Built to replace many of the HSTs and locomotive hauled services operated by (as it was then called) Virgin Cross Country, the Class 221 Super Voyager is similar to the
Class 220 but has a number of key differences. They include being fitted with tilting mechanisms to able to tackle curved track at higher speeds (able to reach 125 mp/h) and they have a different type of bogie. The body and much of the equipment is the same as on the 220 however. The tilting mechanism has been deactivated on 221s operated by Cross Country [1].
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| Virgin Trains 222 105 passes through Hampton-in-Arden |
| Information |
| Number built: |
195 (43 4 and 5 car sets + 2 spare) |
| Built: |
2001-02 |
| Builder: |
Bombardier |
| Engine: |
Cummins QSK19 diesel per car |
| Power: |
(5-car) 3, 750 hp (2, 796 kW)
(4-car) 3, 000 hp (2, 237 kW) |
| Formation: |
Driving Motor Standard Lavatory (DMSL)+Motor Standard
Lavatory (MSL)+MSL+Motor Standard with Miniature
Buffet (MSRMB)+Driving Motor First Lavatory (DMFL)
or DMSL+MSL+MSL+DMFL |
The 221 operates in four and five car formations, two driving cars are kept by Avanti West Coast as a spare. Avanti West Coast (who took over from Virgin Trains in 2019) only operate five-car sets, using them on services on the West Coast Main Line and into North Wales though will replace them with
AT300 bi-mode units from 2022. Cross Country operate the 221 on services across the rail network.
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| XC 221 120 at Leamington Spa |
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| XC 221 124 at Manchester Piccadilly |
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| Virgin 221 118 at Milton Keynes Central |
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| XC 221 122 passes through Tamworth |
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| XC 221 125 at York |
[1] Colin J Marsden, DMU and EMU Recognition Guide (Ian Allan, 2013) p. 175
