British Rail Class 89
Encyclopedia
The Class 89 is a prototype
design for an electric locomotive
. Only one unit was built, no. 89001, which was officially named Avocet by the then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher
on 16 January 1989 at Sandy, Bedfordshire
- the home of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds
(whose logo is an Avocet
). It was built in 1986, by BREL
at their Crewe Works
, and was used on test-trains on both the West Coast Main Line
and East Coast Main Line
. It was fitted with advanced power control systems and develops over 6,000 bhp (4,500 kW). It was given the nickname "Aardvark" although railfan
s used to call it "The Badger" owing to its sloping front ends.
of Loughborough
to meet a specification issued by British Rail, which subsequently changed the requirements, but not before Brush had already committed to build the prototype locomotive. It was initially delivered in the old-style InterCity
livery, with no British Rail
double arrows, but these were added later when British Rail bought the locomotive from Brush. As the development of the ECML Electrification continued the engine was painted into the new style "InterCity Swallow" livery and named Avocet.
The locomotive uses six DC
traction motor
s. The main armature
current for all the motors is fed from a common thyristor
drive, whilst each motor has an independent field current controller. The field current controllers comprised a two quadrant chopper
inside a thyristor bridge. The bipolar transistor based choppers provides a fast fine control of motor torque
for electric braking
and slip control
, whilst the thyristor bridge is used to invert the field current polarity.
During the early summer of 1988 the International Traffic and Transport Exhibition (IVA88) was held in Hamburg, Germany. British Rail was asked to participate and sent a representative train of rolling stock to the exhibition. On 22 May 1988, Avocet along with a Class 90
, Class 91
and a two car Class 150/2
unit left England
in a special train for Hamburg
, returning on 17 June 1988.
After being used as a test bed, the locomotive was used on passenger trains from London Kings Cross to Leeds. This continued until Sunday 5 March 1989, a week before the Class 91s entered service on the diagrams.
It was hoped that the Class 89 design would be used for electric locomotives for the Channel Tunnel, and some investigation was undertaken. It was also hoped the Class 89 would be a viable Class 86
replacement, which ultimately went to the Class 90. All hope and opportunity ended, however, when 89001 suffered a serious failure and was withdrawn from traffic. It was saved for preservation at the Midland Railway Centre (now Midland Railway - Butterley
) by a group of Brush Traction
employees. During this time the locomotive appeared at every major British Rail depot open day, in a slowly deteriorating Intercity Swallow livery.
Ultimately only technology and ideas from 89001’s internal design were used in the Class 9
Eurotunnel locomotives and some similarity in electronics lives on today in the Class 92
locomotive design. When 89001 failed, it was still owned by British Rail, and Brush had no contractual obligation with regard to it. Additionally, having no orders from BR for their design investment, there was little incentive for Brush to construct spare parts for it. BR had written off the locomotive as part of the ECML development and thus it was seen as a surplus and nil value asset. As such the locomotive was sidelined.
Brush did eventually win the contracts to build Channel Tunnel locomotives, and the similarities between these and 89001 enabled suitable spares to be constructed.
(GNER). Suffering from a motive power shortage, it purchased 89001 and repaired it for use on London to Leeds and Bradford
passenger trains, investing £100 000 in an overhaul. It was also re-painted in the GNER blue and red livery. The locomotive actually entered service in March 1997 (Railway Magazine May 1997 p61). However, in 2001, the locomotive again suffered a major failure and was withdrawn from traffic. Its future was again in doubt, and it was laid up for a period at Doncaster Works
.
In December 2004, the locomotive was moved into the care of The AC Locomotive Group
at Barrow Hill Engine Shed
for secure storage. With the overhaul of the Class 91 fleet complete, plus the availability of Class 373
trains for lease, 89001 was seen as a one-off asset with little economic value.
launched an appeal and fundraising effort to save the locomotive which was ultimately successful, purchasing the locomotive in December 2006. The loco is mostly complete although a number of major components require expensive overhaul before the loco could run on the main line again. A thorough survey has been undertaken to establish exactly what is required, and costs drawn up. Cosmetic work in 2007 saw the loco return to its original InterCity Executive colour scheme. Electrical restoration work has focussed on repairing and/or refurbishing the items that led to the locomotive being withdrawn from service, namely the traction motors and their associated field converter electronics. The locomotive was lifted by HNRC at Barrow Hill in December 2010 and three traction motors were removed including the one known to be faulty. These are currently (February 2011) being examined at Bowers to allow repair cost estimates to be made. Two of the field converters have been removed, one is faulty and again repair estimates are being sought. Initially it is intended, as funds become available, to allow one power group (i.e. one bogie) to become fully operational.
After many months of waiting, 2nd September finally saw testing of the first field converter overhauled at Fletcher Moorland Ltd, Stoke.
There will be several iterations of testing so that there is a full understanding of any remaining defects and ensure that all aged or failed components are changed. The overhauled converter was completely dismantled with each power component being checked and replaced where required. A number of components were found to be performing outside of their specification and have been changed. The three control PCBs, these run the height of the converter, totalling the best part of 1m! The largest of the three is 2/3 of that. All electrolytic capacitors have been changed, both on the control PCBs and in the power circuit. These deteriorate with age.
The Class 89 loco when it first arrived at Bounds Green (Inter City) had a set of hand controls
which could be plugged into an external plug and the loco moved by an operator from the ground position.
So, as an example, the Type 4 locomotive number D1062 was allocated 89462.
Current List as of June 6, 2006
Prototype
A prototype is an early sample or model built to test a concept or process or to act as a thing to be replicated or learned from.The word prototype derives from the Greek πρωτότυπον , "primitive form", neutral of πρωτότυπος , "original, primitive", from πρῶτος , "first" and τύπος ,...
design for an electric locomotive
Electric locomotive
An electric locomotive is a locomotive powered by electricity from overhead lines, a third rail or an on-board energy storage device...
. Only one unit was built, no. 89001, which was officially named Avocet by the then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990...
on 16 January 1989 at Sandy, Bedfordshire
Sandy, Bedfordshire
Sandy is a small market town and civil parish in Bedfordshire, England. It is between Cambridge and Bedford, and on the A1 road from London to Edinburgh. The area is dominated by a range of hills known as the Sand Hills. The River Ivel runs through Sandy. The dedication of the Anglican church is to...
- the home of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds
Royal Society for the Protection of Birds
Bird Notes and News was first published in April 1903.The title changed to 'Bird Notes' in 1947. In the 1950s, there were four copies per year . Each volume covered two years, spread over three calendar years...
(whose logo is an Avocet
Avocet
The four species of Avocets are a genus, Recurvirostra, of waders in the same avian family as the stilts.Avocets have long legs and long, thin, upcurved bills which they sweep from side to side when feeding in the brackish or saline wetlands they prefer...
). It was built in 1986, by BREL
BREL
British Rail Engineering Limited , was the railway systems engineering division of British Rail, until the design and building of trains in the UK was privatised in 1993. On 31 October 1969, the company was incorporated as British Rail Engineering Limited.-Main products:The vast majority of BREL's...
at their Crewe Works
Crewe Works
Crewe railway works is a British railway engineering facility built in 1840 by the Grand Junction Railway. It is located in the town of Crewe, in the county of Cheshire....
, and was used on test-trains on both the West Coast Main Line
West Coast Main Line
The West Coast Main Line is the busiest mixed-traffic railway route in Britain, being the country's most important rail backbone in terms of population served. Fast, long-distance inter-city passenger services are provided between London, the West Midlands, the North West, North Wales and the...
and East Coast Main Line
East Coast Main Line
The East Coast Main Line is a long electrified high-speed railway link between London, Peterborough, Doncaster, Wakefield, Leeds, York, Darlington, Newcastle and Edinburgh...
. It was fitted with advanced power control systems and develops over 6,000 bhp (4,500 kW). It was given the nickname "Aardvark" although railfan
Railfan
A railfan or rail buff , railway enthusiast or railway buff , or trainspotter , is a person interested in a recreational capacity in rail transport...
s used to call it "The Badger" owing to its sloping front ends.
Design
The Class 89 locomotive was designed by Brush TractionBrush Traction
This article is about a British rail-locomotive maker. For the Detroit auto-maker, see Brush Motor Car CompanyBrush Traction is a manufacturer and maintainer of railway locomotives, part of the FKI group , based at Loughborough in Leicestershire, England situated alongside the Midland Main Line.-...
of Loughborough
Loughborough
Loughborough is a town within the Charnwood borough of Leicestershire, England. It is the seat of Charnwood Borough Council and is home to Loughborough University...
to meet a specification issued by British Rail, which subsequently changed the requirements, but not before Brush had already committed to build the prototype locomotive. It was initially delivered in the old-style InterCity
InterCity (British Rail)
InterCity was introduced by British Rail in 1966 as a brand-name for its long-haul express passenger services ....
livery, with no British Rail
British Rail
British Railways , which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was the operator of most of the rail transport in Great Britain between 1948 and 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the "Big Four" British railway companies and lasted until the gradual privatisation of British Rail, in stages...
double arrows, but these were added later when British Rail bought the locomotive from Brush. As the development of the ECML Electrification continued the engine was painted into the new style "InterCity Swallow" livery and named Avocet.
The locomotive uses six DC
Direct current
Direct current is the unidirectional flow of electric charge. Direct current is produced by such sources as batteries, thermocouples, solar cells, and commutator-type electric machines of the dynamo type. Direct current may flow in a conductor such as a wire, but can also flow through...
traction motor
Traction motor
Traction motor refers to an electric motor providing the primary rotational torque of a machine, usually for conversion into linear motion ....
s. The main armature
Armature (electrical engineering)
In electrical engineering, an armature generally refers to one of the two principal electrical components of an electromechanical machine–generally in a motor or generator, but it may also mean the pole piece of a permanent magnet or electromagnet, or the moving iron part of a solenoid or relay....
current for all the motors is fed from a common thyristor
Thyristor
A thyristor is a solid-state semiconductor device with four layers of alternating N and P-type material. They act as bistable switches, conducting when their gate receives a current trigger, and continue to conduct while they are forward biased .Some sources define silicon controlled rectifiers and...
drive, whilst each motor has an independent field current controller. The field current controllers comprised a two quadrant chopper
Chopper (electronics)
A chopper circuit is used to refer to numerous types of electronic switching devices and circuits. The term has become somewhat ill-defined, and as a result is much less used nowadays than it was perhaps 30 or more years ago....
inside a thyristor bridge. The bipolar transistor based choppers provides a fast fine control of motor torque
Torque
Torque, moment or moment of force , is the tendency of a force to rotate an object about an axis, fulcrum, or pivot. Just as a force is a push or a pull, a torque can be thought of as a twist....
for electric braking
Dynamic braking
Dynamic braking is the use of the electric traction motors of a railroad vehicle as generators when slowing the Locomotive. It is termed rheostatic if the generated electrical power is dissipated as heat in brake grid resistors, and regenerative if the power is returned to the supply line...
and slip control
Locomotive wheelslip
Locomotive wheelslip is an event that affects railway motive power when starting from stationary.The greatest effort is required from a locomotive when starting...
, whilst the thyristor bridge is used to invert the field current polarity.
During the early summer of 1988 the International Traffic and Transport Exhibition (IVA88) was held in Hamburg, Germany. British Rail was asked to participate and sent a representative train of rolling stock to the exhibition. On 22 May 1988, Avocet along with a Class 90
British Rail Class 90
The British Rail Class 90 electric locomotives were built by BREL at Crewe from 1987-1990. Each locomotive weighs 84.5 tonnes and has a top speed of . They operate from 25 kV AC overhead wires and produce...
, Class 91
British Rail Class 91
The British Rail Class 91 is a class of , electric locomotives ordered as a component of the East Coast Main Line modernisation and electrification programme of the late 1980s. The Class 91s were given the auxiliary name of InterCity 225 to indicate their envisaged top speed of...
and a two car Class 150/2
British Rail Class 150
The British Rail Class 150 "Sprinter" diesel multiple units were built by BREL from 1984-87. A total of 137 units were built in three main subclasses, replacing many of the earlier first-generation "Heritage" DMUs.- Background :...
unit left England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
in a special train for Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
, returning on 17 June 1988.
After being used as a test bed, the locomotive was used on passenger trains from London Kings Cross to Leeds. This continued until Sunday 5 March 1989, a week before the Class 91s entered service on the diagrams.
It was hoped that the Class 89 design would be used for electric locomotives for the Channel Tunnel, and some investigation was undertaken. It was also hoped the Class 89 would be a viable Class 86
British Rail Class 86
The British Rail Class 86 was the standard electric locomotive built during the 1960s, developed as a result of testing with the earlier Classes 81, 82, 83, 84 and 85. One hundred of these locomotives were built from 1965-1966 by either English Electric at Vulcan Foundry, Newton-le-Willows, or...
replacement, which ultimately went to the Class 90. All hope and opportunity ended, however, when 89001 suffered a serious failure and was withdrawn from traffic. It was saved for preservation at the Midland Railway Centre (now Midland Railway - Butterley
Midland Railway - Butterley
The Midland Railway – Butterley is a heritage railway, formerly known until 2004 as the Midland Railway Centre, at Butterley, near Ripley in Derbyshire.-Overview:...
) by a group of Brush Traction
Brush Traction
This article is about a British rail-locomotive maker. For the Detroit auto-maker, see Brush Motor Car CompanyBrush Traction is a manufacturer and maintainer of railway locomotives, part of the FKI group , based at Loughborough in Leicestershire, England situated alongside the Midland Main Line.-...
employees. During this time the locomotive appeared at every major British Rail depot open day, in a slowly deteriorating Intercity Swallow livery.
Ultimately only technology and ideas from 89001’s internal design were used in the Class 9
Eurotunnel Class 9
The Eurotunnel Class 9 or Class 9000 are a series of 6 axle high power Bo'Bo'Bo' single ended electric locomotives built by the Euroshuttle Locomotive Consortium of Brush Traction and ASEA Brown Boveri...
Eurotunnel locomotives and some similarity in electronics lives on today in the Class 92
British Rail Class 92
The British Rail Class 92 is a dual-voltage electric locomotive which can run on 25 kV AC from overhead wires or 750 V DC from a third rail. It was designed specifically to operate services through the Channel Tunnel between Britain and France...
locomotive design. When 89001 failed, it was still owned by British Rail, and Brush had no contractual obligation with regard to it. Additionally, having no orders from BR for their design investment, there was little incentive for Brush to construct spare parts for it. BR had written off the locomotive as part of the ECML development and thus it was seen as a surplus and nil value asset. As such the locomotive was sidelined.
Brush did eventually win the contracts to build Channel Tunnel locomotives, and the similarities between these and 89001 enabled suitable spares to be constructed.
GNER ownership
In 1996, the InterCity East Coast franchise was won by the Great North Eastern RailwayGreat North Eastern Railway
Great North Eastern Railway was a British train operating company, owned by Sea Containers Ltd. It operated high-speed express train services on the East Coast Main Line from 1996 until 9 December 2007 when the franchise was taken over by National Express East Coast.GNER's primary service routes...
(GNER). Suffering from a motive power shortage, it purchased 89001 and repaired it for use on London to Leeds and Bradford
Bradford
Bradford lies at the heart of the City of Bradford, a metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, in Northern England. It is situated in the foothills of the Pennines, west of Leeds, and northwest of Wakefield. Bradford became a municipal borough in 1847, and received its charter as a city in 1897...
passenger trains, investing £100 000 in an overhaul. It was also re-painted in the GNER blue and red livery. The locomotive actually entered service in March 1997 (Railway Magazine May 1997 p61). However, in 2001, the locomotive again suffered a major failure and was withdrawn from traffic. Its future was again in doubt, and it was laid up for a period at Doncaster Works
Doncaster Works
Doncaster railway works is in the town of Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England.Always referred to as "the Plant", it was established by the Great Northern Railway in 1853, replacing the previous works in Boston and Peterborough...
.
In December 2004, the locomotive was moved into the care of The AC Locomotive Group
AC Locomotive Group
The AC Locomotive Group is the UK's only dedicated AC electric locomotive preservation society. It currently has ten AC locomotives in its care, numbers 81002, 82008, 83012, 84001, 85101, 86101, 86213, 86401, 87002, 89001.- Locomotives :...
at Barrow Hill Engine Shed
Barrow Hill Engine Shed
Barrow Hill Roundhouse & Railway Centre, until 1948 known as Staveley Roundhouse & Train Centre, is a former Midland Railway roundhouse in Barrow Hill, near Staveley and Chesterfield, Derbyshire .-History:...
for secure storage. With the overhaul of the Class 91 fleet complete, plus the availability of Class 373
British Rail Class 373
The British Rail Class 373 or TGV-TMST train is an electric multiple unit that operates Eurostar's high-speed rail service between Britain, France and Belgium via the Channel Tunnel...
trains for lease, 89001 was seen as a one-off asset with little economic value.
After GNER ownership
In October 2006, GNER put 89001 up for sale with a six-week deadline for bids. The AC Locomotive GroupAC Locomotive Group
The AC Locomotive Group is the UK's only dedicated AC electric locomotive preservation society. It currently has ten AC locomotives in its care, numbers 81002, 82008, 83012, 84001, 85101, 86101, 86213, 86401, 87002, 89001.- Locomotives :...
launched an appeal and fundraising effort to save the locomotive which was ultimately successful, purchasing the locomotive in December 2006. The loco is mostly complete although a number of major components require expensive overhaul before the loco could run on the main line again. A thorough survey has been undertaken to establish exactly what is required, and costs drawn up. Cosmetic work in 2007 saw the loco return to its original InterCity Executive colour scheme. Electrical restoration work has focussed on repairing and/or refurbishing the items that led to the locomotive being withdrawn from service, namely the traction motors and their associated field converter electronics. The locomotive was lifted by HNRC at Barrow Hill in December 2010 and three traction motors were removed including the one known to be faulty. These are currently (February 2011) being examined at Bowers to allow repair cost estimates to be made. Two of the field converters have been removed, one is faulty and again repair estimates are being sought. Initially it is intended, as funds become available, to allow one power group (i.e. one bogie) to become fully operational.
After many months of waiting, 2nd September finally saw testing of the first field converter overhauled at Fletcher Moorland Ltd, Stoke.
There will be several iterations of testing so that there is a full understanding of any remaining defects and ensure that all aged or failed components are changed. The overhauled converter was completely dismantled with each power component being checked and replaced where required. A number of components were found to be performing outside of their specification and have been changed. The three control PCBs, these run the height of the converter, totalling the best part of 1m! The largest of the three is 2/3 of that. All electrolytic capacitors have been changed, both on the control PCBs and in the power circuit. These deteriorate with age.
Principal data
- Weight: 105 tonnes
- Minimum radius curve negotiable: 80 metres
- Max. speed: 200 km/h (125 mph)
- Route availability: RA 6
- Brake force: 50
- ETH Index: 95
- Length over buffers: 19,800 mm (65 ft)
The Class 89 loco when it first arrived at Bounds Green (Inter City) had a set of hand controls
which could be plugged into an external plug and the loco moved by an operator from the ground position.
Other uses of Class 89
The Class 89 series has also been used for preserved diesel and electric locomotives (excluding shunters) registered to run on the mainline. The numbers are allocated in the following way:- Third digit: 1-5 representing Types 1-5 (see here for details). Electric locomotives have also been allocated numbers in the 89xxx series, in the appropriate series for their power rating.
- Fourth and fifth digits: The last two digits of the locomotive's original number. If this results in a duplication of an existing number, then the number was increased by 1.
So, as an example, the Type 4 locomotive number D1062 was allocated 89462.
Current List as of June 6, 2006
- 89100 20050 NRM York
- 89101 20001 Midland Railway - ButterleyMidland Railway - ButterleyThe Midland Railway – Butterley is a heritage railway, formerly known until 2004 as the Midland Railway Centre, at Butterley, near Ripley in Derbyshire.-Overview:...
- 89110 20110 South Devon Railway
- 89127 20227 Midland Railway - Butterley
- 89166 20166 Bodmin & Wenford Railway
- 89188 20188 Swanage Railway
- 89200 31018 NRM York
- 89204 26004 Bo'ness & Kinneil Railway
- 89210 27056/27112 Severn Valley Railway
- 89212 L12 London Underground
- 89223 25173 West Somerset Railway
- 89233 25283/25904 Dean Forest Railway
- 89247 27001 Bo'ness & Kinneil Railway
- 89254 24054 East Lancs Railway Bury
- 89259 25309/25909 Bo'ness & Kinneil Railway
- 89261 24061 North Yorks Moors Railway
- 89262 25262/25901 South Devon Railway
- 89280 31154 North Norfolk Railway
- 89317 D7017 West Somerset Railway
- 89376 D7076 East Lancs Railway Bury
- 89400 E27000 Midland Railway - Butterley
- 89401 47401 Midland Railway - Butterley
- 89402 50002 South Devon Railway
- 89404 44004 Midland Railway - Butterley
- 89405 47105 Great Central Railway
- 89407 50007 Midland Railway - Butterley
- 89408 50008 Crewe LNWR
- 89412 40012 Midland Railway - Butterley
- 89413 D1013 Severn Valley Railway
- 89415 50015 ELR Bury
- 89416 D1015 Kidderminster
- 89417 50017 Tyseley
- 89420 45108 LNWR Crewe
- 89421 D821 Severn Valley Railway
- 89421 50021 Tyseley
- 89423 45125 D123 Great Central Railway
- 89424 D1023 NRM York
- 89427 50027 NYMR
- 89431 50031 Severn Valley Railway
- 89432 D832 East Lancs Railway Bury
- 89435 40135 ELR Bury
- 89440 45133 Midland Railway - Butterley
- 89441 D1041 ELR Bury
- 89442 47192 Churnet Valley Railway
- 89443 50042 Bodmin & Wenford Railway
- 89444 50044 Severn Valley Railway
- 89445 40145 MAIN LINE VEHICLE ( Since reverted to 40145 )
- 89449 50049 Severn Valley Railway
- 89453 45041 Midland Railway - Butterley
- 89460 45060 Barrow Hill
- 89462 D1062 Severn Valley Railway
- 89466 47449 Llangollen Railway
- 89472 46035 LNWR Crewe
- 89500 55022 ELR Bury - MAIN LINE VEHICLE
- 89509 55009 Barrow Hill
- 89515 55015 Barrow Hill
- 89516 55016 ELR Bury
- 89519 55019 Barrow Hill
- 89520 55002 NRM York
- 89523 DELTIC NRM Shildon
External links
- AC Locomotive Group
- Information and pictures of the locomotive in UK and Germany