The Halle Research Institute needed another high-speed steam locomotive to test new passenger coaches in the 1960s. The new engine 18 201 was created from high-speed tender locomotive 61 002 and parts of high-pressure test locomotive H 25 024. The steam generator was a modified new boiler construction of the class 22 with an extended smoke chamber and Giesl ejector. The machine was equipped with a counter-pressure brake to ensure that the speed was maintained precisely when travelling at high speed. Fast travel meant up to 175 km/h, because the 18 201 was initially approved for this maximum speed – later 180 km/h – but of course only forwards.
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