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TORNADO RETURNS TO SERVICE AFTER OVERHAUL

Keep in touch with Tornado via new iPhone App

The A1 Steam Locomotive Trust is delighted to announce the locomotive’s return to service following the completion of her eight month, £400,000 overhaul at Darlington Locomotive Works (DLW). The £3m locomotive was completed at DLW in 2008 after 18 years of construction and fundraising and named by TRH The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall the following year. During 2015, The A1 Steam Locomotive Trust is celebrating its Silver Jubilee – 25 years since the project to build a new ex-LNER Peppercorn class A1 was launched in 1990. Tornado’s overhaul included:

• Full internal inspection of boiler, replacement of tubes, renewal of foundation ring corners and stay replacement including increasing the number of flexible stays to enhance reliability - by DB Meiningen
• Re-setting of hornblock/axlebox clearance, requiring all coupled wheels out at once
• Thorough check for frame cracks using NDT and inspection of all bolted/riveted joints
• Splitting and inspection of roller bearing axle/cannonboxes and repairs as necessary
• Improvements to pipework and installation of air pumps to speed removal and refitting
• Clean out and repair tender tank
• Full re-paint in LNER apple green

The overhaul started as soon the locomotive had cooled down following the Trust’s Annual Convention at Barrow Hill, Chesterfield on 4^th October 2014. The boiler was removed and sent to DB Meiningen at the end of October and the new class P2 engine frames moved to one side in Darlington Locomotive Works. The engine frames and cab were moved to Darlington at the end of October with components following in a container. Work started on the engine frames and wheelsets in November with the painting of frames and components at the same time. The tender was worked on partially at Barrow Hill and brought to Darlington in the New Year to finish the painting. The boiler arrived back from DB Meiningen later than planned in April 2015, with engine reassembled and fully repainted in apple green throughout this period. Additional, unexpected work to Tornado’s boiler and roller bearings delayed her return to service from May to June 2015. Newly repainted into her glorious apple green livery, Tornado will be in steam at Darlington Locomotive Works on Wednesday 10^th June undergoing tests before moving by road to Locomotion – The National Railway Museum at Shildon on Friday 12^th June for commissioning and mileage accumulation over the next few days – visitors welcome. On Wednesday 17^th June No. 60163 Tornado will undertake her main line test run and travel from Shildon in County Durham to Millerhill depot near Edinburgh in preparation for a series of trains in Scotland. Tornado’s packed main line and heritage railway diary for the rest of 2015 includes (see www.a1steam.com for details):

• 20^th June – 'The Highland Rambler' – Stirling to Inverness – Scotrail/Steam Dreams
• 21^st June (Father's Day!)  – 'The Seaforth Highlander' – Inverness to Brora and return – Scotrail/Steam Dreams
• 22^nd June – 'The Highland Caledonian' – Inverness to Stirling – Scotrail/Steam Dreams
• 27^th June – ‘The Border Reiver’ – Carlisle to Glasgow and return - Scotrail/Steam Dreams
• 7^th July (new date)  - 'The White Rose' King's Cross to York with D9009 Alycidon and return with No. 60163 Tornado - A1SLT booking through UK Railtours
• 12^th July - 'The Torbay Express' - Bristol to Kingswear and return - Torbay Express
• 26^th July - 'The Torbay Express' - Bristol to Kingswear and return - Torbay Express
• 2^nd August - 'The Torbay Express' - Bristol to Kingswear and return - Torbay Express
• 8^th August – The Golden Age of Travel lunchtime excursion – Belmond British Pullman
• 11^th August – 2^nd September – Nene Valley Railway, Peterborough
• 11^th September – The Golden Age of Travel lunchtime excursion – Belmond British Pullman
• 23^rd September – London Victoria to Bristol and return – Belmond British Pullman
• 26^th September - 'The Silver Jubilee Talisman' London to York, Darlington and Newcastle - A1SLT booking through UK Railtours
• 6^th November - The Golden Age of Travel lunchtime excursion – Belmond British Pullman
• 8^th December – Christmas Lunch – Belmond British Pullman
• 12^th December – Christmas Lunch – Belmond British Pullman
• 31^st December – 'St. Mungo Anniversary Tour' – York to Newcastle and return – A1SLT (details tbc)

Tornado’s return to service also sees the launch of the new ‘Tornado 60163’ App for iPhone available to download for free from the Apple App Store. This new App will enable users to keep in touch with the latest Tornado news and tours diary, read more about Britain’s newest main line steam locomotive, support Tornado’s on-going development, view the photo gallery and submit your own photographs. The App was developed for the Trust by supporter Jason Kerner. Mark Allatt, chairman, The A1 Steam Locomotive Trust, commented, “We are delighted to be celebrating our 25^th Anniversary in style, with Tornado’s return to service following her first overhaul and newly repainted in her glorious apple green livery. Tornado’s 2015 main line and heritage railway diary will see the locomotive visit almost every corner of Great Britain with opportunities to experience the magnificent sights and sounds that will accompany a fast, express passenger steam locomotive working hard… not to be missed! “It seems appropriate that a steam locomotive for the 21^st Century should embrace the latest technology and we will therefore continue to develop our new ‘Tornado 60163’ App, including such functionality as e-tickets for railtours downloaded directly, real time timings for tours and departure platforms and dynamic city guides.” The Trust respectfully requests that anyone wanting to see Tornado follows the rules of the railway and only goes where permitted.