What rescued IC225 sets in the 80's & 90's?

[legomanbiffo]

If an East Coast 225 set failed today it would (probably) be rescued by a Class 67 'Thunderbird' but what about in the days of Inter City and GNER liveried 225 sets? A quick 'bloke's look' around t'internet didn't reveal a single photo of a 91 being rescued.

 

My own photos show that 91's have got a buckeye and a rubbing plate at the front but they also have a coupling hook. Was a conventional screw coupling used with the coupling hook so that any loco could rescue them? Or were there rescue locos with buckeyes? My recent DVT photos show just a coupling hook, no rubbing plate or buckeye at the other end of the train.

 

Presumably it would have to be an ETH-fitted loco of sufficient power and ETH rating?

 

[Bon Accord]

Throughout the 90s "Thunderbird" services were provided by strategically located 47's, if memory serves they could be found at Kings Cross, Newcastle and Edinburgh. I can't recall for certain if there was also a loco stationed at York or Doncaster. As privatisation approached, Thunderbird duties were contracted out to RES, which did of course become EWS and then DBS.

There were also a couple of AC electrics stationed as Thunderbirds, usually class 90's. For example there were (and still are) two Thunderbirds at Edinburgh Waverley, in the past a 47 and 90 and now a 67 and 90.

[ess1uk]

I was once on a failed service where the thunderbird was another 91 from Bounds Green.

[phil-b259]

I believe that the decision to fit standard buffering gear to the 91s was influenced by experiences of rescuing / assisting HSTs with their specialist 'towbar'

 

Certainly it made things easier in the winter of 1991 when snow ingress caused such problems that eventually the whole fleet of 91s (at that time just the initial 10) had to be temporarily withdrawn and class 47s substituted (as featured in an episode of the BBCs "Inside Story"

[Claude_Dreyfus]

Certainly 47s were used...I have a photo of 47520 on such duties stabled at Kings Cross in the mid 90s. I also recall seeing 47833 on the same duty in about 1990.

[mjkerr]

During the 1980s it would be limited to the Kings Cross - Leeds service
There were plenty of spare of locos around at the time, but at least two would be spare at Kings Cross / Bounds Green

During the early 1990s with the electrification extended to Newcastle one additional locomotive was provided spare at Newcastle, often sitting at Gateshead depot

With the final phase extended to Edinburgh this spare locomotive was then provided at Edinburgh instead

If a spare locomotive was not available at any of these locations, if it was elsewhere or on another duty, then there were usually other spare locos available
Even with sectorisation a spare would be found

I noted several IC225 sets arriving into Edinburgh loco hauled, with the Class 91 dead on the rear (or even missing)
The set would then be taken to Craigentinny for either the Class 91 to be attended to or removed

Unlike HST sets where the faulty power car would be swapped / removed
One further spare loco used to sit at Perth right up to privitisation, strategic for both the Inverness and Aberdeen routes

[legomanbiffo]

Excellent and prompt answers everyone, thanks.

 

What liveries were these 47's and 90's then - presumably Inter City swallow / normal and Res would figure in there, any others?

[mjkerr]

The standby locos would typically be a Class 47/4 or 47/8 in Large Logo Blue, InterCity or INTERCITY livery
Equally, other locos could have been used, however reliability was such that reports were rare
There may be some in copies of magazines from this period, along with photos if you can find them

I can't recall a Class 90 being used on such duties
However one Class 90 was used briefly to cover a Class 91 on Leeds duties, but that was under GNER

[ajwffc]

Throughout the 90s "Thunderbird" services were provided by strategically located 47's, if memory serves they could be found at Kings Cross, Newcastle and Edinburgh. I can't recall for certain if there was also a loco stationed at York or Doncaster. As privatisation approached, Thunderbird duties were contracted out to RES, which did of course become EWS and then DBS.

There were also a couple of AC electrics stationed as Thunderbirds, usually class 90's. For example there were (and still are) two Thunderbirds at Edinburgh Waverley, in the past a 47 and 90 and now a 67 and 90.

The 90 that sits in Waverley is not a thunderbird but the loco for the electric leg of the Aberdeen, Fort William and Inverness sleeper

[vince minto]

hi

here's 47603 at newcastle after rescuing 91019 8-9-91

its the only one i ever managed to phot

vince

[D6775]

I have a DVD somewhere with a clip of 37080 & 37078 (I think!) departing Waverly with a 225 set. I am sure that I have also seen pictures of 56's rescuing them as well. Although less common than 47's  I am sure most things have rescued these at times.

 

Now if you wanted loco's that have rescued HST's...... now thats a difffernt story all together!!!

[45125]

I believe that the decision to fit standard buffering gear to the 91s was influenced by experiences of rescuing / assisting HSTs with their specialist 'towbar'

 

Certainly it made things easier in the winter of 1991 when snow ingress caused such problems that eventually the whole fleet of 91s (at that time just the initial 10) had to be temporarily withdrawn and class 47s substituted (as featured in an episode of the BBCs "Inside Story"

The reason a standard drawbar and buckeye was that on a night they could work sleeper and certain freights.

 

Al Taylor

[deltic79]

RfD and REX 90's were also used during the early 90's as stand in locos for the 91s and coupled directly to the Mk.4s, mainly on Leeds services where their reduced top speed presented less of an issue. I think this was before the 90/1 subclass came into existence so the RfD locos' ETH hadn't been isolated.