Welcome to "Phil's Loco Photos"

This really was the final trip to Greece for MLW action on the main line, Neil and I did the usual BA flight and then scoured the “traffic book” at Athina to work out our best moves, As always our first day was on the main line and this trip was easier than the last one as trains 507 and 602 had reverted to “real” traction before we got there so being able to storm the main line again in daylight was excellent. We had four MLWs and a Craiova and then did train 602 eastbound from Thessaloniki for our overnight move. Suffered Alsthom junk from Soufli to Alexandroupoulis and then the elusive A-506 for 444 km back to Thessaloniki made it a good day. Early next morning something I’d never seen before - A-501 on the stopper to Serres and A-507 on the Kozani, two massive V16-251F monsters chugging away beside each other, amazing sound. We took A-507 to Edessa and back to Thessaloniki on A-507. Train 507 then produced noise monster A-456 to Athina. I took it all the way and went to the shed and waited to see what was on train 604 going north unbelievably it was something I’d been waiting years for a big MLW! And as it started at Pireaus Port even better! On time in Thessaloniki and much to our astonishment Thessaloniki fuelled it and put it back on, agony watching it leave but it must have failed somewhere as it was back in Thessaloniki later the same day. We went south on A-464 double back with yet another MX636 (A-501 on train 602) an then it all went very wrong with A-555 failing on the southbound Larissa stopper so sadly we finished with a IC cart back to the capital. To the airport next morning, but watching A-456 arrive on the Larissa train and leave without us hurt, that was the final time we left Greece with MLS’s ruling the man line