The 5AT Group was formed in 2001 by a small group of individuals who were attracted by the idea, first put forward by David Wardale in his book "The Red Devil and Other Tales from the Age of Steam ", to build a high performance steam locomotive to a radically new design incorporating the principles of "modern steam" that had been developed by Ing. Livio Dante Porta in Argentina.
The Group expanded over the years, but remained a small team of professional engineers and businessmen working together in a wholly voluntary capacity until the project was suspended in 2012. The Group's members are listed in the Personnel section of this website.
In reaching its decision to suspend further work on the 5AT Project (see announcement page), the group's members have moved on to establish the Advanced Steam Traction Trust (AST) for the purpose of taking forward the knowledge gained from their work on the 5AT.
AST's objective remains the same – to preserve for future generations the experience of witnessing steam traction in main line and heritage line operation into the future.