Electrolocomotives of the SNCF in the "Cité du Train" railway museum in Mulhouse. On the left sixaxle Class CC 6500 "Nez Cassé" # 6572.
Road numbers: # 6501-6574.
Manufacturer:AT, MTE.
Power system: 1,500 V DC.
Year of construction: 1969-1975.
Decommissioning: 2006-2007.
At that time it was the most powerful locomotive of the SNCF with a maximum speed of 200 km/h . Typical is its design in the style of the 60s and 70s, the so-called "nez cassé" (broken nose) of the Parisian designer Paul Arzens.
On the right sixaxle class 40100 # 40101. The SNCF CC 40100 was a French class of quad-voltage 4,340 kW (5,820 hp) electric locomotives. They were intended for high-performance passenger services on the Trans Europ Express (TEE) routes of the 1960s and 1970s. This non-stop international working required them to support the electrical standards of several networks. They are significant for combining three innovations in locomotive design: quad-voltage working, three-axle monomotor bogies and the new 'Nez Cassé' body style of French locomotives. The CC 40100 was the first of Paul Arzens' 'Nez Cassé' designs. These used distinctive forward-tilted windscreens, intended to reduce sun reflections. As an international locomotive, French practice was that a central third headlight was placed above the windscreens. For the CC 40100 class, the nose below was quite short and so the roofline overhung the nose. Later classes with this design style had a longer cellular bonnet ahead of the driver, which could act as a crumple zone in an accident. 10 of this locomotives were built in 1964 and 1969/1970 by Alstohm and withdrawn in 1996.
Pictures of French high speed conquest... With all kind of locomotives, trains and infrastructures that participated to improve rail speed and makes the best world records.
