CarterB wrote:
More specifically, saw some photos of two streamlined steam locos (in tandem at front) assigned to the Fuehrersonderzug. What class were those? any still exist with/without the shrouding?
Those were BR 01.10 with attached streamlining shroud, only used in a single ride for propaganda reasons returning after the Battle of France.
The entire BR 01.10 series (55 built out of 204 ordered and 400 planned) was retired in June 1945 due to the boilers being built out of completely unsuitable steel that was beginning to fail at that point after only 500,000 km and the streamlining shroud on most units being partially missing. 54 were reactivated in 1949 in a reconstruction programme which saw the shroud entirely removed and the boilers replaced around 1953. 33 were rebuilt to oil-firing steam boilers, at which point the BR 01.10 class was split into class 011 and 012. The last of them were retired in 1975.
There is a single BR 01.10 with a replica of the streamlining shroud (01 1102). Suffered an accident in 2004 though and its current whereabouts are rather nebulous. Nine further BR 01.10 without streamlining shroud are in museums, including a running one in the Netherlands.
David Benton wrote:I would have thought they would be reluctant to rely on a electric loco, with the electrical infrastructure easy to sabotage/ attack.
Oddly enough the electrical infrastructure wasn't a problem until ca January 1945 when the Allies began tactical bombardment runs. During the war around 600 electric locomotives - beyond only local networks - were active, which of course pales against the number of steam engines in service at the time (around 7000 BR52, 3500 BR44, 1800 BR42, 1800 BR50, 1000 older models).