RESTORED ‘TRAIN FROM SPAIN’ TO BE LAUNCHED INTO TRAFFIC IN MAY

Newly restored 15in gauge Krauss ‘Pacific’ Whillan Beck will be officially launched into traffic on the Ravenglass & Eskdale Railway on May 5-7. The event, entitled ‘Welcoming Whillan Beck’, will follow two months after the 1929-built 4-6-2’s first passenger trains in 86 years, when the locomotive hauls a special train on March 17 for donors who made contributions of £200 or more to the ‘Train from Spain’ appeal. During the May bank holiday weekend launch event, Whillan Beck will be joined by Bassett Lowke ‘Atlantic’ Synolda and Sir Arthur Heywood-designed 0-4-0T Katie, the latter having been recently restored by RER Heritage Group. This locomotive moved under its own power for the first time in 99 years on February 6, ahead of its entry into traffic. On Sunday May 6, Whillan Beck will be the star of an early morning photographic charter, incorporating a full return trip on the railway with various stops to allow passengers to alight and photograph the engine in places not normally accessible to the public. In the evening there will be a special train to Dalegarth for an auction of RER memorabilia, with proceeds going towards the fund-raising for the locomotive. The ‘Train from Spain’, which was built in 1929 for the IberoAmerican Exhibition in Seville, last operated in 1932, and was stored for many years in Madrid before being purchased by the RER in January 2016. After restoration and a trial steaming in November 2016, the Roland Martens-designed 4-6-2 was outshopped in Caledonian Railway-style lined blue 12 months later, ahead of final testing prior to its entry into traffic on ‘La’l Ratty’ (see SR474). Anyone wishing to secure their place on Whillan Beck’s first train can donate £200 or more via www.trainfromspain.org/donate

Keith herBert The ‘Train from spain’ undergoes minor last‑minute fettling inside the rer workshops on February 12. The cab has been unbolted and removed so that a couple of minor valve leaks can be repaired.