Rusty the Diesel
Rusty the Diesel is a fictional Ruston & Hornsby diesel engine on the Skarloey Railway in The Railway Series of childrens' books by the Rev. W. Awdry, and the spin-off TV series Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends. He is responsible for hauling maintenance trains for gangers to repair the track. He also occasionally pulls trucks and, when the railway is very busy, passenger trains.
In The Railway Series, Rusty is painted black. He is No. 5 on the Skarloey Railway, and often has arguments with another engine called Duncan.
He is not the only diesel on this narrow gauge railway, sharing duties with No. 9 "Fred the Maintenance Diesel" was another diesel, who was taken ill when it was his turn to haul the weedkilling train.
Rusty in the TV Series
Rusty was introduced in the 4th season of Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends, and ran with an orange coat, rather than his black one in the books. Like all of the engines, he received a larger-scaled model in Season 5 for easier filming. This new model (pictured) has a much larger face than the original. As the series progressed, Rusty isn't as responsible as he was in his earlier episodes, and tends to work in quarries rather than maintenance gangs at times.
