Changes

Withdrawal of the class began in the early 1990s.

D449 entered service at Stoke in December 1968. Renumbered to 50049 in January 1973, the locomotive moved to Bristol in May 1974.

In 1987, 50049 was involved in an experiment to use Class 50 locomotives on freight trains. To that end it was re-numbered as 50149, equipped with modified Class 37 lower-geared bogies, and out-shopped in trainload grey livery with Railfreight decals. Based at Plymouth Laira, two years was spent working china clay trains in Cornwall and heavy stone trains from Devon quarries to London. By 1989 the locomotive has reverted to 50049, being withdrawn from service by BR in August 1991.

50049 was bought for preservation by 'The Class 50 Society', later re-named Project Defiance.<ref>[http://www.fiftyfund.org.uk/index.php/about-us/origins-of-the-fund Fifty Fund history]</ref> Following an overhaul at AWS in Cardiff, it moved to the West Somerset Railway where it was repainted into the Railfreight Distribution two tone grey livery as 50149. Defiance left the WSR to attend the SVR Diesel Gala in 1999, and remained at the SVR thereafter. A year later, in BR Blue livery as D449, it participated in its first mainline with 50031 Hood (as D431) on the Celtic Hoover Railtour in September 2000.

50049 completed an overhaul in April 2016 in time to work passenger service during the April 'Open House' weekend.

==Gallery==