The is a Japanese

diesel multiple unit A diesel multiple unit or DMU is a multiple-unit train powered by on-board diesel engines. A DMU requires no separate locomotive, as the engines are incorporated into one or more of the carriages. Diesel-powered single-unit railcars are also ...

(DMU) type formerly operated by

Japanese National Railways The abbreviated JNR or , was the business entity that operated Japan's national railway network from 1949 to 1987. Network Railways As of June 1, 1949, the date of establishment of JNR, it operated of narrow gauge () railways in all 46 pref ...

(JNR);

JR Group The Japan Railways Group, more commonly known as the or simply JR, consists of seven for-profit stock companies that took over most of the assets and operations of the government-owned Japanese National Railways (JNR) on April 1, 1987. Mo ...

companies such as JR East, JR West, JR Shikoku & JR Kyushu; and later by the

private railway A private railway is a railroad run by a private business entity (usually a corporation but not need be), as opposed to a railroad run by a public sector. Japan In Japan, , commonly simply ''private railway'', refers to a public transit railway o ...

operator

Isumi Railway The is a railway line in Chiba Prefecture, Japan, operated by the third-sector railway operating company Isumi Railway Company. It extends through the central eastern section of the Bōsō Peninsula, linking Ōhara Station in the city of Isum ...

based in Chiba, Japan, by overseas operators such as

Myanmar Railways Rail transport in Myanmar consists of a railway network with 960 stations. The network, generally spanning north to south with branch lines to the east and west, is the second largest in Southeast Asia, and includes the Yangon Circular Railway ...

in Myanmar, and

PNR A passenger name record (PNR) is a record in the database of a computer reservation system (CRS) that contains the itinerary for a passenger or a group of passengers travelling together. The concept of a PNR was first introduced by airlines that n ...

in the Philippines. 112 KiHa 52 cars were built for Japanese National Railways between 1958 and 1966. The design was based on the KiHa 20 series "general purpose" DMU type, but with two engines for use on mountainous lines.

Variants

* KiHa 52 1 – 56: Built 1958–1962 * KiHa 52 101 – 156: Built 1963–1966 * KiHa 52 651: Converted from KiHa 52 101

Livery variations

JNR-era liveries

File:Kiha 52 itoigawa.jpg, Two JR-West KiHa 52 cars in original JNR two-tone liveries in September 2008 File:Kiha52-156.jpg, KiHa 52 156 in "metropolitan" all-over red livery in August 2009 File:Kiha52 125.JPG, KiHa 52 125 in JNR two-tone blue & beige livery in August 2008

JR-era regional liveries

File:JRK-DC52-114.jpg, KiHa 52 114 in JR Kyushu livery in August 1993 File:JRW-Kiha52-125.JPG, KiHa 52 125 in "Oito Line" livery in December 1999 File:JR East DC52 Morioka-color.jpg, JR East KiHa 52s in "Morioka" livery in August 2006 File:Kiha52 121.JPG, A JR East KiHa 52 in "Niigata" livery in September 2008

Resale

Following withdrawal of the last remaining examples operated by JR-West, one car, KiHa 52 125, was resold to the private operator

Chiba Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Chiba Prefecture has a population of 6,278,060 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of . Chiba Prefecture borders Ibaraki Prefecture to the north, Saitama Prefecture to the ...

in April 2011. This unit was built in 1965, and formerly operated on the

Etsumi-Hoku Line The is a railway line operated by West Japan Railway Company (JR West) in Fukui Prefecture, Japan. The line extends 52.5 km (32.6 mi) from Echizen-Hanandō Station in Fukui to Kuzuryūko Station in Ōno with a total of 22 stations. It ...

and

Ōito Line The is a railway line in Japan which connects Matsumoto Station in Nagano Prefecture with Itoigawa Station in Niigata Prefecture. There are two operators on the line: East Japan Railway Company (JR East) operates the section north of Minam ...

in the

Hokuriku region The was located in the northwestern part of Honshu, the main island of Japan. It lay along the Sea of Japan within the Chūbu region, which it is currently a part of. It is almost equivalent to Koshi Province and Hokurikudō area in pre-modern ...

until 2010. File:Kiha 52 izumi line.JPG, KiHa 52 125 in JNR two-tone blue & beige livery in May 2011 File:Kiha 52 izumi line no2.JPG, KiHa 52 125 in May 2011 after repainting into original JNR two-tone vermillion & beige livery

Overseas operations

Myanmar

Seventeen former KiHa 52 Diesel Railcars were shipped to Myanmar to be operated by

between 2007 and 2008. The following cars were transferred to Myanmar as shown:

Philippines

Seven former JR East KiHa 52 cars originally based at JR East Niitsu Transportation Zone were donated in September 2011 to the Philippine National Railways (PNR), where they were used on commuter services in the Manila area. In October 2013, the trains were normally operated as two 3-car formations. The seventh car, KiHa 52 123, in Niigata livery, was taken out of service after operating for only seven months, and is stored at Tutuban Depot as a source of spare parts for the rest of the fleet. The trainsets were retired from passenger service in 2020 and they were replaced by Indonesian-built

PNR 8000 class The PNR 8000 class (also known as the INKA DMUs together with PNR 8100 class) is a diesel multiple unit (DMU) train operated by the Philippine National Railways (PNR) since 2019. Purchase PNR signed a contract worth ( US$9.7 million) with th ...

DMUs on the

PNR North Main Line The PNR North Main Line ( fil, Pangunahing Linyang Pahilaga ng PNR, simply known as PNR North or Northrail) is one of the two trunk lines of the Philippine National Railways in the island of Luzon, the other being the PNR South Main Line. The l ...

. KiHa 52-122 was later refurbished as the newest member of PNR's maintenance fleet in Caloocan, named the "Rescue Train" with the orange livery. The other two units from the KiHa-O trainset are still in storage in Tutuban as of October 2021. KiHa-B trainsets on the other hand were already retired in 2016 and Bicol trainsets were replaced by

KiHa 35 The , along with the similar KiHa 30 and KiHa 36 series, are Japanese diesel multiple unit (DMU) train types formerly operated by the Japanese National Railways (JNR) and JR Group of companies, and later operated by the private railway operato ...

s. The former toilets in each car are locked out of use.

Formation

During their service as commuter trains, the two three-car sets were referred to as "KiHa-O" (for orange) and "KiHa-B" (for blue) named after the liveries they carry. They were formed as shown below.

Preserved examples

In addition to KiHa 52 125 operated on the Isumi Railway, three Kiha 52 cars are preserved in Japan, as listed below. * KiHa 52 115: Former Tsuyama Depot roundhouse,

Tsuyama, Okayama is a city in Okayama Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 102,294 and a population density of 200 persons per km². The total area was 185.73 km². The area increased in 2005 as the result of a merger with adjacent to ...

* KiHa 52 130: Osumi Line Memorial Park,

Shibushi, Kagoshima is a city located in Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. As of October 31, 2021, the city has an estimated population of 30,231, with 15,366 households and a population density of 104 persons per km2. The total area is 290.28 km2. The modern city ...

* KiHa 52 156: Inside Itoigawa Geostation Geopal at

Itoigawa Station is a railway station in Itoigawa, Niigata, Japan, operated by West Japan Railway Company (JR West) and the third-sector railway operator Echigo Tokimeki Railway. It is also a freight terminal for the Japan Freight Railway Company. Lines Itoig ...

Itoigawa, Niigata is a city located in Niigata Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 41,333, and a population density of 55 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Geography Itoigawa is located in the far southwestern corner of ...

References

{{PNR Rolling Stocks 52 Philippine National Railways Japanese National Railways East Japan Railway Company Kyushu Railway Company West Japan Railway Company Train-related introductions in 1958 Rolling stock of the Philippines ja:国鉄キハ20系気動車#キハ52形