Graham Farish HAA Hopper Wagon
British Railways changed from vacuum-brake stock to air-braking in 1964 and with it came a whole new range of wagons, First amongst these was a vehicle that could speed up the transportation of coal to the power stations - the 'Merry-go-Round coal hopper - what became the HAA with TOPS coding. They were designed for the NCB by a French designer. It had a 27 ton capacity until top canopies were added, increasing the capacity to 32 tons. They were built in large numbers at Shildon, but some were also constructed at Ashford and Darlington. Some got used as oil train barrier wagons. The sample we illustrate is 373-900C in BR silver & brown and numbered 53269.