FS Class 290
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| RA Class 350 bis FS Class 290 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 FS locomotive 290.319 as preserved | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane (FS; Italian State Railways) Class 290 (Italian: Gruppo 290), formerly the Rete Adriatica Class 350 bis, is a 0-6-0 steam locomotive.
The Class 290 was a development of the earlier Class 270 locomotives, studied under the Rete Adriatica; it kept the wheelbase, but replaced the boiler with a slightly bigger one, with a minimally coned rear ring. Its construction was continued under the new FS management, which made it one of its twelve standard designs; it was the last and most successful 0-6-0 Italian locomotive.[1][2]
The class was built by several Italian and foreign manufacturers, between 1899 and 1913. The first 30 locomotives were fitted with a two-axle tender, with a coal capacity of 3,400 kg (7,500 lb) and a water capacity of 8,000 L (1,800 imp gal; 2,100 US gal); the subsequent ones were fitted with the three-axle tender that would see widespread service under the FS (especially behind the Class 625 and Class 640 locomotives).[3][2]
The first 112 locomotives were classified as Class RA 350 bis (with running numbers between 3631 and 3742); of these, 52 were taken over by the FS in July 1905 upon formation, while the other 60 were taken over by the new Strade Ferrate Meridionali (Southern Railways), a rump of the RA, until its incorporation with the FS in July 1906.[3][2]