August bank holiday visit of 60163 Tornado locomotive to Nene Valley Railway in Wansford postponed

A locomotive will no longer steam into the area after its bank holiday weekend visit was cancelled.

The A1 Class 60163 Tornado steam locomotive was scheduled to visit Nene Valley Railway in Wansford, where it would operate a number of services on Saturday, Sunday and bank holiday Monday.

But according to the A1 Steam Locomotive Trust, the charity which operates the Tornado, there is not enough time to carry out all of the necessary checks to ensure it will run reliably.

This is because a boiler inspection provisionally scheduled for the end of last week did not take place until yesterday (August 19) leaving limited time for the engine to cool before travel and to address any potential minor issues.

The visit has been rescheduled for October 19, 20, 26, 27.

A spokesperson for Nene Valley Railway said: “We are extremely disappointed that the A1 Steam Locomotive Trust has had to again postpone the visit of Tornado but recognise that this is the result of external factors over which they have no control.

“We are sorry for the inconvenience that this will cause to our booked customers.”

They added: “It is the nature of steam locomotive overhauls that not everything goes to plan but we know that Tornado has a loyal and enthusiastic following and we hope that they will bear with us.

“We are keen to turn this into a positive situation for our customers and therefore the August bank holiday weekend will be our standard steam service with the added bonus that children under the age of 15 can travel for just £1.”