This week it was confirmed that poor old 4507 has run its last mile under its own power.
I believe it was involved in a crash of some sort and has since been parted out at Hutt, giving up bits of its running gear to keep others at the workshops going.
I know its not the fist DC to be retired and scrapped, but I see this one as the first of the new order, the executioner sharpening its axe, so to speak.
To be honest I am not really surprised, and it makes me think back to the movie DA Days and that class's twilight years where even the smallest of mechanical failures or incident would result in the loco being retired for scrap, and I imagine the DC's will slowly vanish through attrition as each one fails in service.
I also am led to believe the next batch of DL's will be here in June and as they enter service the older DL's will head to the lower North Island and begin running the majority of freight services in the region. This I assume will see the master plan finally achieved and we will wave goodbye to the DXB's as they head south to the coal fields and the DC's as they retire.
There is plenty of talk among the troops that DL's will be running milk trains next season and our training on the beasts will begin in earnest soon.
The rail scene in the lower North Island is set to change dramatically in short period of time as the Borg like DL invasion takes over. Soon enough there will only be DL's and DFB's as normally aspirated 645's will only be found in museums.
My advice: Get 'em while you can - you'll miss them when they are gone....
I believe it was involved in a crash of some sort and has since been parted out at Hutt, giving up bits of its running gear to keep others at the workshops going.
I know its not the fist DC to be retired and scrapped, but I see this one as the first of the new order, the executioner sharpening its axe, so to speak.
To be honest I am not really surprised, and it makes me think back to the movie DA Days and that class's twilight years where even the smallest of mechanical failures or incident would result in the loco being retired for scrap, and I imagine the DC's will slowly vanish through attrition as each one fails in service.
I also am led to believe the next batch of DL's will be here in June and as they enter service the older DL's will head to the lower North Island and begin running the majority of freight services in the region. This I assume will see the master plan finally achieved and we will wave goodbye to the DXB's as they head south to the coal fields and the DC's as they retire.
There is plenty of talk among the troops that DL's will be running milk trains next season and our training on the beasts will begin in earnest soon.
The rail scene in the lower North Island is set to change dramatically in short period of time as the Borg like DL invasion takes over. Soon enough there will only be DL's and DFB's as normally aspirated 645's will only be found in museums.
My advice: Get 'em while you can - you'll miss them when they are gone....
521 on Wednesday afternoon.
528 at Stratford, 30 Jan 2013.
AH
RSS Feed