The jet engines guzzled fuel, making the train wildly expensive to operate. Stability was very poor; at high speeds, even small rail imperfections could spell disaster.

The train never ran again, and the jet engine would go on to power airplanes, cars, fire-fighting machinery, snow-blowers, and boats, but not trains. After the 1966 record, ...

The rusting remains of an abandoned Soviet Union jet train, the SVL. And it's thought - with the right track beneath it - the 28 metre train car could have exceeded 220mph.

Jet engines are relatively simple in their basic design, but advancements in gas turbine engine technology have mostly done away with the cool-looking bucket-type reverse thrust systems.