25,000-horsepower , 357.2 mph
Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2007 1:43 pm
http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,, ... 57,00.html
A French high-speed train has smashed the world speed record on rails after reaching 357.2mph.
The specially-designed bullet train easily topped the old speed record of 320mph, also set by a French train in 1990.
The double-decker TGV, short for "train a grande vitesse", hurtled along a new stretch of track from Paris towards Strasbourg as crowds watched from bridges over the line.
It had been equipped with larger wheels and a beefed-up 25,000-horsepower engine.
The souped-up train recorded 357.2mph on the speedometer - about the speed of a short-distance freight propeller plane.
Britain's fastest Virgin trains reach a maximum speed of 125mph.
A French high-speed train has smashed the world speed record on rails after reaching 357.2mph.
The specially-designed bullet train easily topped the old speed record of 320mph, also set by a French train in 1990.
The double-decker TGV, short for "train a grande vitesse", hurtled along a new stretch of track from Paris towards Strasbourg as crowds watched from bridges over the line.
It had been equipped with larger wheels and a beefed-up 25,000-horsepower engine.
The souped-up train recorded 357.2mph on the speedometer - about the speed of a short-distance freight propeller plane.
Britain's fastest Virgin trains reach a maximum speed of 125mph.