[2] These first Finnish locomotives were production experiments, which allowed the State Railways to investigate the construction methods of locomotives.

The State Railways locomotives ordered the construction of a workshop in Helsinki in 1868, at the same time 10 passenger locomotives were ordered from Great Britain for the St. Petersburg railway line (see Finnish Steam Locomotive Class C1).

As a result, the locomotives produced in the Helsinki workshop were similar to those produced in Great Britain.

58 is preserved at the Finnish Railway Museum Until the 1920s it pulled passenger trains in southern Finland.

A5 locomotives were nicknamed "Lankkihattu" because they were similar to the A6 locomotives, which were had with brass steam domes.