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British Rail Class 159

The British Rail Class 159 is a class of British diesel multiple unit passenger trains of the Sprinter family, built in 1989–1992 by British Rail Engineering Limited (BREL)'s Derby Litchurch Lane Works as Class 158. Before entering traffic, the original 22 units were modified at Rosyth Dockyard to Class 159 to operate services from London Waterloo to Salisbury and Exeter St Davids, replacing various locomotive-hauled passenger trains.

The units were originally branded by Network SouthEast as South Western Turbo.

History and design
In the late 1980s, the locomotive-hauled stock on Network SouthEast's West of England route from London Waterloo to Salisbury, Yeovil Junction and Exeter St Davids was in urgent need of replacement. The Class 50 locomotives were not suited to the stop-start nature of the route, and frequently broke down. Because of the long sections of single track west of Salisbury following the Beeching cuts, a single breakdown could cause chaos. Various options were considered including electrification, shortened HSTs, construction of new locomotives and stock (a passenger version of the proposed Class 48), or the proposed Class 171 (which would have been part of the Networker family, an intercity version of the Class 165 – not to be confused with the later Turbostars). A study found the best options were electrification or new DMUs.

With the UK economy in decline in the early 1990s, it was found that Regional Railways had over-ordered Class 158s at the same time as Network SouthEast was looking for a similar number of new diesel trains. NSE agreed to take on the surplus Class 158s.

The original 22 units were built as Class 158 units, but were rebuilt by Babcock Rail in Rosyth Dockyard before entering traffic. This entailed fitting first-class accommodation and retention toilets, and various other modifications. The rebuild was required because it was not possible for Network SouthEast and the newly privatised BREL to agree terms on the variation order to NSE specification.

The first unit (159004) was handed over to NSE on 6 January 1993.

The units converted to Class 159 specification during construction are numbered 159001–159022, with individual vehicles numbered 52873–52894 and 57873–57894 for driving motor vehicles, and 58718–58739 for intermediate motor vehicles. The entire class is maintained at a purpose-built depot at Salisbury.

In 2007, eight further Class 159 units were created through the rebuilding of surplus Class 158 units displaced from TransPennine Express.

The units feature BSI couplers. This enables them to work in multiple not only with other units from the same class, but also and the classes of the Pacer and Sprinter families.

Accidents and incidents

 * On 4 January 2010, Class 142 diesel multiple unit 142029 collided with a train composed of two Class 159 units at Exeter St Davids. Nine people were injured.
 * On 31 October 2021, South Western Railway Class 159 unit 159102 collided with a Great Western Railway Class 158 train at Fisherton tunnel in Salisbury. As a result of the damage caused following the incident, 2 carriages of 159102 (vehicles 57803 and 58703) have been written off with vehicle 52803 being retained as a spare.

Operations
The units were dedicated to the West of England sector of Network South East, operating services between London Waterloo and Exeter; they also worked services between Salisbury and Southampton and on the Reading to Basingstoke line, replacing elderly DEMUs. They then transferred to the South West Trains shadow franchise in readiness for privatisation.

Upon the privatisation of British Rail, the West of England route passed in 1996 to the South West Trains franchise, which was won by the Stagecoach Group. Starting in 2000, units were progressively refurbished and repainted from Network SouthEast's blue, red and white livery into South West Trains' express livery. Other post-privatisation modifications included clearer LED destination displays, upgraded air-conditioning, and more openable windows.

Currently, the Class 159s operate mainly from London Waterloo to Salisbury/Exeter in formations of six, eight, or nine coaches (2 × Class 159, 2 × 159 plus 1 × 158, or 3 × 159 respectively) and between Salisbury and Exeter in three- or six-coach formations. Until the December 2009 timetable change, some trains continued beyond Exeter to Paignton, Plymouth and Penzance; these usually operated as three-coach units, though at weekends there were some six-coach formations. These services are now operated by the Great Western Railway. The service to Bristol Temple Meads is now also in the hands of Class 159s.

Since 2006, the original Class 159 fleet of 22 has been supplemented by eight three-coach 158s (renumbered into the 159/1 series) and 11 two-coach Class 158s. The decision to standardise on 158s and 159s allowed the nine Class 170 'Turbostar' units to be transferred to other operators. Eight went to First TransPennine Express, with the remaining unit going to Southern for integration into Class 171 Turbostars.

Routes Served
These trains serve the following routes:

 * London Waterloo to Basingstoke, Salisbury and Exeter St Davids via Yeovil Junction
 * London Waterloo & Salisbury to Yeovil Pen Mill (Via Westbury or Yeovil Junction)

2000
South West Trains began a refurbishment programme for its 22 Class 159/0s in 2000. The seats were re-trimmed and interiors repainted. The units were repainted into SWT livery.

2008
The units received another refurbishment in 2008 at Wabtec Doncaster. CCTV and PIS (Passenger Information Systems) were installed, new seating was installed in first class and at the same time the units received a modified version of the SWT express livery (with orange doors as opposed to the red doors on Class 444 units) for compliance with disabled access regulations.

Class 158 conversions
Eight of TransPennine's surplus three-coach Class 158 units were refurbished to match SWT's existing Class 159 units at Wabtec Doncaster, and renumbered into Class 159 subclass /1. The first updated units were delivered to South West Trains in November 2006, and by May 2007 all of the new subclass were in service.

The refurbishment included making the first-class accommodation area larger and completely refitting it, brighter interior lighting with new diffusers and the plating-over of the disused toilet in the MSO vehicle. The Class 159/1s have been fitted with retention toilets. Additional alterations include the installation of a Passenger information system (PIS) and CCTV as is fitted on the 159/0s.

The converted units however retained their original Cummins NTA855-R1 engines, which produce 50 hp less power than the R3 variants fitted to the Class 159/0 fleet.

title: British Rail Class 159


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Talk:Irish Setter

Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment
This article is or was the subject of a Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment. Further details are available on the course page. Student editor(s): Lohockley.

Above undated message substituted from Template:Dashboard.wikiedu.org assignment by PrimeBOT (talk) 00:47, 17 January 2022 (UTC)

Untitled
I really did go through ALL the photos on stockxchg, really I did, and rejected bunches for reasons like this one--out of focus and not a very clear depiction of what the breed looks like. But I won't argue about it being here since we don't have a lot of other breed shots. Elf | Talk 00:51, 5 Oct 2004 (UTC)

Jumping Dog Picture
Good picture, Quadell. An action shot for an active breed.Wcrowe 21:51, 5 Oct 2004 (UTC)

Polish Links
(There's a joke in there, somewhere) I removed the links to Polish Setter sites. This is an English webpage. Additionally, anonymous edits piss me off in general. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Wcrowe (talk • contribs) 16:57, 22 March 2005 (UTC)

 * Now now... don't bite an all ;) -- sannse (talk) 23:45, 22 Mar 2005 (UTC)

AKC? Really?
At some point the following paragraph was added:
 * In recent years, an effort has been mounted to return this breed to the hunting field. To do this, an outcross was suggested, but the American Kennel Club (AKC) (the predominant registry for Irish Setters) did not approve the plan, as the AKC focus on this breed tends to be in the show ring rather than the field.

This paragraph doesn't ring true. Surely it is the national breed club, the ISCA, who sets the breed standard, and would be the ones to make a ruling on this. The Dogfather 19:35, 26 January 2006 (UTC)
 * If it's anything like in the UK, I believe the situation is something like this. The individual Irish Setter club, whichever that may be represents the breed and owners as a group for whatever area it's based in and has its own show and the like, but ultimately (in Britain) it is the Kennel Club which makes decisions such as this regarding all breeds of dogs. I may be completely wrong however. My knowledge of the breed's history (as well as the differences between European and American Setters) is reasonably extensive and I keep meaning to add more to this article, but my knowledge of the community set-up is limited. I know others who know it very well however and will raise this point the next time I see them. - Hayter 19:44, 26 January 2006 (UTC)
 * Some of my (agility) classmates were talking the other week about some breed (don't recall which) in FSS or Misc class that the AKC wanted to close the stud books on but the breed club didn't want to--maybe i misunderstood, because I know this is complicated. I'll try to track down whoever it was and see whether I can get clarification there, too. Elf | Talk 20:03, 26 January 2006 (UTC)

 * Because I thought this paragraph so suspicious, I wrote the ISCA and inquired about it. Here is the response I received (in part):
 * I do not see the purpose in highlighting the dispute which arose within the Irish Setter community during the 1950's. One breeder elected to cross English Setters with Irish Setters and was able to register them with the FDSB. The Irish Setter Club of America asked AKC not to accept those dogs into the AKC registry. This request was granted. Today almost all our field-bred stock is registered with AKC. AKC takes no position about preferring show stock over any other breeding lines. That statement in your article is incorrect.

 * I also believe that your statement about the FDSB being the predominant registry for English Setters in incorrect. Some English Setters, as well as field bred Irish Setters, are dual-registered with AKC and FDSB.

 * Field bred dogs are referred to as Irish Setters according to AKC and to the Irish Setter Club of America, which is the Parent Club for Irish Setters in the United States.

 * Sincerely,
 * Connie Vanacore
 * AKC Delegate
 * ISCA Foundation Board member
 * Author of the "Official Book of the Irish Setter,( TFH publications, 2000)

 * This explanation is good enough for me, I think think a removal of that portion of the article is in order.The Dogfather 20:16, 27 January 2006 (UTC)

I posted the portion that was removed. I am certainly willing to defer to those who know more about the breed than I, however I believe that all of the information was accurate. I have just done a bit of follow up research to make sure. The book "Gun Dog Breeds" by Charles Furgus has a lengthy discussion of the outcross and resulting FDSB registered hunting Red Setter. There is a long series of articles on this in Gun Dog magazine as well that is searchable on that magazine's website. It seems rather one-sided to remove all reference to the debate because one of the parties, namely the AKC, would prefer that it not be highlighed.

Counsel

Connie Vanacore, the AKC delegate, implies that the AKC registry is on equal footing with the FDSB with respect to certain breeds, especially those who are of field lines. This is incorrect. The AKC is predominantly a bench show registry; while many hunting breeds (including the Irish red setter) are dual registered, the FDSB registry is considered the dominant registry for breeds that are used for hunting and field trialing. Ms. Vanacore also noted that a "breeder elected to cross English Setters with Irish Setters and was able to register them with the FDSB." This statement trivialized the efforts of that breeder (Ned LeGrande) and also the efforts of dozens of breeders who worked with him. The origins of the National Red Setter Field Trial Club are immersed in that effort, and it certainly does merit "highlighting", if not the dispute, certainly the results, for it is those efforts which gave the Irish red setter its restoration as a bird dog. AKC field lines, by the way, are also descended from those outcrossing efforts of the 1950s. The AKC ban on reciprocity did not occur until 1975, and was instigated by the Irish Setter Club of America (ISCA), a predominately bench and show organization.

I also note that it is stated by the AKC delegate that the ISCA is the "parent club" for Irish setters in the United States. That is also not true... the ISCA is the representative breed club for the AKC in the United States. It is not the parent club for the United States. In fact, the National Red Setter Field Trial Club (which also has a breed standard) is the parent club for FDSB Irish setters. Breed clubs do not have exclusive rights over all aspects of the breed, in that there are more than one canine registry in the United States. AKC historically has had exclusive reciprocity rights with international breed clubs; however, that is also changing, especially in the working dog community, as more hunters and field trialers encourage registries not to be bound to the bench show mentality that permiates many of the registries in the USA and Britain.

Allen Fazenbaker Member of the Board of Directors National Red Setter Field Trial Club http://www.nrsftc.com

Working Red Setters
I posted a bit above this. Still new to Wiki.

I have found an even longer discussion of the development of the Red Setter on the National Red Setter Field Trial Club's website. (I added a link to the Irish Setter article). Perhaps this information would be better placed under an article on the "Red Setter" rather than the Irish Setter article. I do not have a dog in this fight, HA HA. I hunt primarily flushing dogs and I certainly do not intend offend anyone. It just seems that if one were using Wikipedia to research Gun Dog breeds, an article that leaves all of the information about the Field Dog Stud Book Red Setter out does the breed a disservice. As the article stands, it states that this is now primarly a house pet breed. While this may be true for the majority of the dogs, it is not the whole truth and is not the purpose for which the dogs were bred initially.

--Counsel 03:10, 30 January 2006 (UTC)

 * Unless the distinction exists in the US, "red setter" is simply an erroneous term for the irish setter. - Hayter 09:06, 30 January 2006 (UTC)

 * It's not a question of taking offense, but a question of accuracy. I too have hunted with dogs all my life. What are often thought of as "breeds" in the field are not recognized as breeds by kennel clubs.  The "Brittanies" I hunted with in my boyhood would not conform to the breed standards for Britannies as found in most kennel clubs around the world (those dogs were clearly cross-bred with English setters).  Many people who work dogs in the field don't care about breed standards, but only how well the dogs work.  I recommend you create an article on the Field Dog Stud Book and explore things from that angle.  You can then create a "see also" link in the Irish Setter article to point to that information. In my mind this approach would satisfy everyone and would also be accurate.The Dogfather 16:06, 30 January 2006 (UTC)

Sounds good. I will get started on it. --Counsel 16:38, 30 January 2006 (UTC)

This is an excerpt from a bit in Gun Dog magazine from the February/March issue of 2005. Yes I am one of those types who keeps the old magazines filed much to my wife's chagrin. As an inset to a much longer article on the Irish Setter this mini-article on Nomenclature was included. Perhaps it will be helpful. This is from page 42 of that issue:

"Though 'Irish Setter' is still the general and popular name for this Mahogany-coated gun dog, 'Red Setter' is also used by some to distinguing the more newly developed and so-called 'hunting' version of this breed from the old-style 'Irish Setter' show dog. Adding to the confusion are those who feel the original Irish Setter gun dog was never entirely lost to the bench folks but instead was maintained by a few avid game-bird hunters in North America and Europe.  This remnant, the arguement goes, still exists as the original Irish Setter and has been successfully bred to revive the pure breed. Adding to the controversy and confusion are breeders who combine the so-called pure and original 'Irish' setter to produce the 'Irish Red Setter'.  Many hunters who just want a good gun dog don't care about those distinctions". --Counsel 16:53, 30 January 2006 (UTC)

More on Registration
The AKC delegate stated among other things that he did not thing that the FDSB was the predominate registry for English Setters, however according to the AKC site only 657 English Setters were registered witht he AKC in 2005. It is not hard to imagine that the FDSB which registers primarily pointing breeds and registers 5,000 litters a year would be the predominate registry.

I think that the information about the field bred Red Setter is better posted on the Irish Setter article (rather than a separate Red Setter article). I have verified all of the information that I posted and found at least two sources to back each portion of it. I understand that as far as this breed is concerned the AKC may be uncomforatable with a portion of the history as it is one of the breeds most often cited in criticism of that organization. --Counsel 21:53, 30 January 2006 (UTC)

Recombine Red Setter with Irish Setter
I think that Red Setter should probably be a topic within this article, per Seanoquinn|Counsel's info above. See Talk:Red Setter. Elf | Talk 17:54, 1 February 2006 (UTC)

I agree. Perhaps stick all of it under a heading entitled "Red Setter Controversy" with the photo there.--Counsel 18:20, 1 February 2006 (UTC)

 * I added the merge tag to both pages. Just to clarify my position, I think Red Setter should be brought into this, rather than the other way around. - Hayter 13:21, 2 February 2006 (UTC)
 * If you look at the merge tags they can be made directional. I have done so for you. Fiddle Faddle 09:50, 25 June 2006 (UTC)

Yes. I mean a controversy heading on the Irish Setter Page.--Counsel 17:08, 2 February 2006 (UTC)

As owner of two Irish Setters from kennels devoted solely to breeding Irish Setters for field work, I very much disagree with lumping Red Setters together with Irish Setters. In fact, the field champ photo on the Irish Setter page is the grandfather/uncle of my older and younger dogs. My guys are smaller than the AKC show standard with a less showy coat but very much have the distinctive Irish Setter look. Quite frankly, the so-called Red Setter may have Irish Setter blood in them along with a bunch of others and that is something quite different from the Irish Setter. If folks want designation of Red Setters as a distinct breed native to the US, fine. Petition the AKC and other governing bodies for such recognition. My guys are pure Irish Setter AND every other twig on their family tree ARE field champions. Infusion of the Red Setter into the mix either in actual breeding or reference pages is unneccessary and unwanted, thank you very much. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Red Dogs in the house (talk • contribs) 00:03 8 October 2006 (UTC)

 * I moved the unsigned bit above to this spot as it seems to fit here better. The statement above is a bit contradictory.  It starts out saying that the Red Setters (presumably the FDSB dogs) should not be lumped in with the AKC Irish Setters, but finishes by saying that if the Red Setters want to be recognized as a separate breed they should petition the AKC, inter alia, for such recognition. The anonymous author seems to believe that the AKC is the sole authority on what a dog is. The FDSB has already recognized them.  Many of these owners do not want AKC recognition as they see it as detrimental to the working characteristics of the breed.  The fact that one of the dogs on the page is both the grandfather and uncle of your dogs is exactly what many see as a primary problem with AKC breeding.  My guess is that many of the dogs in your family tree have FDSB Red Setter blood if they are all field champions.  The two were officially mixed liberally before the AKC-FBSB split and surreptitiously afterward.  I continue to support combining and placing the Red Setter material under the heading "Red Setter Controversy"--Counsel 00:28, 8 October 2006 (UTC)

Comment: the unsigned note above implies that the "field champ photo" shown on the Irish Setter page is "pure Irish Setter". For the record, that particular dog (Brophy's Absolute Power) is (like nearly all of Brophy's bloodlines) a direct descendant of the outcrossings of the National Red Setter Field Trial Club. "Unsigned" should do his/her homework and look at the pedigrees of his dogs... they are indeed "red setters." Brophy blood lines are founded on the lines of Col. Ed Schnettler's Saturday Night Kennels. Col. Schnettler was an avid supporter of the National Red Setter Field Trial Club and an avid contributor to the Purest Challenge. To state that such dogs are "pure Irish setters" is a meaningless statement, as virtually all Irish setters (both show and field) have been outcrossed with other breeds (as most canine breeds have been for years). The term "red setter" is used by most hunters and field trialers to distinguish Irish setters who still have hunting ability from those show dogs that do not. Counsel notes (correctly) above that the separation of AKC and FDSB lines took place long after the liberal mixing of FDSB and AKC genepools. He is absolutely correct. The "red setter" should NOT be placed in a separate category, either by AKC or any other registry. They are registered as "Irish Setter" in the FDSB registry as they have been for years. I reiterate... the split on AKC and FDSB took place at the insistance of select members of the Irish Setter Club of America, who in 1975 petitioned the AKC to prohibit reciprocal registration with FDSB Irish setters. Allegedly the request was due to concerns regarding illicit outcrossings; however, most field trialers of the time comment that the superior ability of the FDSB red setters was also a factor. The National Red Setter Field Trial opposes the establishment of a separate breed category for red setters. Our dogs are Irish setters. If anything, it is the Irish setter show dogs which should be given a separate category, for it is those dogs who have departed from the intent of the breed, which (to quote the AKC breed standard) is to breed "an active, aristocratic bird dog...afield, he is a swift-moving hunter" Unfortunately, most Irish Setter show dogs today are not bird dogs, and therefore are in gross violation of their own standard. The FDSB Irish setter (AKA: red setter) is 100% birddog... we meet the primary criteria of both our standard as well as that of the AKC.

Allen Fazenbaker Member, Board of Directors, National Red Setter Field Trial Club

"Red Setter" controversy
Whatever. Spell the controversy out under the heading. The current section gives no clue what it's about. Koro Neil (talk) 07:03, 9 September 2009 (UTC)

Madra Rua
Hi, this just got removed on the basis that it is a joke. My understanding is that madra rua is gaelic for red dog and is a common name for the breed in Ireland, can anyone confirm this? pcrtalk 18:54, 19 November 2007 (UTC)

Well, in my area of ireland, people use "madra rua" for the red fox (After all a fox is red and dog-like, "madra rua" IS irish for "red dog"), though I'd say the somewhat more common irish term for fox is "sionnach". If you check out e.g. http://www.irishdictionary.ie/dictionary and put in "fox", you'll see both given as a translation.

 * Yes, while madra rua literally translates as "red dog", it in fact means "fox" and is a synonym of sionnach. I've added a source showing that the Irish word for Irish Setter is sotar rua, which literally means "red setter". +Angr 12:29, 14 June 2009 (UTC)

Madra Rua, meaning "Red Dog," was the title of a poem on Irish setters written by Irish poet, Patrick Reginald Chalmers, and published in his book, Gun-Dogs, in 1931. 9:36 pm, July 31, 2009 user: flotirisher  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 65.55.67.210 (talk) 01:43, 1 August 2009 (UTC)

Sionnach
Gaelic like most languages uses idiomatic expression. It is correct to say Madra means Dog, however Rua means Russet. The Gaelic for red is Dearg, Dog can be translated as Gadhar, Madra or Cú (Hound) &c. If one uses the expression Madra Rua one then one refers to the Red Fox (Vulpes Vulpes). The fox is of the Dog family and appears russet, ipso facto, Madra Rua. What may confuse non gaelic speakers is that Sionnach may be given in the Dictionary as the Fox, if a larger Foclair where perused one would find Madra Rua equals Fox. Consider Dobhar Cú; Water Hound: Otter. Madra Crann (more commonly Iora Rua: "Russet" Squirral): Tree Dog: Red Squirral. Fia Rua: Wild Red: Red Deer. Fia Buí: Wild Yellow: Fallow Deer. Consider the English Sea Dog, it is the obsolete term for Shark and currently is a term for a Sea Man. Setter is used in Modern Gaelic: Setter Rua. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 193.1.88.48 (talk) 13:11, 16 July 2008 (UTC)

 * I take my hat off to you sir. You certainly know your stuff.--Tuzapicabit (talk) 00:34, 25 August 2009 (UTC)

Uh, No
...As they are usually alert to their surroundings, Irish Setters are well-suited as guard dogs, as they will efficiently lick an intruder to death.... Although this was a very witty edit, I removed it. Sorry. The Dogfather (talk) 15:33, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

 * Not good guard dogs? They bond with their family members and will protect them to the death. My first Irisher saved my life when she stayed between me and a bear hiding in a thicket and kept pushing me back towards the road, while running towards the thicket barking loudly, then coming to push me back (It finally dawned on dense me that I'd better get us out of there! We found the bear tracks in the thicket an hour later.) But not a general guard dog in the sense of a Doberman or German Shepard (to name a few). Flotirisher, 10:17 EDT, July 31, 2009

 * I get the feeling they objected to the factual and extremely accurate comment about them licking people to death rather than being dogs who protect. AWoodland (talk) 07:27, 1 August 2009 (UTC)

 * Our Irish setter was agressive to strangers when they acted suspicious, he would not bite but would warn them off well. |They are big dogs and will protect their family - they're not as pacifist as the article will suggest.--Tuzapicabit (talk) 00:37, 25 August 2009 (UTC)

Breed picture
The dog in the picture is not standard. The muzzle is too tall, and the body is too broad to be a setter. The dog looks more like a retriever than an Irish setter. It is not representative of the breed. -Nikbro (talk) 05:14, 25 July 2011 (UTC)

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title: Talk:Irish Setter


text: Category:Polish ski jumpers

title: Category:Polish ski jumpers


text: User talk:67.70.81.106

title: User talk:67.70.81.106


text:
Big Lots

Big Lots Stores, Inc. (stylized as Big Lots!) is an American discount retail chain headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, United States.

History
The Big Lots chain traces its history back to 1967 when Consolidated Stores Corporation was formed in Ohio by Sol Shenk. In 1982, Consolidated Stores Corp. opened its first closeout store, called Odd Lots, in Columbus, Ohio. In 1983, drug store chain Revco bought New Jersey closeout retailer Odd Lot Trading Co. As Consolidated's Odd Lots stores expanded from Columbus, Revco took issue with the fact that another closeout retailer was operating a chain with national aspirations that had a similar name as the Revco-owned subsidiary. Consolidated Stores Corp. agreed to limit their use of the Odd Lots name to stores located within a certain radius of Columbus. Beyond the radius, Consolidated began opening stores under the Big & Small Lots name. Eventually, all Odd Lots stores were rebranded as Big Lots.

Consolidated Stores Corp. was an investor in the DeLorean Motor Company, which declared bankruptcy in 1982. Consolidated took possession of approximately 100 DeLorean models, then still at the factory in Northern Ireland, when the U.S. importer was unable to import them. This unusual excess inventory acquisition is commemorated on the Big Lots website's "Closeout Museum" page. In 1985, Consolidated Stores Corp. began trading as a separate public company on the American Stock Exchange. In 1986, Consolidated Stores Corp. switched to the New York Stock Exchange, trading under the symbol CNS.

In 1994, Consolidated Stores Corp. acquired Toy Liquidators, adding 82 stores in 38 states. Looking to expand further into the toy business, Consolidated Stores Corp. purchased KB Toys from Melville Corporation in 1996. Shortly afterward, Melville purchased Revco and folded it into the CVS Pharmacy chain on its way to becoming CVS Health, making the "Odd Lots" dispute moot.

In 1998, Big Lots Inc. bought out 'MacFrugals' (Pic 'N' Save) stores for $995 million in stock, converting them to the Big Lots brand.

In 2000, Consolidated Stores Corp. sold the KB Toys and Toy Liquidators lines to Bain Capital. A year later, Consolidated Stores Corp. changed its name to Big Lots, Inc. and its ticker symbol from CNS to BIG.

In the later part of 2005, Big Lots closed 170 stores, including all free-standing Big Lots Furniture specialty stores.

On August 3, 2006, Big Lots announced that it would change its New York Stock Exchange ticker symbol from BLI to BIG, beginning with trading activity on August 18, 2006.

In October 2023, CreditRiskMonitor reported that Big Lots was nearing a potential Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing. The company closed 52 stores in 2023.

In July 2024, Big Lots announced the closure of 35 to 40 underperforming locations nationwide, blaming inflation and high rising costs as part of the decision. The company warned that it may not be able to survive the rest of 2024 and that a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing would be imminent. Throughout 2023 and 2024, the company lost over $100 million in sales.

Big Lots Wholesale
Big Lots operated a wholesale division which provided merchandise in bulk. Big Lots closed its wholesale division at the end of the 2013 fiscal year. The Columbus-based closeout retailer had conducted wholesale operations through Big Lots Wholesale, Consolidated International and Wisconsin Toy for more than 34 years.

Big Lots Canada
On July 19, 2011, Big Lots announced that it had purchased Liquidation World Inc., a Canadian closeout retailer with 89 locations. The cost of the acquisition was $20 million in cash and the assumption of certain liabilities. This represents Big Lots first retail venture outside of the US. The first Big Lots location in Canada opened in April 2013 in Orillia, Ontario, followed by Burlington, Niagara Falls, St. Catharines, and Thunder Bay (all in Ontario as well). Big Lots exited the Canadian marketplace in 2014, citing poor sales.

title: Big Lots


text:
North American F-107

The North American F-107 is North American Aviation's entry in a United States Air Force tactical fighter-bomber design competition of the 1950s, based on the F-100 Super Sabre. It incorporated many innovations and radical design features, notably the over-fuselage air intakes. The competition was eventually won by the Republic F-105 Thunderchief, and two of the three F-107 prototypes ended their lives as test aircraft. One is on display at the National Museum of the United States Air Force and a second at Pima Air and Space Museum.

Design and development
In June 1953, North American initiated an in-house study of advanced F-100 designs, leading to proposed interceptor (NAA 211: F-100BI denoting "interceptor") and fighter-bomber (NAA 212: F-100B) variants. Concentrating on the F-100B, the preliminary engineering and design work focused on a tactical fighter-bomber configuration, featuring a recessed weapons bay under the fuselage and provision for six hardpoints underneath the wings. Single-point refueling capability was provided while a retractable tailskid was installed. An all-moving vertical fin and an automated flight control system were incorporated which permitted the aircraft to roll at supersonic speeds using spoilers. The flight control system was upgraded by the addition of pitch and yaw dampers.

The aircraft's most distinguishing feature is its dorsal-mounted variable-area inlet duct (VAID). While the VAID was at the time a system unique to the F-107A, it is now considered to be an early form of variable geometry intake ramp which automatically controlled the amount of air fed to the jet engine. Although the preliminary design of the air intake was originally located in a chin position under the fuselage like the Vought F-8 Crusader, the air intake was eventually mounted in an unconventional position directly above and just behind the cockpit. The VAID system proved to be very efficient and NAA used the design concept on their A-5 Vigilante, XB-70 Valkyrie and XF-108 Rapier designs.

The air intake was in the unusual dorsal location as the Air Force had required the carriage of an underbelly semi-conformal nuclear weapon. The intake also severely limited rear visibility. Nonetheless, this was not considered very important for a tactical fighter-bomber aircraft at that time, and furthermore it was assumed that air combat would be via guided missile exchanges outside visual range. In an emergency, the ejection seat was designed to blast directly through the non-jettisoning canopy and bring the pilot swiftly clear of the air intakes. In non-emergency operation, the canopy opened by sliding vertically upwards via guide mechanism, rather than the typical arrangement of a hinged or horizontally sliding canopy.

A two-seat version of the F-107 was proposed by North American, which seated both crewmembers under a single canopy in an extended forward fuselage, but none were built.

In August 1954, a contract was signed for three prototypes along with a pre-production order for six additional airframes.

Designation and names
Extensive design changes resulted in its redesignation from F-100B to F-107A before the first prototype flew. The F-107 was never given an official name, but was sometimes informally called the "Super Super Sabre" referring to North American's earlier fighter design, the F-100 Super Sabre. The designation "F-107A" was the only one assigned to the aircraft, though "YF-107A" is often used in publications. The aircraft is also informally called the "Ultra Sabre".

Operational history

The first F-107A (serial number 55-5118) with North American's chief test pilot Bob Baker at the controls, made its initial flight on 10 September 1956, attaining Mach 1.03. After the successful test flight, the brakechute did not deploy, which resulted in a "hot" landing with the nose gear strut breaking. The aircraft first achieved Mach 2 in tests on 3 November 1956.

It was joined by the second F-107A (55-5119), which made its first flight on 28 November 1956. It was used for weapons testing with both conventional and atomic bombs. The last prototype, (55-5120) had its maiden flight on 10 December 1956. At the conclusion of the F-107A's successful test program, the Tactical Air Command decided to hold a fly-off competition between the F-107A and the Republic F-105 which was designed to same mission requirements and used the same engine. Although the competition was close, the F-105 was selected as the new standard TAC tactical fighter. The three F-107A prototypes were relegated to test flying and the pre-production order was cancelled.

In late 1957, prototypes #1 (55-5118) and #3 (55-5120) were leased to the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) for high-speed flight research. Aircraft #1 is now in the collection of the Pima Air & Space Museum. In September 1959, with Scott Crossfield at the controls, aircraft #3 was damaged during an aborted takeoff. The aircraft was not repaired and, ultimately, used for fire fighting training and was destroyed in the early 1960s. (55-5120 was also noted to be stored in poor condition in the Tallmantz collection at Orange County Airport California in September 1970.)

Prototype #2 (55-5119) was not used by NACA and flown on 25 November 1957 to the National Museum of the United States Air Force at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton, Ohio.

Variants

 * NA-212
 * North American design or charge number.

 * F-100B
 * Original military designation for the NA-212, not used

 * F-107A
 * Military designation for nine prototype NA-212s ordered, only three built.

Aircraft on display

 * 55-5118 – Pima Air and Space Museum, adjacent to Davis-Monthan AFB in Tucson, Arizona.
 * 55-5119 –On display in the Research and Development gallery at the National Museum of the United States Air Force at Wright-Patterson AFB near Dayton, Ohio.

title: North American F-107


text:
Stagecoach Group

Stagecoach Group is a transport group based in Perth, Scotland. It operates buses and express coaches in the United Kingdom.

Stagecoach was originally founded in 1976 as Gloagtrotter, a recreational vehicle and minibus hire business. During the early 1980s, it took advantage of the deregulation of the British express coach market, launching services from Dundee to London using second-hand Neoplan coaches, competing against the then state-owned National Express Coaches and Scottish Citylink. Stagecoach purchased several recently-privatised national bus groups from London Regional Transport, the National Bus Company, Scottish Bus Group and various city councils, as well as pursuing those that had opted for management buyouts and employee-owned corporations. During August 1996, Stagecoach acquired roughly one-third of all passenger rolling stock in the UK via the acquisition of the recently-privatised leasing company Porterbrook; it sold the company on four years later. In 1997, Stagecoach was awarded the franchise to operate the recently privatised Sheffield Supertram system. In 1998, it purchased Prestwick Airport.

Following the sale of its London bus operations to Macquarie Bank in 2006, Stagecoach UK Bus concentrated on the bus market outside the UK capital. During 2007, the Virgin Rail Group, in which Stagecoach held a 49% stake, was awarded the East Midlands franchise. In July 2007, it commenced operating the Manchester Metrolink tram network. During January 2009, Stagecoach purchased Preston Bus, a former rival in the Lancashire area, but was promptly compelled to sell it by the Competition Commission. In October 2010, it expanded further by re-acquiring East London and Selkent, Stagecoach's former London bus operations. During March 2015, Virgin Trains East Coast, in which Stagecoach held a 90% shareholding, commenced operating the InterCity East Coast franchise; the franchise was terminated early three years later as it was unable to fulfil the agreed payments.

During April 2019, private equity house Variant acquired Stagecoach's US division in exchange for $271 million. In April 2019, Stagecoach was disqualified from participating in three rail franchise competitions by the Department for Transport after it submitted non-compliant bids. During September 2021, it was reported that rival company National Express entered into talks to acquire Stagecoach. In May 2022, a rival takeover offer from a DWS managed investment fund bought Stagecoach.

Background and early years
The origins of Stagecoach Group can be traced back to 1976, at which point Ann Gloag and her husband Robin Gloag established a small recreational vehicle and minibus hire business called Gloagtrotter based in Perth, Scotland. Ann's brother, Brian Souter, an accountant, joined the firm and expanded the business into bus hire. In 1982, following the collapse of his marriage to Ann, Robin Gloag sold his ownership stake in the business and ceased any involvement. Around this time, the company would benefit greatly from the deregulation of the British express coach market in the early 1980s; specifically, the Transport Act 1980, which freed express services of 35 miles and over from regulation by the Traffic Commissioner, brought new opportunities for the company and services were launched from Dundee to London using second-hand Neoplan coaches. For a while, the company offered a very personal service with Brian Souter doing the driving and Ann Gloag preparing sandwiches and other snacks for the passengers.

Between 1981 and 1985, the company grew significantly, successfully competing against the then state-owned National Express Coaches and Scottish Citylink. Stagecoach entered local bus operation with the acquisition of McLennan of Spittalfield, near Perth. Its early success allowed Stagecoach to take advantage of the privatisation of the national bus groups. Several firms were purchased from London Regional Transport, the National Bus Company, Scottish Bus Group and various city councils. The company consolidated its operations during the 1990s by purchasing ex NBC and SBG bus companies that had been purchased via management buyouts and employee-owned corporations when privatised. In 1988, Stagecoach withdrew from the long-distance express coach market, selling its operations to National Express.

1990s
During the privatisation of British Rail, Porterbrook was formed as one of three rolling stock companies owning around a third of passenger railway locomotives, multiple units and coaching stock running on Network Rail's system which is leased to various train operators. Porterbrook was privatised via a management buyout before being purchased by Stagecoach for £825 million during August 1996. The acquisition garnered some public controversy and political criticism for the low value returned to the taxpayer. In April 2000, Stagecoach sold Porterbrook to the British banking group Abbey National in exchange for £1.44 billion.

In 1997, Stagecoach was awarded the franchise to operate the recently privatised Sheffield Supertram system, from the South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive, who owned the system. Stagecoach bought the remaining 27 years of a 30-year franchise in exchange for £1.15 million, which was substantially below the anticipated £80 million that the councils had hoped to raise to help pay off the accumulated debts to build the system. The franchise, which expired in March 2024, was operated under the Stagecoach Supertram brand, the company having responsibility for the operation and maintenance of the tram system. When Stagecoach took over the system, it was struggling, both financially and in terms of attracting passengers; patronage subsequently rose from 7.8 million recorded passenger journeys in 1996/97, to 15.0 million during 2011/12.

In 1998, Stagecoach diversified into another transport sector via the purchase of Scotland's Prestwick Airport in exchange for £41 million. By the summer of 1999, the company was rumoured to have been offered some £80 million for Prestwick. In January 2001, Stagechoach opted to sell the airport for £33 million to concentrate on surface transport.

2000s
In late 2000, Stagecoach UK's bus operations were rationalised into twelve subsidiary companies managed from the group's Perth headquarters. The group was also rebranded in December 2000, with a new 'beachball' logo designed by Edinburgh design house McKinstrie Wilde Millhouse and a new fleet livery designed by Ray Stenning's Best Impressions design company for the group's buses. The new livery for regional operations consisted of 'swoops' on a grey base that retained the previous livery's red, orange, blue and white colours, while Stagecoach London buses maintained base red with blue and orange 'swoops' to the rear of the bus. A blue-based standard interior for new buses was also introduced, with the first UK buses featuring the group's new identity entering service in January 2001.

On 21 November 2005, Stagecoach announced the sale of its New Zealand operations to Infratil. On 14 December 2005, Stagecoach purchased Barnsley based Traction Group (Yorkshire Traction) for £26 million, and also assume Traction's £11 million debt. Traction operated 840 buses in South and West Yorkshire (Yorkshire Traction, Barnsley & District, Yorkshire Terrier), Lincolnshire (RoadCar) and Angus (Strathtay Scottish). Traction was the largest remaining privately owned independent bus operator in the UK.

Following the sale of its London bus operations to Macquarie Bank in 2006, Stagecoach UK Bus concentrated on the bus market outside the UK capital, focusing on organic growth and exploring acquisition options. In September 2005, following competition with its Megabus coach operation, Stagecoach launched a joint venture with Scottish Citylink coaches. During October 2006, a competition enquiry instructed Stagecoach to sell some of its Scottish coach services. Stagecoach was also active in the passenger rail market, having a 49% stake in Virgin Rail Group. During 2007, the group were successful in their bid for the new East Midlands franchise, which had been created by amalgamating the previous Midland Mainline franchise with the eastern part of the former Central Trains franchise.

During July 2007, Stagecoach commenced operating the Manchester Metrolink tram network. In January 2009, Stagecoach purchased Preston Bus, a former rival in the Lancashire area. In November 2009, the Competition Commission intervened, ordering Stagecoach to sell Preston Bus after it had adversely affected competition in the area.

2010s
In October 2010, Stagecoach expanded further by re-acquiring East London and Selkent, Stagecoach's former London bus operations. During August 2011, Stagecoach sold its Manchester Metrolink concession to RATP Group halfway through its ten-year contract to operate the network. In December 2013, Stagecoach bought King's Lynn based Norfolk Green. During March 2015, Virgin Trains East Coast, in which Stagecoach held a 90% shareholding, commenced operating the InterCity East Coast franchise. The East Coast franchise was terminated on 23 June 2018 after it was revealed that Stagecoach had overbid and were thus unable to make the agreed franchise payments.

During December 2018, it was announced that private equity house Variant would acquire Stagecoach Group's US division in exchange for $271 million; the sale was completed in April 2019.

In April 2019, Stagecoach was disqualified from participating in three rail franchise competitions by the Department for Transport after it submitted non-compliant bids for the East Midlands, South Eastern and West Coast Partnership franchises. One month later, the company announced that it would legally challenge the disqualification.

2020s
The group rebranded again in February 2020, with a new set of liveries introduced for the group's British bus operations. Three colour schemes were to be used to reduce customer confusion:
 * Local services- white with azure blue
 * Longer distance - amber yellow
 * Specialist services - white with ocean green (this includes park and ride, university and tourist services)

During September 2021, it was reported that rival company National Express entered into talks to acquire Stagecoach Group. In December 2021, a deal was agreed between the boards of the two companies: however, it was subject to both shareholder approval and regulatory scrutiny. To satisfy the Competition & Markets Authority, Stagecoach had planned to sell Megabus, its 35% shareholding in Scottish Citylink and the Falcon Coaches part of Stagecoach South West to ComfortDelGro. Having originally recommended shareholders accept the National Express offer, in March 2022 the board of directors withdrew the recommendation in favour of a takeover offer from a DWS managed investment fund. Following this, Stagecoach instead sold Megabus and Falcon Coaches to Scottish Citylink and increased its shareholding in the joint venture to 37.5% in return.

In June 2022, Stagecoach purchased London bus operator Tower Transit's Lea Interchange garage, with Stagecoach London taking on 150 buses and 11 Transport for London bus route contracts; operations from Lea Interchange are managed under the Lea Interchange Bus Company Limited license. Later in August, Stagecoach acquired the London operations of the HCT Group after the company had fallen into administration, with Stagecoach acquiring a further 160 buses, 17 TfL route contracts and two bus garages from the acquisition.

Key people
Stagecoach Group plc was listed on the London Stock Exchange. Founder Brian Souter and his sister Ann Gloag were the largest shareholders with a combined 26% shareholding at April 2019.

UK operating companies
The following is a breakdown of the Stagecoach operating divisions. The centre of each operating region is shown in parentheses. Legal company names are listed alongside the trading names for that company.

Bus division
Bus division operations are as follows:

Brands
Apart from the ordinary bus operations and no-frills services, the UK bus division has the following brands that extend across operating divisions.
 * Stagecoach Express – an express coach service that operates mainly between towns and cities where Stagecoach operate. It tends not to compete with National Express like Megabus, and in some cases tickets are available through the National Express website.
 * Oxford Tube – an express coach service offering high frequency 24-hour services to London, operated by Stagecoach West.
 * Citi – some urban networks have received Citi branding, such as Cambridge, Exeter & Peterborough; although much of this brand has now been withdrawn.
 * Stagecoach Gold – a luxury bus service brand designed to attract middle class travellers to public transport, generally on the most important and high-profile routes within an area served by Stagecoach (e.g. Sheffield to Chesterfield). Gold buses typically feature a special blue and gold colour scheme, leather seats, and on-board Wi-Fi access. Both single-decker and double-decker gold buses are used.
 * Stagecoach SimpliBus operates in the East Midlands.

Fleet numbers
The Stagecoach Group number their buses using a system that applies for the life of the bus or until it is sold, as follows:
 * 10000 – 19999: diesel-powered double-decker buses
 * 20000 – 29999: diesel-powered single-decker buses
 * 30000 – 39999: diesel-powered door-forward midibuses
 * 40000 – 49999: diesel-powered minibuses and wheel-forward midibuses
 * 50000 – 59999: coaches
 * 60000 – 69999: New Routemasters, electric midibuses and other specialised vehicles
 * 70000 – 79999: electric single-decker buses
 * 80000 – 89999: electric and other alternative fuel double-decker buses
 * 90000 – 99999: pool cars, staff transport vehicles, etc.

East Midlands Trains
Stagecoach commenced operating the new East Midlands Trains franchise in November 2007 that took over all of Midland Mainline's and some of Central Trains services. During August 2019, it ceased operating when the franchise was taken over by Abellio East Midlands Railway.

Manchester Metrolink
In July 2007, Stagecoach took over the operation of Manchester Metrolink on a 10-year fixed-term management contract, beating competition from Keolis, Serco and Transdev, to make it the biggest tram operator in the UK. This system was the first modern tram system in the United Kingdom, opening just before the Sheffield system in 1992. Nearly 18 million people ride on the system a year. Stagecoach sold the Metrolink business to RATP Group in August 2011.

Sheffield Supertram
Stagecoach operated the Sheffield Supertram under a concession from the South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive between 1997 and 2024. Its average daily ridership is 33,700, equalling more than 12 million per year, well above expectations. At the time of the concession's expiry, there were three light rail transit lines and a later tram-train service to Rotherham. Future plans included schemes to Dore, Fulwood and Maltby; following consultations, a reduced scheme with an extension to Broomhill was being considered as of 2017. The concession expired in March 2024, with the operation of Supertram returning to the public sector.

South West Trains
Stagecoach ran the South West Trains franchise from February 1996 to August 2017. It retained the franchise for three years from February 2004 and for a further 10 years from February 2007. The franchise passed to First MTR South Western Railway on 20 August 2017
 * Island Line Trains – The rail system on the Isle of Wight, was also operated by Stagecoach from October 1996 to August 2017. In February 2007 it was merged into the South Western franchise.

Stagecoach Rail
In 1992, shortly before the privatisation of British Rail, Stagecoach Rail briefly operated a modest InterCity operation between Aberdeen and London. Two British Railways Mark 2 passenger carriages were re-branded in Stagecoach colours and attached to a scheduled British Rail InterCity sleeper service.

Virgin CrossCountry
Virgin Rail Group operated the CrossCountry franchise as Virgin CrossCountry from January 1997 until November 2007 when it passed to Arriva.

Virgin Trains East Coast
Virgin Trains East Coast, in which Stagecoach held a 90% shareholding, operated the InterCity East Coast franchise from March 2015 to June 2018.

Virgin Trains West Coast
The group has held a 49% stake in Virgin Rail Group since October 1998. Virgin Rail Group operated the InterCity West Coast franchise as Virgin Trains West Coast from March 1997 until December 2019.

Australia
In 1999, Stagecoach purchased the school bus operations of Sunbus in the Cairns, Ipswich and Sunshine Coast regions of Queensland. These were sold in 2002 to:
 * Cairns: Love's Bus Service
 * Ipswich: Pulitano Group
 * Sunshine Coast: Buslink Queensland

Hong Kong
In 1994, Stagecoach created a bus-operating subsidiary in Hong Kong which operated residential bus services. It ceased operation in April 1996.

During 1999, Stagecoach planned to become the largest bus company in China through joint ventures, equity stakes and partnerships, and confirmed the £181 million acquisition of Hong Kong's Citybus. Stagecoach acquired control of Citybus Group, which provided franchised bus services on Hong Kong Island and to and from Hong Kong International Airport as well as non-franchised services throughout Hong Kong, in March 1999 and then completed the privatisation of Citybus on 17 July 1999.

In June 2003, the operation was sold to Chow Tai Fook Enterprises, the parent company of the major rival operator New World First Bus.

Kenya
In November 1991, Stagecoach Holdings (as it was named then), bought United Transport's shareholding in Kenya Bus Services. During its tenure, Stagecoach rapidly expanded the fleet, introducing the Express Services and the modern double decker buses back on Kenyan roads. During October 1998 a consortium of investors led by Karanja Kabage as chairman acquired Kenya Bus Services from Stagecoach Holdings which owned 95% of the business.

New Zealand
Stagecoach New Zealand was a wholly owned part of the Stagecoach Group, which provided bus services in Auckland, Wellington and the Hutt Valley and nine ferry routes in Auckland. It was the largest bus company in New Zealand when sold. Stagecoach NZ started operations when the firm acquired Wellington City Transport, including the Hutt Valley suburban bus operations of the New Zealand Railways Road Services, branded CityLine, in the 1990s. Following this initial acquisition Stagecoach also purchased Eastbourne Buses, The Yellow Bus Company in Auckland and a controlling interest in Fullers Auckland. In November 2005, the business was sold to Infratil and rebranded as NZ Bus.

North America
Stagecoach carried out bus operations in the northeastern and midwestern United States and in eastern Canada. Businesses were focused on commuter services, and included tour and charter, sightseeing, local, and school bus operations:
 * Coach USA – operating primarily in the northeastern United States providing subsidised transit services (primarily in Greater New York), sightseeing, and charter services, and in the midwestern United States with primarily charter and sightseeing services. Yellow school bus services are also provided by Coach USA in the state of Wisconsin.
 * Megabus – discount express bus services radiating from Chicago and New York City. Like Megabus in the United Kingdom, most stops are made at street locations.
 * Coach Canada – serving primarily Ontario and Quebec, where it operates interurban and chartered bus services, contract bus services in Durham, yellow school bus service in Durham Region and Peterborough County in Ontario, and sightseeing services in Montreal.

In December 2018, Stagecoach announced it had agreed to sell all of its North American operations to Variant Equity Advisors with the deal concluded in April 2019.

Portugal
Stagecoach Portugal had its origins in the re-privatisation of Portuguese bus and coach operation, which had been nationalised after the 1974 Revolution. In 1990, the nationalised Rodoviária Nacional was split into ten components. In the capital, Lisbon, Rodoviária de Lisboa was the chief operator outside the city itself, where Carris provided city bus and tram services. The name of Rodoviária de Lisboa survived as part of the Barraqueiro bus company, but another part, serving the area to the west of Lisbon, became Stagecoach Portugal in 1995. A further portion still operates as Vimeca – Viação Mecânica de Carnaxide. During June 2001, Stagecoach announced the sale of their Portuguese operations to ScottURB for £14 million.

Nordic countries
In October 1996, during Stagecoach's International buying spree, it made its most important international acquisition at the time, buying Swebus AB, the bus-company arm of the Swedish State Railways (SJ), for 1.2 billion kronor ($164 million), which also included operations in Denmark, Finland and Norway. The operations in Norway included only city and regional traffic in three minor cities around lake Mjøsa, but several unsuccessful bids on operators in the Oslo area led to Stagecoach selling out to Norgesbuss during April 1997. The Danish operations never proved profitable, and were sold to Combus in autumn of 1997. The operations in Finland were more successful, and were in April 1998 renamed Stagecoach Finland. In spring of 1997, Swebus Express was started as an intercity coach service between several cities in southern parts of Sweden, sporting the Stagecoach livery of the time. Stagecoach in 1998 announced that it had bid for several rail franchises in Sweden. On 27 October 1999, Stagecoach revealed that it was going to sell Swebus to Concordia Bus for £100 million, to refocus its bus operation on the United States and Asia.

No-frills brands
Stagecoach operate a number of so-called "no-frills" services across the United Kingdom and the United States. Applying the business model of the low-cost carrier air lines, these services aim to offer cheaper alternatives to the established operators in the bus, coach and rail markets, by reducing costs, and offering extremely low fares for the earliest bookings, rising nearer the journey time:

Magic Bus
Magic Bus was the first no-frills brand of Stagecoach. It was first used in red lettering on ex London Regional Transport AEC Routemasters, otherwise painted in Stagecoach stripes, in competition in Glasgow. Later, an allover blue with yellow lettering was adopted, on older service buses with simple fares and no travel passes, usually operated on routes with strong competition from other operators, most notably on the Manchester Piccadilly to East Didsbury Wilmslow Road bus corridor route in Manchester, but also in Newcastle upon Tyne and East Scotland (as Magic Mini). In 2008 Stagecoach Merseyside introduced a Magic Bus service competing with themselves and Arriva North West on the busy route 14 corridor, Magic Bus 14C runs every 7/8 minutes between City Centre and Broadway. By 2012, only the Manchester Magic Bus remained, these being upgraded from Volvo Olympians and Dennis Dragons to Alexander ALX400 and East Lancs bodied Dennis Trident 2s.

Megabus
Megabus is a low cost, "no-frills" intercity coach service launched in the United Kingdom by Stagecoach in 2003, on 10 April 2006 in the United States, and in 2009 within Canada. Its main rival in the UK is National Express, who have had to lower their prices to compete with Megabus. In the US, Megabus/Eastern Shuttle's main rival is BoltBus, which is 50% owned by Stagecoach rival FirstGroup. In the UK, the Megabus network covers most of the island of Great Britain, although some routes offer only one journey per day. Originally operated using high capacity, but older coach-seated vehicles, most services are now operated with new modern single or double deck coaches. In the United States, services radiate from Chicago and New York City, but the networks are not connected. In both the UK and the US, to cut costs, most services use on-street bus stops, rather than pay for access to coach stations (except in cases where pre-existing routes were converted to Megabus lines). A notable exception to this is the use of London Victoria Coach Station.

Megatrain
On 14 November 2005, the Megabus concept was extended to certain rail services, with the introduction of Megatrain between London and Southampton, and London and Portsmouth, using a dedicated carriage on selected South West Trains services. It was later extended to some Virgin Trains services (since withdrawn) and to selected East Midlands Trains services. In 2009, the Megabusplus concept was introduced, under which certain trips are begun on a train and are then completed on a bus. Unlike the original Megatrain concept, this service is available seven days a week.

Scottish Citylink
In September 2005, Stagecoach and ComfortDelGro announced a joint venture in the provision of express coach services in Scotland, ending intense competition between ComfortDelGro's subsidiary Scottish Citylink and Stagecoach subsidiaries Megabus and Motorvator. Under the terms of the joint venture, the Stagecoach Group acquires a 35% stake in Scottish Citylink Coaches Ltd, with Citylink assuming certain rights to the Megabus and Motorvator brands in Scotland.

The Competition Commission ruled in October 2006 that the joint venture substantially reduced competition and that evidence suggested some routes were already experiencing higher fares as a result. Though no firm conclusion was drawn, regulators are to consult the two companies about what they need to do to comply with competition regulations and they have indicated that this will likely lead to the forced divestment of some services to an independent operator. The ruling was criticised by Stagecoach as leaving vital services in limbo and jeopardising Scotland's intercity coach network, making it unable to compete effectively with rail and private car journeys.

To satisfy the commission, some Citylink routes were sold to Parks Motor Group in early 2008.

Competitive strategy
Following the deregulation of bus services in the United Kingdom, Stagecoach bought a number of the newly emerged small bus companies and ran free or low fare buses to put local rivals out of business. In Darlington, Stagecoach subsidiary Busways offered bounties to recruit drivers away from the existing bus service and offered free buses to deter the rival preferred bidder from taking over the existing bus service. This was "predatory, deplorable and against the public interest" according to findings from the Monopolies & Mergers Commission.

In 2000, Stagecoach Manchester was found to have been employing bus inspectors to usher passengers away from competitor's services. During 2005, alleged aggressive behaviour by Stagecoach drivers, seeking to compete with Scotbus, resulted in an arson fire at a Stagecoach East Scotland garage.

Between 2006 and 2007, Stagecoach Manchester and UK North engaged in a bus war on route 192 and on the Wilmslow Road bus corridor that caused traffic chaos in Manchester. In November 2009, the Competition Commission ordered Stagecoach to sell Preston Bus after it had adversely affected competition in the area; the sale was completed as instructed in January 2011.

Controversial chairman
The Stagecoach Group has also indirectly attracted criticism through controversial statements and actions made by its chairman and co-founder, Brian Souter, regarding certain public statements and his funding of a campaign to block the repeal of the Section 28 law. In 2000, OutRage! spokesman Peter Tatchell, called for a boycott of the bus and rail group.

Guided Busway
Stagecoach operate buses along the Cambridgeshire Guided Busway. The Guide wheels on the side of the buses, combined with a specially built track mean that hands free driving is possible. The main advantages of a guided busway, versus a normal road are higher speeds (meaning increased capacity) and increased safety as traffic of differing directions is physically separated.

title: Stagecoach Group


text:
Nexus: The Jupiter Incident

Nexus: The Jupiter Incident is a science fiction themed real-time tactics computer game developed by the Hungary-based Mithis Entertainment and published by HD Interactive. The game focuses on tactics and ship management instead of resource collection and base construction.

Gameplay and features
In each of the game's missions, the player is given a small number of large space ships (always less than ten, and sometimes just one or two), along with accompanying fighters and bombers. The ships are large and cumbersome, and the battles between fleets protracted, giving the game a noted cinematic feel. Nexus uses the Black Sun Engine, made specifically for the game. Based on DirectX 9, it makes extensive use of vertex and pixel shaders, a parametric particle system, and other visual effects.

Story
The game is set in the 22nd Century. The player is Marcus Cromwell, a famed spacecraft captain whose father, Richard Cromwell, the first spaceborn human, captained the colony ship Noah's Ark through a wormhole near Mars that was presumed destroyed when the wormhole collapsed. The game begins with Cromwell setting out on the heavy corvette named Stiletto, manufactured by the company Spacetech, for Jupiter as standing escort for a pair of freighters.

Upon arrival at a pair of Spacetech-owned space stations in orbit around Europa, Cromwell is retasked with intercepting a Kissaki Syndicate (a rival corporation to Spacetech) freighter that had been tagged for inspection, and later responding to an SOS call issued by Kissaki-owned station, fighting other corporations' ships and the station's automated defences. Inside the station was a cruiser-sized alien vessel, nicknamed the Angelwing by the Kissaki Syndicate, as well as information regarding another Kissaki station orbiting Pluto.

After a battle with a Syndicate fleet for the control of the Angelwing back at the Spacetech Europa stations, Cromwell is given command of the cruiser and ordered to investigate the secret Kissaki base. At Pluto, an artificial intelligence, named Angel, uploads herself into the Angelwing and advises Cromwell to escape from an alien, orb-like entity - later known as a Mechanoid - through a nearby wormhole, which was the exact same wormhole as the one which collapsed near Mars.

Cromwell exits the wormhole and finds a system (named Noah) populated by the colonists from Noah's Ark, who survived the wormhole collapse and started a colony. The Noah Colony fights as mercenaries for an advanced but pacifist alien race, called the Vardrags, whose technology was given to colonists, against another powerful race, the bloodthirsty, reptilian Gorgs, and a local group of renegade Vardrag elites, known as the Raptors.

After aiding successful raid against a Raptor base, Cromwell is enlisted to fight against the Gorg Empire. In fights against the Gorg, the Ghosts occasionally seem to help the Angelwing. However, all the races would soon find themselves facing their greatest threat: a virulent race of nanomachines called the Mechanoids. Nothing seems capable of stopping the Mechanoid invasion, and the Vardrag homeworld and Earth are overrun. Only an organic, insectile race, known as the energy-consuming Locusts, are immune to the Mechanoids. With technology adapted from the Locusts, Cromwell is able to rescue Earth and all the other solar systems and shut down the main control system of the Mechanoids, the Entity.

Cromwell and their crew eventually decide to eliminate the source of the mechanoids by heading to their home system, the Nexus. This system is not only home to a black hole but several other wormholes that connect to the home systems of all the other races. After a bitter struggle, they succeed, but Angel seemingly sacrifices herself to save the Angelwing and vanishes along with the Nexus.

The fate of Angel, who fought the Mechanoids, is left ambiguous, as she was not shown leaving the Entity and returning to the Angelwing. Cromwell, however, returns safely to Earth along with his crew. He arrives at Stonehenge where Angel, now in control of the Entity, visits him one last time to say farewell. She leaves, revealing to Cromwell her intention to “kill the gods” as she leaves.

Aliens

 * Vardrags: one of the most advanced races in the game, their main home system is Chakaris (which was eventually evacuated after the attack of the Mechanoids on Chakaris III). They are very peaceful and have many strong allies. Their squadrons are led by the fearful Raptors. Though they do not know much of war tactics, they could gather very useful information on the enemy and could subsequently defeat them. The Catacalysm Missile is one of the deadliest creations of this alien group.
 * Gorgs: the terrific and bloodthirsty and enemies of Vardrags and their allies. Though most of the clans of the Gorgs are brave, some, like the Raghara clan, execute many cowardly attacks. They do not even fear the Black Moon. The siege laser is one of the deadliest weapons of this alien group. Notable ships are Titan base and Warcry (Gorg Emperor's ship).
 * Ghosts: a mysterious and mystic race. Their home system is Mist and generally perform stealth missions for the Vardrags. Their ships have the special ability of camouflage.
 * Locust: insect-like creatures. Like ants or honey bees, their community is divided into warriors, workers and queen. The Energy Skeeter is their most powerful weapon.
 * Mechanoids: A rogue group of AI that can create special bodies via nano machines. They are resistant to almost all forms of weapons, are powerful enough to devastate entire systems and fleets, and are the game’s main antagonists. Their base of operations is the Nexus, a star that was converted into a black hole.

Development and Release
Nexus: The Jupiter Incident was developed by the Hungary-based Mithis Entertainment, intended by the publisher CDV originally as Imperium Galactica 3. After the business relationship between Mithis and CDV broke apart and also the Imperium Galactica license got lost, the game was revised as a tactical strategy game.

The game was released in Europe in 2004 and in North America in 2005 for Windows distributed by Vivendi Universal Games through their Sierra Entertainment label in all territories except for France, Spain, Italy, Benelux, and Russia.

Sequel
A technical demonstration video for the sequel, Nexus: The Jupiter Incident 2, was leaked to the Internet in 2006.

On August 16, 2011 Most Wanted Entertainment announced a sequel, named Nexus 2, on the crowdfunding website GamesPlant with a funding goal of €400,000. The €104,867 pledged fell short of the €400,000 goal.

In 2012 the original Nexus was digitally re-released on GOG.com.

On September 28, 2012 a second campaign on Kickstarter was launched to fund the development of a sequel named Nexus 2: The Gods Awaken, but ultimately failed to raise the required amount, with only $161,731 of the $650,000 goal.

Legacy
Nordic Games announced that they acquired the intellectual property on September 16, 2015.

In March 2016 a patch was released for the game fixing long-standing issues, like widescreen support.

Reception
The game received "generally favorable reviews" according to the review aggregation website Metacritic. It was praised particularly for its visual effects, but criticized for its steep learning curve, trial-and-error gameplay, and poorly designed stealth missions.

According to NPD Group, Nexus sold 11,500 copies by June 2005.

title: Nexus: The Jupiter Incident