Berlin Underground Train Class F of the U-Bahn

Описание: The BVG Class F is a train type designed for the large profile routes on the Berlin U-Bahn. 257 units (each consisting of two cars) were constructed between 1973 and 1994 in seven batches. These batches differ in terms of design and technical equipment.
The prototype unit 2500/01 underwent testing from 1973 on. After successful trial runs, regular production started the year after. 112 double units (batches F74 to F79) were delivered to West Berlin until the end of 1981, replacing the remainder of the pre-war Class C. 145 additional units, featuring various improvements, were built between 1984 and 1994 and partly replaced trains from the former East Berlin network after the German reunification.
Being built from 1995 to 2002 the BVG Class H became the successor of the Class F.

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The cars feature a simple design and are made of light metal. They are easily recognizable by their rectangular headlights and (excluding the F74) distinguishable from their predecessors (BVG Class D) by the modified front design with larger windshields and wipers. They are a constructive improvement of the Class DL light metal trains. This allows for a high maximum acceleration of up to 1.5 m/s².
As mentioned before, there are differences between the nine batches in terms of technical components and design: Only the F74, being the first batch, basically uses the same front design as its Class D predecessors, only using a different type of headlights, which also differs from the headlight type of all succeeding batches. While all F74 and F76 were equipped with rollsigns, the F79 was the first batch to make use of split-flap displays that featured different colours for the respective lines and also displayed their number. The F84 and F87 units were equipped with these displays as well. The F90 and F92 were the first batches to feature wider rollsigns; all F79, F84 and F87 were re-equipped with this type of rollsigns in the 1990s as well as all F76 units that underwent refurbishment between 2015 und 2018.
Differing from all previous batches and classes the F84 to F92, built between 1984 and 1994, were the first BVG trains to feature sliding plug doors instead of pocket doors. This allows for a simpler car body construction and easier cleaning. Additionally, the front was slightly altered by using a different type of storm door with a black stripe connecting the front windows. The F84 unit 2770/71 was re-equipped with an open gangway in the early 1990s, in order to test this feature for the upcoming Class H trains.
The F trains are 20 centimeters longer than their predecessors, allowing wider doors and cabs. Moreover they are the only Berlin U-Bahn class featuring transverse seating, with the exception of one Class H unit (5018) where transverse seating was implemented as an experiment.
The maximum velocity of all Class F units is 72 kph, however, the units equipped with three-phase propulsion (F79.3 to F92) were originally designed to reach 80 kph.


Usually the units are summarized as F-Schaltwerker (direct current propulsion) F74 to F79 and F-Drehstromer (three-phase propulsion) F84 to F92. An exception to this is the F79.3 batch that also featured three-phase propulsion, mainly to test this new technology for upcoming orders.
The F76 unit 2578/79 was the first underground train in Europe to feature an experimental three-phase propulsion. As this was never intended for long term service, the unit was re-equipped with a regular direct current propulsion in 1980.
All F74 and several F76 and F79 were equipped with LZB devices to allow automatic train operation that was in regular use on the U9 until 1993. After the final shutdown of LZB in 1998 the devices were removed from all cars, however, traces of the automatic operation (e. g. blind plugs where the departure buttons used to be) could still be found in the cabs many years later.
From 2009 to 2017 refurbished F79 units were in service on the U55 line (which became part of the extended U5 in December 2020), as two-car units were deemed sufficient for the short U55 that only featured three stations. These units were the first to receive extensive refurbishment and served as prototypes for a refurbishment program concerning all F74, F76 and F79.
All F84 and F87 already underwent a small refurbishment in the late 2000s, where the brown interior color was changed to the light grey of the F90 and F92. An exclusion is the F87 unit 2826/27, as this unit was mothballed for several years and was not refurbished before returning to service in 2013. Since the retirement of all A3L71 and F79 units, 2826/27 is the last U-Bahn train in Berlin to feature the classic brown interior.

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