PBKA

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Thalys PBKA
Thalys PBKA at Eilendorf.
Interior of Comfort (1st class) coach.
In service	1998–present
Manufacturer	GEC-Alsthom
Family name	TGV
Constructed	1995–1998
Number built	17 trainsets
Formation	2 power cars + 8 passenger cars
Fleet numbers	4301–4307 4321–4322 4331–4332 4341–4346
Capacity	404 seats (120 first class, 284 second class)
Operators	Eurostar
Specifications
Train length	200 m (656 ft 2 in)
Maximum speed	320 km/h (199 mph) (design) 300 km/h (186 mph) (service)
Weight	383 t (844,000 lb)
Power output	8,800 kW (11,801 hp) on 25 kV AC 5,160 kW (6,920 hp) on 15 kV AC 3,680 kW (4,935 hp) on DC
Electric system(s)	Overhead line:     25 kV 50 Hz AC     15 kV  16.7 Hz AC     1,500 V DC     3,000 V DC
Current collector(s)	Pantograph
Safety system(s)	ERTMS level 2, TVM-430, KVB, ATB
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge

Thalys PBKA is a high-speed trainset, manufactured by the French company GEC-Alsthom, and used on the international Eurostar service. Originally built for Thalys (which later merged with Eurostar) they were intended to operate between Paris, Brussels, Köln (English: Cologne) and Amsterdam, forming the abbreviation PBKA. They were initially intended to be sole rolling stock of the service, but their extreme cost and complexity due to their quadri-current capability led the order of a simpler tri-current sister class, the Thalys PBA, a TGV Réseau derivative, with which they can work in multiple (coupled together).

The PBKA trains are quadri-current, capable of operating under the same systems as the PBA sets: 25 kV 50 Hz AC (France), 3,000 V DC (Belgium) and 1,500 V DC (the Netherlands and parts of France), but with the addition of 15 kV  16.7 Hz AC (Germany).

They are a member of Alstom's TGV family of trains. Each set has a power car on each end with three first class cars, a bar car, and four second class cars in between.^[1] The trains are 200 m (656 ft 2 in) in length, weighing a total of 383 tonnes (844,000 lb) with 404 seats (120 first class, 284 second class).^[2]

Their maximum speed in regular service is 300 km/h (186 mph) with 8,800 kW (11,801 hp) under 25 kV AC, 200 km/h (124 mph) with 5,160 kW (6,920 hp) under 15 kV AC, and 220 km/h (137 mph) with 3,680 kW (4,935 hp) under 1,500 or 3,000 V DC.^[3][2]

Seventeen trains were ordered: nine purchased by National Railway Company of Belgium, two by Deutsche Bahn of Germany, six by SNCF of France and two by Nederlandse Spoorwegen.

• SNCF TGV POS
• List of high-speed trains

Media related to TGV PBKA at Wikimedia Commons