Category Archives: Travel

Showing Visitors HydroFLEX

2025 is 200 years after the Stockton and Darlington Railway first operated. While some might debate what the first true railway was, the UK industry is celebrating this year as Rail200. There are events taking place across the country throughout the year. One of these was held at the Severn Valley Railway at Kidderminster and we took one of our trains to be part of the display. This was our HydroFLEX unit, and I went along to support the visitor tours.

HydroFLEX is the first UK hydrogen fuel cell powered unit that is cleared for mainline running. We use it to test the technology and learn what is involved in a hydrogen fuel cell train. There are multiple technologies that will be needed to decarbonise the railway, and this is one of the ways forward that is being explored. We had it open to view at Kidderminster and had a steady stream of visitors coming to look at it. They had lots of interesting questions and some interesting opinions on all sorts of things – many not to do with hydrogen power!

The train is a converted Class 319 – a type I used to ride frequently when Thameslink operated them, and we lived along the Brighton mainline. Three of the vehicles are basically unchanged other than interior changes including a boardroom configuration. The fourth car is the one where everything is different. It has four fuel cells that provide power along with a battery under the vehicle. These fuel cells generate a lot of heat along with the electricity, so large cooling fans are incorporated.

The fuel cells are supplied by high pressure hydrogen tanks. There are 36 of these tanks made from spun aluminium wrapped in Kevlar. We would take visitors through this vehicle to see the changes that make it a hydrogen powered unit along with all of the safety systems. It is a cramped space, so we had to pre-book visitors five at a time. We could have shown many more people if we could have fitted them in because demand was high.

It is really interesting to be involved in a technology demonstrator of this sort. Our team has worked so hard on creating and developing this unit and we have learned so much that will hopefully be taken forward to trial operations and will then feed into the design of a production train. The train regularly goes out on the mainline so you can see it if you are in the right place at the right time.

Gateway Airliners

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Mesa Gateway airport in Arizona does get some airline visitors. Allegiant was bringing some jets in while we were visiting early last year. GlobalX also had some coming in. Judging by how many of their jets I saw off to one side not looking too active, I assume they undertake some maintenance work there too. Not a ton of variety with these two but here are some shots of their planes. Makes a change to not show a GlobalX jet at Boeing Field!

Getting Older with the Post Boxes

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A Georgian post box got a “post” a while back. That one was a regular post box on a road in Winchester. This post box is a lot older as it is Victorian. The fact it is located at a vintage railway leads me to think it hasn’t always been there, but it is still a legitimate post box with collections by Royal Mail. The ornate design is very appropriate for its time.

The Backyard at Pima is Interesting

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The museum at Pima is well stocked with interesting aircraft. However, the backyard beyond the fence for the museum area also provides some interesting stuff. Some of these things are going to be museum exhibits before too long but I am not sure all of them are. During my last visit, there were a few things of note when peering over the fence.

Probably the one that will get most attention is an F-117 Nighthawk. It was sitting alongside a SEPECAT Jaguar (big fave of mine) and an F/A-18C Hornet. There was a Royal Norwegian Air Force P-3 Orion and I think that was in for some work rather than ready to be displayed. Another P-3 was there in AWACS configuration as previously used by the Coast Guard. The fuselage of a Tunnan was close to the fence while a pair of Dash 7s were sitting without engines. An old United 727 was further off as well. What an amazing collection of stuff to get as a bonus during a visit.

The Remains of a Boat

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Walking across to the Duver in St Helens with mum, there is the remains of an old boat that has been decaying for a long time. The remaining sections of the hull look interesting, and the engine is still substantially intact. I got a few shots of it as we wandered by, and it got me thinking that I have made the trip a couple of times in the past when visiting the UK. Was that boat there then and did I take a picture of it? Well, the answer is yes and yes. The last of these shots is what it looked like when I first saw it to compare with its current condition and show how much it has decayed in the approximately 20 years between these shots.

How to Carry Your Jetskis

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This Grumman Albatross is now an exhibit at the Pima museum in Tucson AZ. An Albatross is a cool plane anyway so might be worthy of a post but what I really liked about this one was the joined-up thinking for using it. An amphibious plane is clearly going to be used to “land” on water a lot of the time. When on water, you would really want to have your jetskis to hand. Putting them in the hull and trying to launch them seems like a lot of hassle. Instead, why not mount them directly to the wing and lower them from there directly to the water. Far more efficient.

Some of Lyon’s Trams Look Cool

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I was in Lyon for a couple of days for a work trip. Lyon has an extensive tram network, but they don’t just have regular looking trams. They are clearly bothered about design and style – this is France after all – and so the cabs of some of the trams are far cooler than the average. I don’t know how much extra it costs to get a custom cab design, but I think it is worth it when they make the system look better.

Severn Valley Railway at Kidderminster

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2025 is the 200^th anniversary of the first passenger railways in the world and the UK is celebrating this throughout the year with the Rail200 events. Our company is supporting this at a few events including a weekend at the Severn Valley Railway in Kidderminster. I volunteered to take part in this event so spent a couple of days showing people around our hydrogen fuel cell demonstrator train. More of that in a separate post.

The Severn Valley station is alongside the mainline station in Kidderminster. I guess you had to walk between the two stations when this line was still a part of the national system. The mainline station is a modern looking affair, but the Severn Valley’s station has a far more period feel to it. Here are some images of the station itself. It will come as no surprise to find out that I shall have more posts to come from the weekend before too long.

Canadian Hornets Are a Bit Elusive

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One of the tricky decisions you have to make when photographing planes in the Tucson area is which airfield to focus on. The international airport can have some interesting traffic but it isn’t far to Davis Monthan AFB. It can similarly have some stuff to photograph. However, both can have quiet periods. Where to be? Some Canadian Hornets were deployed to DM during our visit, and we were hoping to get some shots of them – putting aside the irony of a Canadian travelling to Arizona to photograph Canadian jets.

We were down at the International Airport when we saw in the distance that the Hornets were up. A rapid relocation ensued. It isn’t a long trip between the two but when planes are in motion, you don’t have much time to play with. Fortunately, Mark was the designated driver on this trip. As we pulled up to the right area, we got to a red light. The jets were turning on approach so I jumped out of the car and started getting shots. Mark had to find somewhere to safely pull off. I recall he still got some shots but I had it easier as a result of my rapid vehicle exit!

Pima the Following Day

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A bit of a step back for today’s post. This one goes back to early ’24 when Mark and I were in Arizona. We had done a night shoot at the Pima museum the evening before courtesy of our friend Joe. We decided to head back during the following day to see everything in daylight. Despite being early in the year, the temperatures were pretty high and there was a limit to how much I could handle outside. I did get a few different subjects but then it was time to retreat to the hangars to get out of the sun.

The museum was more extensive than I recall from my original visit years ago. I don’t know whether the hangars had all been added since I last visited or I had just not realised what I was missing. Whatever the reason, there was plenty to see. The variety of exhibits is just amazing. Whether it is vintage fighters, old civil aircraft or widebody jets, there is something there for any speciality. The strength of the collection makes it possible for them to get all sorts of exhibits, and their space means that can be of any size. Recently, they have taken delivery of a Martin Mars flying boat, for example. No small task when you aren’t too close to any water!