Flying Scotsman’s Multi-Million Pound Repair Bill

The purchase and overhaul of the National Railway Museum’s Iconic steam locomotive, No. 4472 Flying Scotsman now looks as though it could cost up to FOUR MILLION POUNDS.

Flying Scotsman’s Expensive Return To service Now Scheduled for ‘Late Spring’

The National Railway Museum has announced that the restoration of Flying Scotsman is expected to be complete by late spring 2012.

The iconic locomotive was expected to be completed during the summer of 2011 but unfortunately the project was delayed due to the discovery of a number of additional defects.

These were not spotted while the engine was under repair over the last five years and the engine was presented to the public and financial supporters last May. At this unveiling, it was anticipated that the engine would be operating on the main line by September but cracks were found in the frames, and the wheels also required attention.

The engine was dismantled and remedial work to the frames is currently underway at Riley & Son (E) Ltd in Bury and is focusing on ensuring that the locomotive is in a condition to be able to run for decades to come.

The work due to take place on Flying Scotsman in the next few weeks includes the fabrication and installation of a new mid stretcher, the machining of the axle boxes, the manufacture of a new middle motion bracket and the repair and installation of the horn guides.

Steve Davies, Director of the National Railway Museum, said:

“The Flying Scotsman restoration is one of the most complex steam locomotive engineering projects of its kind ever undertaken in Britain and there is no doubt that it has been challenging. There have been a number of points where unforeseen issues have arisen that have caused the project to be delayed whilst options were considered and decisions were made.

These decisions were taken in accordance with our aims of ultimately maintaining maximum public exposure and enjoyment of the locomotive. In order to achieve this, the planned overhaul has always had safety, reliability and sustainability, both mechanical and economic, at the heart of our decision making processes.

“No one is more keen to see the completion of this project than myself, and I’d like to reassure the public that although the restoration has been ongoing for over 5 years, we are extremely close to seeing Flying Scotsman steaming once again. “

The restoration of Flying Scotsman has been generously supported by Tata Steel, formerly Corus, a £275,000 grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund and support from many other generous organisations. Members of the public also generously donated £250,000 to the Steam Our Scotsman appeal.

The engine was purchased in 2006 for £2.3 million pounds and with the overhaul reaching a similar level, nthe total bill could eventually reach five million pounds. Tornado, built from scratch over 20 years cost around three million pounds.

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