Steam Locomotive Class 498.1 Albatros

Art.No.: 25498

The most modern design principles determined the construction and at the same time the climax of the last Czechoslovak express steam locomotives. Between December 1954 and June 1955, ŠKODA delivered 15 machines of the 498.1 series as a further development of the 498.0. With the same engine and 18.6 t wheelset load, the three-cylinder locomotives shone with their welded high-performance boiler with combustion chamber and steel firebox with high performance and appealing economy. They were capable of hauling 600 t trains on the level at 116 km/h and on a gradient of 14 ‰ at 30 km/h. The modern standard included the mechanical grate feeder (stoker), the Kylchap double blowpipe, a Škoda-type multiple valve regulator, a water purifier housed in the front dome, and SKF dome and driving rod bearings. The sleek appearance was completed by Witte wind deflectors. The fully enclosed cab added to the comfort of the locomotive crew, especially in the winter season. Sufficient for the hill stretches of the ČSD was the fixed maximum speed of 120 km/h, but significantly higher speeds could be achieved. This was clearly demonstrated by the 498 106 on 27 August 1964 during test runs on the Velim test ring with a top speed of 162 km/h.

While the locomotives were initially stationed at the Prague, Přerov and Žiliny depots, from 1960 the Bratislava depot was home to all of them. This did not change until 1970, when electrification provided new areas of operation. Thus the 498.1 now also ran at the Nové Zámky and Plzeň (Pilsen) depots. The 498 106 even received another HU in 1978 to replace the failure-prone diesel locomotives of the series 753 between Brno and Přerov. Together with the 498 101 and 108 in Pilsen, it lived through 1980, then it was over.

A single "Albatros" remained in Slovakia: the operable museum locomotive 498.104. At the end of 2004, however, the machine traditionally based in Bratislava had to be parked with boiler damage. Many years of refurbishment followed with substantial support from the Albatros Club in Bratislava. Since the beginning of 2006, the locomotive has been on loan to the Albatros Club, which is responsible not only for the maintenance of the 498.104 but also for its operation and the employment of the locomotive personnel. The refurbishment was completed in November 2009 and since then the mighty express locomotive has shone again in its original colour scheme with boiler, cylinder, driver's cab, tender and wind deflectors in steel blue, engine and buffer beam in red and a white continuous stripe from the running plate over the driver's cab to the tender. The roof of the driver's cab is also white.