Just a random A4 question, about 4463/60018

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NZRedBaron
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Just a random A4 question, about 4463/60018

Post by NZRedBaron »

I play a couple of browser games called TrainStation and TrainStation 2; and in both games, they have the same pair of A4's available to collect; one is Mallard in LNER Garter Blue, and oddly, the other is Sparrowhawk, in BR Brunswick Green.

Seeing it show up got me wondering something; Mallard is an obvious choice, but why Sparrowhawk in particular? Did she have an unusual career or something?
Last edited by NZRedBaron on Mon Apr 17, 2023 1:51 am, edited 1 time in total.
Darwin4975
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Re: Just a random A4 question, about 4493/60018

Post by Darwin4975 »

Sparrowhawk is certainly an odd choice. It was always a Tyneside engine and rarely put onto any of the crack expresses. More often than not, seen in grubby condition, it is reputed to have been camera-shy and ended up being the least-photographed of all the A4s.
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NZRedBaron
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Re: Just a random A4 question, about 4463/60018

Post by NZRedBaron »

Certainly seems so; though apparently she had been photographed at least once on the 'up' White Rose in 1954, and according to the SLS, in mid-September 1956, she put in a cracker of a performance on the 'down' Talisman, getting all the way to King's Cross and arriving four minutes early after a lot of delays.
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