The British Railways 'Pilot Scheme' orders of 1955 included ten English Electric Type 2 diesel-electric locomotives deploying Napier 'Deltic' engines. These locomotives, more colloquially known as the 'Baby Deltics', were introduced into traffic during 1959 for use on the Eastern Region of British Railways. This book looks at the history of the Class 23s, making extensive use of available but previously unpublished archive material, covering their introduction, technical idiosyncrasies, appearance design and performance. Issues with the original 'Deltic' engines were ultimately dealt with via a major rehabilitation exercise during the 1963-65 period; whilst various re-engining options were considered , including a new 'U' series English Electric high-speed engine design, the original Napier engines were ultimately retained. The work involved in the whole rehabilitation process is discussed in detail using internal English Electric archive material and forms a central focus of research. The fleet survived intact until 1968, when withdrawal commenced as a direct result of declining traffic levels across the UK, with successive National Traction Plans progressively selecting the less successful, non-standard and 'numerically-challenged' classes for removal from traffic. All ten locomotives were withdrawn by March 1971. Individual locomotive histories, allocations, fire and accident incidents, liveries and detail differences, storage and disposals are provided for each locomotive. AUTHOR: Anthony Sayer is a life-long railway enthusiast with an interest in the history of the early British diesel and electric locomotive classes. This is the author's ninth book in the Pen & Sword 'Locomotive Portfolio' series, following on from the North British Type 2s (diesel-electric Classes 21 & 29), the Metropolitan-Vickers Type 2s (Class 28), the Clayton Type 1s (Class 17), the BTH/NBL Type 1s (Classes 15 & 16), the BR/Swindon Type 1s (Class 14, Volumes 1 & 2) and the NBL Type 2s (diesel-hydraulic Class 22, Volumes 1 & 2) books published between 2019 and 2024. Anthony lives in the north-east of England and is now retired after thirty-seven years working in the steel industry with responsibilities in both transport planning and supply-chain logistics. 100 colour, 100 b/w illustrations
