#3649· HLE 15
Belgian Railways Class 15
🇧🇪 Belgium ·built by Ateliers de Constructions Electriques de Charleroi· from 1962· class of 12 Belgian tri-volage electric locomotives
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10 photos from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences
- 1. Liege Guillemins (2007): Wikimedia Commons· CC BY-SA 2.5
- 2. Brussels Nord EC: Smiley.toerist· CC BY-SA 3.0
- 3. Liege guileminssw: Michael Bienick· CC BY-SA 2.5
- 4. Liege type 15.cropped: Smiley.toerist· CC BY-SA 3.0
- 5. Liege type 15: Smiley.toerist· CC BY-SA 3.0
- 6. Brussel Zuid 1991: Smiley.toerist· CC BY-SA 4.0
- 7. Loc 1503: Filharmoniker· CC BY-SA 4.0
- 8. Train World Schaerbeek (21): Smiley.toerist· CC BY-SA 4.0
- 9. Train World Schaerbeek (22): Smiley.toerist· CC BY-SA 4.0
- 10. Train World, the railway museum in Brussels 05: NearEMPTiness· CC BY-SA 4.0
what is it?
Class 15 is a type of electric locomotive operated by SNCB/NMBS. The locomotives were originally used for cross-border services TEE services between France, Belgium and the Netherlands, and, like the class 16, they became surplus after the introduction of Thalys and Class 11s. They earned their keep in their last years of service by pulling commuter "P" trains in the Liège area.
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 64 years ago, in 1962.
- Top speed is 1.2× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
- At full speed it would cover Amsterdam–Utrecht (≈ 40 km) in 15 minutes.
- 2.8 MW is about 33 family cars (~85 kW each) flat out.
- Weighs about as much as 13 African elephants (~6 t each).
- 17.8 m long: about 4 cars parked nose to tail.
- Served for 47 years (1962–2009).
electric locomotive: Draws power from overhead wires or a third rail and pulls separate carriages.
spec sheet
- built
- 1962
- in service from
- 1962
- retired
- 2009
- status
- retired
- number built
- 12
- kind
- Electric
- traction
- electric
- origin
- 🇧🇪 Belgium
- builders
- Ateliers de Constructions Electriques de Charleroi, La Brugeoise et Nivelles
- operators
- SNCB/NMBS
- top speed
- 160 km/h
- power
- 2.8 MW
- gauge
- 1,435 mm standard gauge
- electric system
- 1,500 V DC , 3,000 V DC , 25,000 V AC
- wheel arrangement
- Bo-Bo
- length
- 17.8 m
- weight
- 77.7 t
- Dutch name
- HLE 15
From the Wikipedia infobox and Wikidata. Blank means the sources don't say.
Sources: Wikidata Q841273, Wikipedia: Belgian Railways Class 15 (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-25.