Tito’s locos working international trains in Serbia

by

SERBIAN Railways (ŽS) has four EMD JT22CW-2 Class 666 diesel locos built by EMD in the USA in 1978 and mechanically very similar to the Irish 071 Class (also model JT22CW-2 but with different body styling).

ŽS No. 666 003 at Bela Palanka on July 4 with train B1490 09.40 Sofia – Belgrade. The train is diesel operated for the 109km non-electrified section from Dimitrovgrad on the Bulgarian/Serbian border to Nis. D LANGHAM

The ŽS Class 666s were bought by Yugoslav Railways to operate the presidential train for former Yugoslav leader Marshall Tito.

Between Tito’s death in 1980 and the subsequent break up of Yugoslavia in the early-1990s the locos were used alongside other diesels in the ŽS fleet.

Article continues below…
Advert

Monthly Subscription: Enjoy more Railway Magazine reading each month with free delivery to you door, and access to over 100 years in the archive, all for just £5.35 per month.
Click here to subscribe & save

In recent years, they have all been out of use, but in summer 2017 two (Nos. 666 001/003) have been reinstated and used to operate the summer-only international trains between Belgrade and Sofia in Bulgaria (between Nis and the border station of Dimitrovgrad) plus during July 2017 other trains between Belgrade and Bar (Montenegro) which were diverted in Serbia away from the electrified main line.

Read more News and Features in the August issue of The RM – on sale now!


Advert
Subscribe to The Railway Magazine
Enjoy more of The Railway Magazine reading every month. Click here to subscribe.

Railway Reads

From the history of steam through to 21st century rail transport news, we have titles that cater for all rail enthusiasts. Covering diesels, modelling, steam and modern railways, check out our range of magazines and fantastic subscription offers.


Article Tags:

About the Author