Boddy, M. G.; Neve, E.; Yeadon, W. B. (April 1973). Fry, E. V. (ed.). Locomotives of the L.N.E.R., Part 2A: Tender Engines—Classes A1 to A10. Kenilworth: RCTS. ISBN 0-901115-25-8.
• Yeadon, W. B. (1991). Yeadon's Register of LNER Locomotives, Volume 3: Raven, Thompson and Peppercorn Pacifics. Irwell Press.

External links

• A1 Steam Locomotive Trust