Introduction
Initial deployment for the class upon their introduction in 1967 was on the West Coast Main Line (WCML). The aim was to speed-up passenger timings on the then non-electrified portion up to Glasgow. By 1974, the entire line had been electrified so the locomotives were re-deployed elsewhere as had been planned. This collection was captured during the mid-1980s by which time all the fleet were allocated to either Old Oak Common (London) or Laira (Plymouth) depots and had been named after ships or shore establishments of the Royal Navy. The last of the fleet had undergone the refurbishment programme in 1983 and all apart, from 50007 Sir Edward Elgar during 1984, were painted in the British Rail 'large logo' style of livery.
The introduction of High Speed Trains (HSTs) on some Western Region services saw the class transferred to other duties involving passenger train movements from Paddington to Thames Valley destinations, Bristol, Birmingham, Hereford and Plymouth. In addition there were several diagrams from Plymouth to Birmingham, secondary services in Cornwall and local services between Bristol and Taunton. By 1984, sufficient Class 50s were available for them to become the locomotive of choice on the Southern Region Waterloo-Exeter route.
Class 50s
from the