Boom! Accurascale hits us with a nuclear flask wagon announcement and Class 37 prototype.

These impressive wagons were built by Bombardier/Prorail of Wakefield in 1998 and designed to carry spent nuclear fuel from Royal Navy nuclear submarines from their bases at Devonport and Rosyth to Sellafield for disposal.

As well as these bases, the two KUA wagons have travelled extensively across the UK network, reaching Gerogemas Junction at the top of Scotland, to Washwood Heath and Wembley Yard as well as Eastleigh.

When loaded the KUAs are always accompanied by DRS courier coaches carrying elite protection teams – often Royal Marines or similarly trained Army units - and frequently double-headed to allow for the failure of a locomotive.

The Royal Navy still has numerous retired but fully fuelled nuclear submarines in southern England and Scotland and these wagons are expected to see ongoing use for years to come.

Accurascale sees the KUA as a suitably impressive wagon to complement their forthcoming DRS Class 37/6 range. The production run of the wagons will be a small production run due to the limited nature of the prototypes, which were previously considered to be unlikely to appear in ready to run format.

This project has come about quite quickly thanks to the work of Revolution Trains, who have provided Accurascale with the data and opportunity to produce this specialised and interesting wagons in 4mm scale. Revolution Trains are producing the KUA wagons in N, so customers of both OO and N are served well through cooperation and partnerships.

In addition, despite only being announced a few days ago, Accurascale showed 3D prints of the Class 37, with the designer present to answer questions and talk about the model.

More details of both projects can be found on the Accurascale website.