Queensland Railways 1170 class

The 1170 class were intended as a replacement for the PB15 class steam locomotives on branch lines. They were built by Walkers Limited in Maryborough under licence from GE Transportation.^[1][2]

When the class leader entered service in January 1956 it was numbered 1270, so the class would’ve been called the 1270 class (not to be confused with the later 1270 class), but later that year it was renumbered as 1500, and subsequent locomotives would be numbered 1501-1511. In 1965 the locomotives were renumbered 1170-1181, and for the rest of their lives they were known as the 1170 class.

The class were popularly known as 'Paw Paws' after a racehorse, which in turn was named after a character in a contemporary cartoon strip.^[3]

They spent most of their working lives based at Townsville but in later years were used around Brisbane and the southern region of the state as shunters.^[3] The first unit was withdrawn in 1984 with the final two withdrawn in 1989.

Five units have been preserved, including class leader 1170 retained by the Queensland Rail Heritage Division at North Ipswich.^[1][4]. 1181 Formly located at Herberton Railway Museum is now located at Southern Downs Steam Railway, Warwick waiting an audit and evaluation before being considered for full restoration to operational service.