The Class 50 Alliance and The Fifty Fund have launched an appeal to raise funds for specialist contractors to be used to clean the fuel tank removed from 50049 Defiance to allow it to be refitted to 50031 Hood.

The fuel tank currently fitted to Defiance was originally fitted to Hood, but was removed from Hood to enable Defiance to continue running.

The appeal bears the name “Tag the Tank” as donors supporting the appeal can have their name professionally applied to the side of a Class 50 fuel tank.

Cleaning and repair of the fuel tank from Defiance must be carried out by specialist contractors, which inevitably costs money, currently estimated to be about £5,000.

Through its “Tag the Tank” appeal and the help of its supporters, the Class 50 Alliance and The Fifty Fund hope that after cleaning and refurbishment, the tank can be refitted to Hood.

In return for their support, donors can have their name:

• Professionally applied to the side of the refitted tank.
• Displayed on a “Hall of Fame” plaque inside Hood’s cab.
• Added to a special page on the Alliance’s website.

Further details about the appeal and how to donate can be found by clicking here.

In 2022, the original fuel tank fitted to 50049 Defiance was removed as part of an investigation to find out why the locomotive suffered from fuel starvation issues.

It was found that the suction pipe inside the tank had become loose and dropped into fuel residues that had accumulated at the bottom of the tank, which prevented the correct amount of fuel from being taken up and was the cause of Defiance’s low power issues.

The residues inside the tank were the accumulated residue from years of hard work by the locomotive.

However, to ensure that the appropriate regulations are complied with, specialist contractors must be used to clean the tank and restore it to a usable condition. Once that work has been completed, volunteers at Kidderminster will re-install the tank as part of the ongoing repairs to Hood.

As well as 50031 Hood and 50049 Defiance, The Class 50 Alliance Ltd maintains 50007 Hercules, 50033 Glorious, 50035 Ark Royal, and 50044 Exeter, all of which are based at the Severn Valley Railway.

In addition, Hercules, Exeter, and Defiance are main-line registered for use on Network Rail’s infrastructure.

The Fifty Fund is a not-for-profit society that promotes the activities of the Class 50 Alliance, raises money to fund its preservation activities, maintains a register of Class 50-related activities, and represents the interests of Class 50 Alliance shareholders.

Further information about Class 50 operations, the Class 50 Alliance, the Fifty Fund, and the locomotives it supports, can be found online at www.fiftyfund-alliance.co.uk.