FS E491/E492 Pack Locomotive

FS E491/E492 Pack Locomotive

The FS Class E.491 and E.492 were an Italian electric 25 kV 50 Hz AC locomotives built during the 1980s by the TEAM (Trazione Electrica Alternata Monofase) consortium, formed by FIAT ferroviaria, Ansaldo and other companies. The lines of the locomotive were designed by Italian designer Giorgetto Giugiaro. Group E.491 was designed to be used on freight trains (max speed 140 km/h or 87 mph) while E.492 was designed for fast passenger trains (max speed 160 km/h or 99 mph).

They were intended to be used on the rail lines of Sardinia, at the time subject of future electrification.

After the first necessary dynamic tests in the Turin area and on the Florence-Rome DD, towed by another site, the machine carried out tests on a short section specially set up between Civitavecchia and Aurelia (of the abandoned Orte-Civitavecchia) preceded by the E492-001 and together with E491.004-005.

The E492.001 was transferred to Sardinia in December 1988, where traction tests were carried out under the single-phase catenary of the Sardinia backbone. The remaining five E492s were delivered between 1989 and 1990.
In January 1989 the first E491, the 001, also arrived in Sardinia. All the other machines followed, during the same 1989 and in the spring of 1990, when, however, it was now evident that the single-phase power supply in Sardinia would remain a good dream and nothing more.
A period of transition began during which our loco remained inactive awaiting their destiny, then they were brought back to the continent and “parked”, first for a fee at the Ansaldo in Naples (15 units), then the E491.001-002- 003-004-005-006-009-010 and the E492.001 were admitted to the Rimini locomotive shed and, in November 1999, transferred to the San Marco depot in Livorno where they are periodically maintained and kept suitable for service.

Since the sale to foreign administrations failed, from 1990 to 1995 some machines were used in France for various tests with negative results, in 1988 the Turkish railways stepped forward, but everything faded and in 2000 the Bulgarian railways, but also in this case, either due to economic problems or due to the lack of competitiveness of the product offered, the fate of these 25 unfortunate machines appears increasingly dark.
As also evidenced by the photos accompanying this short article, it is melancholy to see this long line of unusable locomotives left to rot, although practically new from the factory.

Even their reconditioning for use on the new lines under construction is to be considered uneconomical as it cannot make them multi-voltage and therefore unable to access even the initial nodes of the new AC / HS line, therefore there remains only probable radiation and demolition of the same. In fact, in May 2011 there was news of the sale of 9 units to the demolition company Bilfinger Berger of Bari. Between 14 September and 18 October 2016, a further 8 units were sent to San Giuseppe di Cairo for demolition; the other remaining ones also had the same fate.

In November 2016, one example (491.011) was acquired by the FS Foundation to be preserved from the planned demolition, and therefore preserved as a historic rolling stock.

Power: 3400kw
Tractive effort: 221kN
Max speed 140 to: 160km/h
Year from: 1986