It had, however, been ordered by the Great Western Railway in the 1940s, but construction was delayed due to World War II.

It spent its working life on the Western Region of British Railways, operating express passenger services from Paddington station, London.

It was based on aircraft practice and had six horizontal combustion chambers (spaced radially around the turbine shaft) and no heat exchanger.

18000, there was no auxiliary diesel engine and the turbine was started by battery power, using the main generators as starter motors.

Notes: In early 1958 it was withdrawn from operation and was stored at Swindon Works for a short period before it was returned to Metropolitan Vickers for conversion as a prototype 25 kV AC electric locomotive.