Icons of Steam have announced that A4 Pacific steam locomotive No.4464 Bittern will be moved into the former Hornby site at Westwood, in Margate.

Locomotive Storage Limited has purchased the former site, and the locomotive will arrive in Thanet on the 2nd June 2018 and will be on public display whilst it waits in the queue for an overhaul.

Some of you may know that Bittern is a sister locomotive to the world record-breaking Mallard and will be at the new facility operated by Locomotive Storage Ltd.

Since Locomotive Storage Ltd’s purchase, the main warehouse has gone through extensive engineering works to prepare the site for the first arrivals of vehicles. Seven railway tracks have been laid, with access to loading docks to help with loading and unloading.

It is hoped that up to 30 items will eventually be housed at the new site.

Bittern will travel from Crewe in a convoy of low loaders and Bittern will be the first steam locomotive to move into the new facility.

Locomotive Storage Limited is working closely with Hornby, of which, its Visitor Centre continues to occupy part of the Margate site.

The choice of site was obviously picked because of the link with Hornby, which operated the site between 1954 and 2015.

What next?

More news is set to come out in the next few weeks – keep an eye on our news page for the latest!

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