Fábrica Argentina de Locomotoras (mostly known for its acronym FAdeL) was an Argentine manufacturer of rail vehicles which came about as a result of President Juan Perón's

first five-year plan The first five-year plan (russian: I пятилетний план, ) of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) was a list of economic goals, created by Communist Party General Secretary Joseph Stalin, based on his policy of socialism in ...

, which sought to expand national industries to reduce imports from foreign countries. It is best known for producing the ''Justicialista'' diesel-electric locomotive.

History

TALLERES LINIERS Coche motor Presidente Peron jpg

The first diesel locomotive had been designed by Argentine engineer Pedro Sacaggio in 1933. The company began with buying engines from Fiat Ferroviaria and

Cantieri Riuniti dell'Adriatico Cantieri Riuniti dell'Adriatico ("United Shipbuilders of the Adriatic") was an Italian manufacturer in the sea and air industry which was active from 1930 to 1966. This shipyard is now owned by Fincantieri. History In 1930, Stabilimento Tecnic ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

and aimed to manufacture around 600 locomotives. FAdeL's first and most renowned vehicle was a diesel locomotive featured in 1951 by then-president Juan Perón and Saccaggio and nicknamed ''Justicialista''. The first model launched was catalogued as "CM1". On May 1, 1952, FAdeL was officially established by Resolution n° 79 from the Ministry of Transport. The company's first factory in

Liniers Liniers is a barrio (neighborhood) of Buenos Aires on the edge of the city, centered on Rivadavia Avenue. It is also an important train station and bus hub, connecting western Gran Buenos Aires with the Buenos Aires Metro. The neighborhood deve ...

employed over one hundred people and was located in the workshops of the

Sarmiento Railway The Domingo Faustino Sarmiento Railway (FCDFS) (Spanish: Ferrocarril Domingo Faustino Sarmiento), named after the former Argentine president, statesman, educator, and author Domingo Faustino Sarmiento, is one of the six state-owned Argentine rai ...

. The ''Justicialista'' (also the first diesel locomotive produced in Argentina) made its debut on the General Roca Railway, serving on the Constitución– Mar del Plata line towing the ''Marplatense'' express during summer holidays of 1952. The journey took 3 hours and 45 minutes. This machine would also run to

Bariloche San Carlos de Bariloche, usually known as Bariloche (), is a city in the province of Río Negro, Argentina, situated in the foothills of the Andes on the southern shores of Nahuel Huapi Lake. It is located within the Nahuel Huapi National Park ...

(with a journey time of 22 hours 10 minutes) and Mendoza (11 hours 40 minutes) at an average speed of 145 km/h and remained active until the mid 1960s. Although a second model, the CM2, named ''Argentina'' was launched by FAdeL as a successor of the CM1, the Revolución Libertadora which ousted Perón in September 1955 halted any further production. The company then ramped up production under the leadership of the Sacaggio and moved to the

General San Martín Railway The General San Martín Railway (FCGSM) (Spanish: Ferrocarril General San Martín), named after the former Argentine general José de San Martín, was one of the six state-owned Argentine railway companies formed after President Juan Perón's ...

workshops in

Mendoza Province Mendoza, officially Province of Mendoza, is a province of Argentina, in the western central part of the country in the Cuyo region. It borders San Juan to the north, La Pampa and Neuquén to the south, San Luis to the east, and the republic o ...

. After the coup, the plan to build the locomotives was forgotten and the factory closed. The original plans, preliminary studies and equipment for the locomotives was either lost or destroyed while the contents of the factory was sold for scrap. However, the engines bought for the locomotives were used for Materfer's GAIA locomotives in the 1960s.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fabrica Argentina de Locomotoras Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 1952 Defunct manufacturing companies of Argentina Defunct rolling stock manufacturers of Argentina Argentine companies established in 1952 Vehicle manufacturing companies disestablished in 1955 1955 disestablishments in Argentina