Flying Scotsman R761 R707 parallel run

The Aus Steam festival was one unique time in Australian Railway history, and this was one unique day with LNER 4472 'Flying Scotsman' R761 and R707 doing a parallel run with photo stops northward from Melbourne.

[@askinner621]

3 beautiful steam engines ridden on R761, seen the Flying Scotsman up close with grandparents. A day to remember.

[@Insperato62]

OK Crying my eyes out! Steam engines. Wonderful. One of my very best memories was taking the sleeper London to Edinburgh. The diesel blew up and we had to wait, on a bend, for a filthy little steam engine to come to our rescue and push us into Waverley. She got the biggest cheer ever. Her crew were grinning fit to burst as they chugged past. As we were on the bend we could all see her taking up the strain and push. Wonderful. Totally wonderful.

[@BCSchmerker]

Classy vid of a rare overseas run for London & North Eastern #4472, one of the most recognizable 4-6-2's anywhere, with two sister steamers built for operations in Australia. The South Australian whistle gave #4472 a tone more characteristic of American multichimes than the plain whistle used in Britain.

[@jltrain-zgamingrailfan202x3]

It was a Nathan 6-Chime utilized by the South Australian Railways.

[@johnangelico667]

Sounded great but the Rs had beautiful (Middle-C) steam chimes too - as standard fittings.

[@SJOBrien8906]

once in a lifetime moment! Wish The Scotsman would come back down under!

[@elainelethborg491]

No way! He must never leave his home shores again!

[@Zumzing]

To be fair, Australia has to be congratulated for setting up this show. I can't recall anyone else allowing loco's to run side by side on their railways for any distance. As for which engine is best ? Who cares, just to see these running as they were designed to do is enough for me, what a wonderful sight. Don't you think that it's better to see these beauties working than on static display in a museum somewhere ?

[@buzzygaming7667]

they still are operating

[@warhamsterful]

I saw this happen as a kid, my dad took us kids out and we chased it up to the border. Amazing to see. kzbin.info/www/bejne/lZzCmH-fZ8qdftU

[@jingles837]

the Scotty has been totally restored since her visit down to us..........love to see her back here again.....

[@TrainGunz]

@symphonyofsteam The whistle was fitted to Flying Scotsman in Australia and was a whistle from a South Australian steam loco

[@7822welshsteam]

All steam locos are wonderful!

[@ThompsonSteamtrain]

The 2 R class locomotives were built at North British Works in Glasgow right next to a Doncaster built locomotive amazing.

[@ThomastheE2engine]

@symphonyofsteam it was actuerly because they didn't think that Flying Scotsman's whistle would give enough warning at crossings etc.

[@abloogywoogywoo]

Now that's an epic whistle. Not the "squeak!" it currently has.

[@SouRwy4501Productions]

That’s because it’s an American Nathan 6 chime whistle. The South Australian Railway made heavy use of Nathan 6 chimes on their steam locomotives.

[@DragonStar524]

We'll never see anything amazing like this ever again.

[@ryanseals_]

Im not a big fan of british rail but the flying scotsman with the Southern Pacific 6 chime is awesome!

[@Kimeltuwe2023]

a wonderful tribute to human ingenuity. Machines that integrate the best of human minds and efforts, I feel humbled by these pieces of engineering

[@TrainGunz]

@symphonyofsteam The whistle was fitted to Flying Scotsman in Australia and was a whistle from a South Australian steam loco hence the American tone. The chief engineer in SAR was a Yank.

[@elainelethborg491]

I had the pleasure of seeing Scott in Melbourne. Now in 2022 he is currently in the works being readied for his 100th anniversary next year. It should have always been and should always be a not negotiable rule that his over all appearance be maintained!

[@andrewskinner8560]

Gresley and Hudson designs can't get any better than that.

[@caboose.20]

Andrew Skinner I agree. I like to think the Class A Pacifics are the pride of all British Rail.

[@Larrikins54]

I was riding on Flying Scotsman that day and my then four year old son will never forget it - neither will I!!! I don't know why Brit steam locomotives have such tinny whistles - they spund like boiling kettles. The sound of an Australian steam loco whistle (or is it a siren) is far more evocative. Check out Top Gear race to Edinburgh for a thriling ride on a built as new 'replica' Gresley A4 loco (same as Flying Scotsman). Jeremy Clarkson on the footplate as the fireman working for a change

[@LuckyTrucker1]

Pure madness, absolutely love it though, thanks for posting

[@MattOatenVR]

Awesome Video!!! 5/5 favourite!

[@yeetscreamer6030]

Australia and British steam together in one country is nice but the fact that all 3 are still going strong is just nice, roll on you steaming beasts

[@adfgfds]

The Flying Scottsman with an SP 6 chime??? Wow!!

[@SuperFoxyRailwayProduction6702]

Or it could be a B&O 6 Chime whistle

[@lachlansmith1522]

@@SuperFoxyRailwayProduction6702 its neither, just a standard south aus railways 6 chime from a 600? class steam loco

[@jessesands9426]

Fantastic parallel Steam action

[@symphonyofsteam]

What a great memory of steam... who can define exactly what it is that makes a steam locomotive such an evocative machine??? They say they're the most human like machine we have ever made...

[@mammy83]

wow, how great is it when you can get that close. Id love the UK to allow us to be that relaxed. Thanks so much for uploading this, so unique and its just fantastic

[@jessesands9426]

What an amazing sight!😁

[@theduck2811]

Great video

[@megatwingo]

Wow! Great video. Thumbs up!

[@NorseInOz]

In response to some comments: the whistle fitted to 4472 for this tour came from a scrapped South Australian Railways 720 class 2-8-4. The R class locos were designed in Australia but built by North British Loco (with many defects requiring correction; they weren't NBL's finest work!) 4472 has higher dbhp; Rs have higher tractive effort, but why compare locos built in different ages for different types of traffic? Let's celebrate that they survived and will remain in operating condition!

[@LearnwithJanice]

Hello from Kansas 🇺🇸

[@jingles837]

what made it more tricky, is that in Victoria we run a broad gauge 5'3". where that was shot is one of the only spots in Victoria where you can run broad gauge as in the R classes, beside a standard gauge as in the Scotty.

[@beagle7622]

I was lucky enough to find a fantastic book about the R Class. Out of Print now superb engineering drawings of the engine & tender . The first batch came from England . They were introduced as diesels started to come in. The final ones were oilers from memory. I am not a huge train enthusiast but was in Seymour when the R derailed on new points there. From memory lots of guys with crowbars got her back on the tracks while she was very gingerly towed.

[@johnd8892]

Seventy R class. Two R719 and R748 converted to oil burners in the mid fifties using equipment from the scrapped S class streamliners. R743 was part converted in 1957 when rising oil costs stopped the conversion. Oil burning made them the most available and highest mileage of the R class. Liked by crews but costly to run.

[@beagle7622]

@@johnd8892 The fireman’s job on the S was very hard . The streamlined S ran for around 4 hours non stop with some big hills from Melbourne to Albury. They were shovel feed only. I just don’t understand why they scrapped those locomotives so quickly.

[@johnd8892]

@@beagle7622 always a controversy why the S were scrapped. Worn out after 1.4 million miles or scrapped so as not to show up the B class with faster non stop runs? Special top grade Newcastle coal reserved for them but oil firing resorted to in the last years of use. Also all the R class were built in Glasgow but not as well as they should be. Lots of rework needed after delivery.

[@beagle7622]

@@johnd8892 I knew there was a lot of work done on them here .I saw a photo in the book I was talking about of some on the deck of a ship.. Got the book from the ARHS at Windsor Station I think.. It was a superb book . In the UK now. I heard when I was young that there was controversy about the Scrapping of the S Classes. I was not aware that they used special coal but makes sense.

[@johnd8892]

Should have added that all the R class were made in Scotland at the North British Locomotive Company near Glasgow None made in England or Australia. Lots of problems needed fixing at the Newport Railway Workshops though. The North British work on them was not to a very high standard. North British later supplied British Railways with some very short lived and unreliable diesel designs that soon put them out of business.

[@dwkcamman611]

WOW!!! Superb!

[@cidpusa700]

Beautiful

[@tj-scott]

@adamtorbayexpress You know that the R Class 4-6-4s, the engines in this video, where built by the North British Locomotive Company of Glasgow in the UK.

[@buzzygaming7667]

no it was victorian railways thats why its a "VR R Class

[@thebrummierailenthusiasts5329]

Look at this it’s a race between the flying Scotsman and two Australian locos

[@vrfan]

I was on the R707 hauled train, not that I can remember it as I was too young... Thanks for uploading.

[@boleamj]

She sure made a long journey to Australia! Holy crap!

[@lornawhite7087]

Beautiful combination

[@denisecassel3392]

Oh how fantastic!

[@BrucieMagik]

Lovely footage :) Also I never knew Scotty was fitted with a Bell chime type american whistle??? I dare say it was likely just for Auz and USA tours?

[@mattybutler1985]

@Ashton Any idea what became of it after she came home? I'd like to imagine the whistle stayed under the cab for years and no one noticed XD

[@lachlansmith1522]

@@mattybutler1985 whistle was long removed an may have been used on some other loco's in aus since then

[@mattybutler1985]

@@lachlansmith1522 Ah, interesting.

[@indiantrains4156]

fantastic capture.....a must watch......

[@TraindudeShields]

kind of weird seeing the scotsman pulling Australian carriages

[@VictorianRailHeritage]

JulianTrainKid 2019 Productions he*

[@Uno_611]

and with an american whistle

[@460faust]

thats a dieing breed in the us...to watch 3 take off at full steam..racing...im glad to watch this video on here,, must have been an awesome sight inperson

[@johnangelico667]

Yes, you're right, it was. My family and I and friends were on that trip. That was a great year for us all.

[@JBofBrisbane]

@captainkmanOFP857 - Had you been around then, you could have done what I did and chase the Scotsman from Greenbank all the way into Roma Street. It double headed with 3801 on that leg of the journey.

[@askinner621]

Thanks to my grandparents I saw the Flying Scotsman

[@askinner621]

My grandparents went on the scotsman I saw it when I was 3

[@Benjy5997]

@Engineer5344 Possibly the Australian railways just required the engine to have a louder whistle?

[@sector5514]

3 legendary steam locomotives

[@AshHill07]

Its just amazing how something normal can become so famous. The only thing really that seperates 4472 from other A3 Pacific locos was a corridor in the tender and the number. It was a modified A3 with only 1 aim. To get from the South of England to the North of Scotland without having to stop. And somehow it became more famous than the 4468 Mallard which still holds the record for worlds fastest Steam Locomotive.

[@johnangelico667]

It was originally an A1, modified into an A3.

[@TrevsOutbackandGoldAdventures]

Lovely!

[@luketansiongco3953]

The whistle reminds of atsf 3751's current whistle

[@bectivewest]

Luke Tansiongco it was off a former South Australian Railways 500 class mountain Designed by the then commissioner of SAR W.A Webb, Who was a former director of the St Louis Southwest system.....if you look at the rest of his designs it’s not hard to see where his inspiration came from

[@KBRAILVIDEOS]

Fantastic clips. think one day when 4472 has returned from its extensive overhaul (providing the other locos in this video are still active) should come to the UK to perform such event here.

[@trainman9024]

the R's really wouldn't be able to go anywhere

[@symphonyofsteam]

They still are truly wondrous machines... and there are so few of them left that the amount of smoke they emit won't have any greater effect on the atmosphere than the diesel fumes emitted from a small fleet of local transport trucks delivering the newspapers that report on global warming!

[@wezza60]

The Victorian Railways R class were all built by North British Locomotive company in Glasgow, 1951- 52 hence thats why they look british, They are a beautiful locomotive, but they never lived up to their full expectations, due to the B class Diesel starting service in July 1952, and quite a few of the B class diesels are still in service.

[@andrewskinner8560]

2 Hudson's and a Gresley beautiful engines.

[@JBofBrisbane]

Wow - check out the sky behind them at 0:27. Must have been one cow of a storm.

[@beagle7622]

I remember thinking how big the wheels on the Flying Scotsman were . They were huge.

[@johnd8892]

Quite a few larger though. This from France likely the record kzbin.info/www/bejne/nYO1dH2qmdyWmqc

[@symphonyofsteam]

Well said! And yes, we must all bow in humble gratitude to the brits!! :)

[@666Wizardsleeve]

I know my dad drove the Flying Scotsman when it came to Victoria, but I don't know if it was this particular day.

[@coimbatoreehl6503]

Wow Mind blowing

[@mazzar35]

@ASDEV1L No chance, Scotsman is a standard gauge locomotive.

[@brucetharpe762]

1:11 was flying scotsman blowing that whistle

[@brucetharpe762]

But I never knew she blew a whistle like that. I thought they used the British whistle.

[@PolarBear71169]

I think maybe the whistle change had something to do with regulations in Australia and the whistle had to be a certain type, I think

[@defalt1772]

The Polar Bear . The original whistle on The Flying Scotsman wasn't loud enough by Australian standards. That's why the louder whistle was used

[@Uno_611]

1:15 the whistle sounded american Edit: kinda

[@johnangelico667]

@@Uno_611 See other comments on the South Australian source of the chime whistle.

[@AlcoLoco251]

The Australian version of the Huntington '91 NRHS convention.

[@Bellakelpie]

@adamtorbayexpress All 3 of these loco's were UK designed and built!! The 2 "R" Class loco's were made by the North British Locomotive Company. Shows how much you really know.

[@johnd8892]

R class designed in Victoria by the Victorian Railways. But all definitely built by North British in Glasgow. Local workshops too busy with repairing run down equipment after the war. North British did not do a good job so lots of local re work needed. The book Hudson Power documents this well.

[@adriankingston4338]

😃 WOW!!

[@Engineer5344]

@KingofTomedy i just saw that too. guess one of the crew members loved american whistles and mounted it on. who knows right

[@AmericanRailfan]

Very Cool!

[@CrisisOnACanoe]

It's because her 'bell' whistle didn't carry for long enough, or because it was legal requirement.

[@JaeV2000]

That is so amazing. If only that did that hear in England

[@johnangelico667]

Do not wish that upon yourselves. Gauge problems still plague our continent. Scottie got to Brisbane Qld, but no further because the rest of the Qld system uses 3'6" narrow gauge. South Australia has had three gauges, as has Victoria with broad/Irish, standard and 2'6" narrow gauge. Western Australia has two: standard gauge in the Pilbara iron ore region and 3'6" in Perth. NSW is the only state with an all-standard gauge system.

[@robbiewales3007]

Sadly this won't get repeated

[@mikevalesenior]

all steam engines are great no matter which country they were built in but we all know they were invented here in the UK .

[@rileyodonald3034]

Very cool

[@jacky_c_photography]

Where was this? would sure like to go see "the Flying Scotsman" in action this year (2011) and whens the next Aus Steam Festival?

[@johnangelico667]

That part of the run was parallel from Somerton, a suburb just north of Melbourne city, to Seymour - about 70km. At the time the rails were a pair of broad gauge with a single standard gauge next to them. That's what allowed for the triple parallel run - with special permission of course.

[@Driftbus.Productions.official]

3 stream engines rolling down the track

[@ramrjamr97]

As a big papyrus fan, I’m happy to support his brother on a day like this. Happy birthday Scotsman.

[@TheRubberDuck]

You have to admit out of the 3 trains the Flying Scotsman looks better

[@aidenteszke9000]

Duck

[@tasman763]

@Cardean903 quite right too ! Chapelon and Walscheart for ever ! ( amen ! ) . And I dont compare Kiwi locos ( I am a Kiwi ) with an A4.....one look at the drivers will tell a person why ! I love the Aussie locos too ( S38 ? ) , and I dont compare them to the SA mallets, why would you ??? And I have a lot of time , respect , and admiration for the big duplex US locos , and that Hudson that Mr Dreyfuss designed. I think they are all pretty good in their own right

[@littleorangeclock]

@adamtorbayexpress - As a proud Victorian railfan, I take full offence to your comment that our fabulous R Class Hudsons are "disgusting"; besides - the R's were built at the Vulcan Foundry in England, so you're essentially calling your country's own product "disgusting".

[@johnangelico667]

Nope - North British Loco in Glasgow. Vulcan was the source of the J class (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victorian_Railways_J_class).

[@bankerbertha]

@NscaleRR It is 4472 on the front (at 0.22), just pixelation makes it look like 4672 I think ;-)

[@istvankis1001]

Csodálatosak

[@SuperThewatch]

Hmm... what a beautiful engine they are! Only one thing that bothering me: Buffer and chain + knuckle. How did they couple it??

[@hubertcumberdale6527]

The rear of the Scotsman's tender has a swivelling knuckle/chain coupler.

[@Stoker58]

@symphonyofsteam Im no expert but they American whistle may have been from its US tour I don't know when this was filmed though.

[@johnangelico667]

This was from the Austeam '88 steam festival - a year-long steam extravaganza as part of our bicentenary celebrations in 1988-89. The whistle came from South Australia where Webb was CME for a long time. He brought his long US experience and influence to bear on loco designs. The steam chime came with him, natch.

[@symphonyofsteam]

Very strange comments... I'm sure most of us around the world would agree 4472 is a superb engine. I think all Australians who saw her would agree... But to call our wonderful engines disgusting is such an ignorant comment, and its certainly not the reason I share these videos with the world, to have people be negative and ignorant...

[@cobbss1405]

anyone know if at 1:10 if that's scotsmans whistle? it sounds way to deep

[@johnd8892]

An ex South Australian Railways multi chime whistle was fitted so as to be more audible and safer approaching level crossings. The standard whistle was not up to safety standards for audibility although left fitted. All with the agreement of the Flying Scotsman owner Lord McAlpine who was present on many of these runs in Australia and enjoyed it very much.

[@cobbss1405]

@@johnd8892 oh cool! thanks for letting me know! appreciate it!

[@Thomasnumber1fan101]

@jessef23 no not at all i think they look amazing just like the others do

[@schrap72]

Wicked!

[@Alzaar_The_Gunzel]

Imagine Flying Scotsman met an S class, or even H220?!

[@Comeng_]

S class scrapped and h220 taken out of operation before this

[@tyronewasup]

S class Steam Locomotive used on the Spirit of Progress will give 4472 a run for its money!

[@trainman9024]

what about Mallard

[@johnd8892]

@@trainman9024 the S did much better on the steep grades and heavy trains of the Spirit of Progress but not top speed. Mallard could only cope with gentle gradients and lighter trains. Speaking to the people involved with setting up this tour, the original plan was to have Mallard tour Australia.

[@trainman9024]

@@johnd8892 yes I know about the orginal plan

[@PeaceyPraps]

Could someone please explain to me why Scotsman has his whistle in front of the rear bogie? That is THE most random place for it!

[@symphonyofsteam]

That whistle was just fitted temporarily, so I guess it was a good spot regarding steam pipes and control access from the cab..? If anyone else can shed some light - please do!

[@engineer6325]

It was most likely placed there due to space issues. That whistle sounds like a multi chime, (As in a 3 or 5 chime), and to get a whistle tone like that the whistle has to be a certain size. And it was most likely the case where there wasn't any room for it atop Scotsman boiler.

[@exilfromsanity]

Not sure but it could be low clearance issues on the line it was designed and built for. (?) She has a very short stack and flattened dome too. With that large diameter boiler and tall drivers ( I believe they were 80" in diameter) she might have been too tall to mount the whistle on top of the boiler.

[@AshHill07]

That definitely isn't the whistle that Flying Scotsman used in service, I assume it was fitted specially for the trip to Australia. Maybe, much like the Americans insisted on visiting steam locomotives being fitted with a bell, the Australians insist on them being fitted with a specific size whistle, and they put it down there to avoid having to remove the fitted one on the boiler.

[@Taskforce-fc8bo]

Zephyr4501 The flying scotman from thomas and friend the great race

[@andgate2000]

@adamtorbayexpress Uk steamers have the wousiest whistles........stylish though.

[@miravanleeuwen1375]

I've rode R707

[@TrainTrackTrav]

She sounds like ATSF 3751!

[@symphonyofsteam]

More strange comments... why would anyone want to compare such engines? They are all great, each made for a specific purpose under specific designers who knew their brief. Mind you, lets not forget the age difference, 4472 was built in 1923, and regardless of anyones likes or dislikes, she is probably the most identified loco in the history of steam. PS.. you spell 'against' like this.. against.

[@ronthecyborg]

That whistle doesn't fit the Scotsman at all. Other than that, excellent footage! I day to remember!

[@symphonyofsteam]

That whistle appeared there around this time, it was mounted for a gag I expect, it didn't replace the original whistle on the top of the boiler... Also of course it was a very 'American' sounding job, very non-British!!!

[@jacky_c_photography]

@TMRReturns Would they happen to get The Flying Scotsman back in Melb sometime again? cos i would really love to see it

[@doctorbum1321]

bril vid

[@METAGALAXIS04]

👍🚂🚂🚂👍

[@conwaytwitty33]

@symphonyofsteam I find most non-British locos (barr some of the streamlined US ones from the 30s/40s) look far more utilitarian that their British counterparts, but I certainly don't think they look disgusting!