War-era steam locomotive to connect Hue and Da Nang
01 January 2015 | Vietnam | Article from VN Express https://e.vnexpress.net/news/travel/places/major-tourist-destinations-overrun-by-summer-holiday-crowds-4133855.html
A train company in southern Vietnam successfully restored a war-era steam locomotive that it plans to use to ferry passengers through the Hai Van Pass.
The Di An Company restored the Tu Luc locomotive to Mikado specifications, the standard class of locomotive employed under the United States Railroad Administration, Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper reported.
Engineer Tran Dinh Hung, chairman of the recovery project, said engineers and senior workers at the factory spent over a year restoring the engine's roughly 3,000 parts.
Hung said Di An was hired by Indochina Rail Company as part of a VND6 billion (US$282,000) contract.
The company put the locomotive to a test run on December 28 along the Saigon – Trang Bom track.
Ultimately, it plans to run the train through the tunnel that connects the central cities of Da Nang and Hue under the Hai Van Pass.
Di An also restored four old carriages which it will attach to the locomotive.
A worker at the Di An Train Company in Binh Duong Province adds coal to a 1966 steam locomotive the firm restored and will run through the Hai Van Tunnel in central Vietnam. Photos: Vien Su/Tuoi Tre
Engineer Tran Dinh Hung, chairman of the recovery project, inspects the locomotive following the trial run.
The restored locomotive.
The locomotive crossed through Bien Hoa, Dong Nai Province and neighboring Binh Duong Province on December 28, 2014.