Cracks now appearing on GWR Hitachi Class 800 units

As The RM closed for press, news was emerging of the discovery of cracks on GWR Class 800 IET units. An inspection of vehicle 814013 (from set 800013) revealed a crack, described in the National Incident Report as being on the yaw damper bolster “…in the area where the yaw damper bracket is welded to the car body”. Crack depths, described in the report as “substantial”, have been measured as deep as 15mm. So far, eight of 93 units were identified with the problem at the time the NIR was released.