Even if the German ICE Experimental travelled 406.9 km/h on 1 May 1988 and the French TGV
competition retaliated with 515.3 km/h on 18 May 1990 - both are classified as multiple unit trains.
For more than 50 years, the world record for a classic locomotive was 331 km/h. On 29 March 1955, this speed
record was set up by the French locomotive BB-9004 on the Bordeaux-Dax route in the south-west of France.
Reason enough for the rail car manufacturer Siemens to start a new high-speed trial. The "Taurus" series locomotive designated for Austria was selected as the record vehicle. This vehicle is usually only approved for 230 km/h.
For the world record project, the Siemens locomotive manufacturer asked for support and the DEUTA-WERKE were pleased to help. As the specialist for highly secure railway components, Deuta provided the modern MFT 1 Multi-Functional Terminal as the speed indicator and a DRS 05 Doppler Radar Sensor to register the speed.
So-called "approximation trips" had already begun in the past week. Although the speed was increased
from trip to trip, the high mark, however, was still off limits. It was not permitted to exceed the
record mark of 331 km/h during these test trips. And then everything was ready on Saturday: The first
record trip already outperformed the French record by 13 km/h. A top speed of 357 km/h was reached during
the second attempt. This sensational record caused exuberant rejoicing amongst all participants and railway fans.
Deuta was gratified as well. As the supplier of European high-speed trains, it is not unusual to have customers
who want their trains to travel high speeds of approx. 350 km/h, but the Kinding speed record was a memorable
event even for the Deuta-Werke.
