In 1928, the South African Railways placed six Class 16DA steam locomotives with a 4-6-2 Pacific type wheel arrangement in passenger train service.

The first six, numbered in the range from 868 to 873, were built in Germany by Hohenzollern Locomotive Works and entered service in 1928.

Their boiler operating pressure was set at 195 pounds per square inch (1,344 kilopascals).

[2][3] During the 1940s six of these locomotives, three from each manufacturer group, were retyred with 63 inches (1,600 millimetres) diameter tyres on their coupled wheels.

To not have their tractive effort reduced by the larger coupled wheels, their cylinders were reamed from a bore of 22 to 23 inches (559 to 584 millimetres) and their operating boiler pressure was raised to 205 pounds per square inch (1,410 kilopascals).

[6][7] In 1939–1940, when new air-conditioned rolling stock was placed in service on the Union Limited and Union Express services between Cape Town and Johannesburg, all the Class 16DA and Class 16E locomotives were transferred to Bloemfontein in the Orange Free State.

After they were finally withdrawn in 1982, one of these three was plinthed alongside the main North road at Hwange.