#3593

British Rail Class 27

🇬🇧 United Kingdom ·built by Birmingham Railway Carriage and Wagon Company· from 1961· class of 69 Bo′Bo′ 1250hp diesel-electric locomotives

🛤️ diesel locomotive diesel preserved

8 photos from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences

1. Carlisle 26066: Steven Duhig from Bowie, Maryland, USA· CC BY-SA 2.0
2. Heljan Class 27 in BR Green: Timitrius from Great Britain· CC BY-SA 2.0
3. Birmingham RC&W Co Type 2 D5384 (8261660333): Hugh Llewelyn· CC BY-SA 2.0
4. Coal train from Nailstone Colliery arriving at Bagworth. Nigel Tout, 10.7.67: Nigel Tout ( http://www.nigeltout.com )· CC BY-SA 4.0
5. Leicester Midland locomotive shed yard, Nigel Tout, 14.8.67: Nigel Tout ( http://www.nigeltout.com )· CC BY-SA 4.0
6. 07.06.82 Inverness MPD 27002 (33274607641): Phil Richards from London, UK· CC BY-SA 2.0
7. 07.06.82 Inverness Depot 27003: Phil Richards· CC BY-SA 4.0
8. 27005 - Glasgow Queen Street (1) (11528731703): Jim· CC BY 2.0

Read about it on Wikipedia ↗

what is it?

The British Rail Class 27 is a diesel locomotive built by the Birmingham Railway Carriage and Wagon Company (BRCW) during 1961 and 1962. They were a development of the earlier Class 26; both were originally classified as the BRCW Type 2. The Class 27s were numbered D5347-D5415.

who runs it

British Rail Scottish Region of British Railways

base stats

speed 145 km/htop speed
power 932 kWpower output
built 69made in total

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 65 years ago, in 1961.
Top speed is 1.1× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
932 kW is about 11 family cars (~85 kW each) flat out.
15.2 m long: about 3 cars parked nose to tail.
Served for 26 years (1961–1987).

diesel locomotive: A diesel engine on board drives the wheels, usually through a generator (diesel-electric).

spec sheet

built: 1961–1962
in service from: 1961
retired: 1987
status: preserved
number built: 69
kind: Diesel-electric
traction: diesel
origin: 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
builders: Birmingham Railway Carriage and Wagon Company
operators: British Rail, Scottish Region of British Railways
top speed: 145 km/h
power: 932 kW
gauge: 1,435 mm standard gauge
wheel arrangement: Bo'Bo'
length: 15.2 m

From the Wikipedia infobox and Wikidata. Blank means the sources don't say.

Sources: Wikidata Q4970765, Wikipedia: British Rail Class 27 (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-25.