Ferrocarril Transandino Chileno - FCTC "Kitson Meyer" type steam locomotive Nr. 3349 - Museo Ferroviario de Santiago, Chile (Kitson Locomotive Works, Leeds 4664 / 1909)
The metre-gauge Transandine Railway (Ferrocarril Trasandino) operated from 1910 to 1984 between Los Andes, Chile (where it met the broad-gauge Chilean State Railways) and Mendoza, Argentina (where it met the broad-gauge Argentine Great Western Railway). To cross the Andean mountains, the railway had to climb up toward Uspallata Pass, which is about 3810 meters (12,500 feet) above sea level and located near the 6962-meter (22,841-foot) Aconcagua, the highest mountain in the Americas, using the Abt rack system. For this steep line, the Chilean Transandine Railway (Ferrocarril Trasandino Chileno / FCTC) and Argentine Transandine Railway (Ferrocarril Trasandino Argentino / FCTA) used Kitson-Meyer 0-8-6-0 articulated tank engines that produced 850 horsepower. One of the surviving FCTC Type Z engines, No. 3349, was built by Kitson of Leeds, England in 1909 and retired in 1978, long after the Transandine Railway had been electrified. It is displayed on a broad-gauge turntable (with metre-gauge rails added) at the railway museum in Quinta Normal Park, Santiago de Chile
The locomotive originally had Abt rack cylinders on the front bogie but this was removed quite early on due to the boiler being unable to produce enough steam. With its two sister locomotives, it continued to work on the line from Chile into Argentina which featured gradients of 1 in 12.5 until the early 1970s. Sister loco 3348 still exists with plans to restore it to working order
This photo was generously provided by Nick Fisher
www.flickr.com/photos/nick_fisher/2221407016/in/photolist...
Ferrocarril Transandino Chileno - FCTC "Kitson Meyer" type steam locomotive Nr. 3349 - Museo Ferroviario de Santiago, Chile (Kitson Locomotive Works, Leeds 4664 / 1909)
The metre-gauge Transandine Railway (Ferrocarril Trasandino) operated from 1910 to 1984 between Los Andes, Chile (where it met the broad-gauge Chilean State Railways) and Mendoza, Argentina (where it met the broad-gauge Argentine Great Western Railway). To cross the Andean mountains, the railway had to climb up toward Uspallata Pass, which is about 3810 meters (12,500 feet) above sea level and located near the 6962-meter (22,841-foot) Aconcagua, the highest mountain in the Americas, using the Abt rack system. For this steep line, the Chilean Transandine Railway (Ferrocarril Trasandino Chileno / FCTC) and Argentine Transandine Railway (Ferrocarril Trasandino Argentino / FCTA) used Kitson-Meyer 0-8-6-0 articulated tank engines that produced 850 horsepower. One of the surviving FCTC Type Z engines, No. 3349, was built by Kitson of Leeds, England in 1909 and retired in 1978, long after the Transandine Railway had been electrified. It is displayed on a broad-gauge turntable (with metre-gauge rails added) at the railway museum in Quinta Normal Park, Santiago de Chile
The locomotive originally had Abt rack cylinders on the front bogie but this was removed quite early on due to the boiler being unable to produce enough steam. With its two sister locomotives, it continued to work on the line from Chile into Argentina which featured gradients of 1 in 12.5 until the early 1970s. Sister loco 3348 still exists with plans to restore it to working order
This photo was generously provided by Nick Fisher
www.flickr.com/photos/nick_fisher/2221407016/in/photolist...