LNER Class V4 3403 Highlander

LNER Class V4 3403 Highlander is a planned 2-6-2 "Prairie" steam locomotive. It is intended as a third member of the class and will be built to the original designs by Nigel Gresley, the former Chief Mechanical Engineer for the London and North Eastern Railway (LNER).^[1]

Not to be confused with GNSR Class F 49 Gordon Highlander.

LNER 3403 Highlander
Highlander's chimney and a completed set of tyres
Type and origin Power type Steam Designer Sir Nigel Gresley (original designer) Builder A1 Steam Locomotive Trust
Specifications Configuration: ​  • Whyte 2-6-2  • UIC 1′C1′ h3 Leading dia. 3 ft 2 in (0.97 m) Driver dia. 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) Trailing dia. 3 ft 2 in (0.97 m) Wheelbase 29 ft 4 in (8.94 m) engine 13 ft 0 in (3.96 m) tender 50 ft 2+1⁄4 in (15.297 m) total Axle load 17 long tons (17 t) Loco weight 70.4 long tons (71.5 t) Tender weight 42.75 long tons (43.44 t) Total weight 113.15 long tons (114.97 t) Firebox: ​  • Grate area 28.5 sq ft (2.65 m2) Boiler 5 ft 4 in (1.63 m) diameter Boiler pressure 250 psi (1.7 MPa) Heating surface: ​  • Firebox 151.6 sq ft (14.08 m2)  • Tubes 884.3 sq ft (82.15 m2)  • Flues 408.2 sq ft (37.92 m2)  • Total surface 1,799.9 sq ft (167.22 m2) Superheater: ​  • Heating area 355.8 sq ft (33.05 m2) Cylinders 3 Cylinder size 15 in × 26 in (380 mm × 660 mm) Valve gear Outside: Walschaerts Inside: Gresley conjugated
Performance figures Tractive effort 27,420 lbf (122.0 kN)
Career Numbers 3403 Disposition Construction planned

The original V4s were built in 1941 at the Doncaster Works, becoming the final locomotives designed by Gresley prior to his death. Both locomotives initially underwent trials on the eastern region, before their move to Scotland, where they spent most of their time pulling passenger trains around Edinburgh, before running the same services on the line between Glasgow and Fort William.^[1] After their transfer to the Eastfield depot in 1949, they operated goods, and occasional passenger trains to Edinburgh, Perth, and Kinross. The pair were allocated to Aberdeen in 1954, where they operated until their withdrawal and scrapping in 1957.^[1]

At the A1 Steam Locomotive Trust's Silver Jubilee Convention, the group announced that after the completion of P2 Class 2007 Prince of Wales, they would begin construction on a new V4 which will be number 3403.^[2] On the 6 September 2018, the A1 Trust officially announced that it had started the pre-launch stage for project, with a projected cost of £3 million, and an estimated starting date of 2021. It is estimated to take around 5 years.^[3] In October of 2022, the A1 Steam Locomotive Trust announced that 3403 will be named Highlander.^[4][5]