Background
From 1963 onwards the DB Class V 160 had been delivered and deployed in large numbers, and was proving successful. Thus plans were made for testing of further units were made - specifically a variant with electric train heating. These units would require more power than the engines installed in the V 160 could deliver. Three prototype units of the DB Class V 162 (later Class 217) were ordered; with the addition of a smaller supplementary diesel engine, providing via a generator the electricity for electric train supply. (see Head end power)
Another variant was the V 169, this locomotive utilised a supplementary gas turbine to improve overall performance. A General Electric LM 100-PA 104 turbine was chose, using diesel as a fuel rather than kerosene. The locomotive turbine was built under license by Kloeckner-Humboldt-Deutz (KHD) at the Oberursel plant. (see Motorenfabrik Oberursel (now part of Rolls-Royce)
KHD also received the order for manufacture of the locomotive itself, this was done at the KHD-Werk in Cologne and the locomotive delivered on the 4 June 1965 as V 169 001, it then was exhibited to the public at the International Transport Exhibition in Munich. The electric train heating was not yet ready, and so the locomotive did not enter service until January 1966.
From March 1966 the locomotive went onto the Allgaeu Munich to Lindau line for testing, being stationed at Kempten.
In the V 169, the electrical generator for the heating was powered by a shaft from the gearbox of the hydraulic transmission system. This method proved successful and was later used in the DB Class 210 and DB Class 218 locomotives. The fundamental usefulness of the additional gas turbine propulsion was also demonstrated and led to the introduction of the DB Class 210 (with a more powerful turbine: an AVCO Lycoming T53-L 13).
Read more about this topic: DB Class V 169
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