7 photos from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences
- 1. Locomotiva a vapore FS Gr 552 - 036 - Museo nazionale scienza e tecnologia Milano: Alessandro Nassiri· CC BY-SA 4.0
- 2. Mus Scienza Tecnica FS 552: Arbalete· CC BY-SA 3.0
- 3. FS Class 552 4-4-0 ‘552 036’: Alan Wilson· CC BY-SA 2.0
- 4. 052MilanoMuseoScienza: MarkusMark· CC BY-SA 3.0
- 5. 20110726 FS 685 and FS 552 Milan Museo 6307: Jakub Hałun· CC BY-SA 4.0
- 6. 20110726 Milan Museo FS 685 and FS 552 6305: Jakub Hałun· CC BY-SA 4.0
- 7. Locomotiva a vapore - Museo scienza tecnologia Milano D0309 2012 03: Breda (costruttore)· CC BY-SA 4.0
what is it?
The Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane (FS; Italian State Railways) Class 552 (Italian: Gruppo 552), formerly Rete Adriatica Class 180 bis, is a 4-4-0 steam locomotive; it was the final development in Italy of the 'American' express locomotive type.
who runs it
base stats
Bars compare against all trains: 600 km/h (maglev), 1,700 seats; power, weight and number built on a log scale up to 20 MW, 1,000 t and 20,000 built.
fun facts
- First built 136 years ago, in 1890.
- Weighs about as much as 8 African elephants (~6 t each).
- 9.2 m long: about 2 cars parked nose to tail.
- Served for 56 years (1890–1946).
steam locomotive: Burns coal, wood or oil to boil water; the steam drives pistons that turn the wheels.
spec sheet
- built
- 1890–1901
- in service from
- 1890
- retired
- 1946
- status
- retired
- number built
- 36
- kind
- Steam
- traction
- steam
- origin
- 🇮🇹 Italy
- builders
- Ansaldo, Breda
- operators
- Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane, Rete Adriatica
- top speed
- 100 km/h
- power
- —
- gauge
- 1,435 mm standard gauge
- wheel arrangement
- 4-4-0
- length
- 9.2 m
- weight
- 48.3 t
From the Wikipedia infobox and Wikidata. Blank means the sources don't say.
Sources: Wikidata Q3836132, Wikipedia: FS Class 552 (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-25.