Mallard BASIC
It was also optimised for speed it is named after the LNER A4 class 4468 Mallard locomotive, the fastest steam locomotive in the world, once again displaying the company's fondness for railway-oriented nomenclature. (For instance, see the company name itself.) In fact the Locomotive name came from the phrase "To run like a train" and it was this theme that was used to name Mallard BASIC no other Locomotive product was named after anything railway-oriented.
Race to the North
On the East Coast route, GNR locomotives ran on what was undoubtedly the fastest line in the world but the ""Flying Scotsman"" service was not their fastest train – compared with, say, on routes with more competition. A wide variety of locomotives was in use – the Patrick Stirling 4-2-2 "8-foot" singles, complemented with his 2-2-2 "7-foot 6" singles, were outstanding for speed and reliability, being capable of on flat terrain. The latest express NER engines were Tennant 2-4-0s and the T.W. Worsdell–von Borries compound Worsdell 'F' 4-4-0s which were powerful, although not so fast.
Having compound engines required the development of sufficiently strong steel connecting rods for fast running and the 4-4-0s developed from 2-4-0s when it was found that a front bogie gave greater high speed stability. The East Coast route had no severe gradients and was slightly shorter than the west.