Azerbaijan Railways to receive FLIRT trains from Stadler

Digital rendering of Stadler FLIRT train for Azerbaijan Railways - Copyright: Stadler

Azerbaijan Railways (ADY) has signed a contract with Stadler for the development, construction, and delivery of 10 five-car FLIRT trains in three different versions – four trains will be inter-regional trains with diesel-electric propulsion (DMU), three will be inter-regional electrical multiple units (EMU), and three will be regional electrical multiple units. The order includes spare parts and depot equipment, and values at €115 million.

Ansgar Brockmeyer, Head of Sales at Stadler, said: “We are very pleased that ADY has added the FLIRT to its fleet after several orders for different vehicles from Stadler. ADY will have a state-of-the-art vehicle thanks to the five-car trains from the FLIRT family. ADY will receive the first diesel-electric FLIRT which meets all GOST requirements.”

This is not the first order ADY has placed with Stadler – previous orders include sleeping cars for the Kars–Achalkalaki–Tbilisi–Baku route between Turkey and Azerbaijan, and double-decker KISS trains – but is the first order for FLIRT units.

The trains have been designed for the Russian broad gauge of 1,520mm, with a vehicle width of 3.48 metres and a vehicle height of over 4.60m. The inter-regional DMU units are 106.76m-long and able to seat up to 271 passengers, whilst the inter-regional EMU units are 92.96m-long and able to seat 236 passengers. The regional EMU units are the same length as the DMU counterparts, but are only able to seat 255 passengers.

Azerbaijan Railways are currently undertaking a broad-based infrastructure project, with multiple main lines being converted from 3kV direct current to 25kV alternating current. Stadler will produce and deliver the four diesel-electric FLIRT trains first in order to ensure that ADY are able to continue operation with sufficient trains during the changeover. The first trains are expected to be delivered to ADY in 2022.