Czechoslovak State Railways class 555.3

The 555.3 was created in Czechoslovakia by converting the German class 52 war locomotive to oil burning. This was done to increase its power, to reduce the work of the fireman and to reduce the fire risk from sparks. The rebuilding process of 199 locomotives started in 1963 at five locations, one of which was in Ukraine. The walls of their fireboxes were now covered with firebricks. The oil bunker greatly increased the height of the tenders.

They received the nickname “Mazutka” due to their fuel. It soon became evident that the higher thermic load led to damage in the boilers. They were all withdrawn in 1973 due to the oil crisis, although their rebuilding was only a few years ago. Only 555.3008 was preserved. It had been built by Škoda in 1943 and was originally numbered 52 7447. After a lengthy restoration, it is in working order again since 2011.