The new fleet comprises 29 trains including 117 new carriages forming 10 regional intercity, nine short regional and 10 long regional trains.

The first are expected to be running from 2023 with the full fleet coming into service progressively but the sooner the better because our clapped-out XPTs are regularly breaking down. The rail cars, some going into service in 1982, have travelled an average of 10 million kilometres, the equivalent of nearly 13 times to the moon and back.

The new fleet is being built by consortium partner CAF in Spain but the contract requires completion works to be carried out at the new Dubbo maintenance facility that's been named Mindyarra, the first time an Aboriginal word has been used for a maintenance facility in the rail network.

Mindyarra, pronounced Min-dga-rra, is a Wiradjuri word that means to fix or repair and was chosen through collaboration with the project's Aboriginal Working Group and representatives from local Aboriginal organisations.

The Regional Rail Project's Director Guy Collishaw says achieving this outcome through collaboration with local representatives from different organisations is a significant achievement hoping people will see the literal meaning of Mindyarra while understanding the symbolic meaning of repairing relationships.

Orange was never given the opportunity to campaign for the centre.

The new inter-city trains that will run to Lithgow have been named Mariyung, that comes from the Darug word for emu and was chosen as part of transport's commitment to acknowledge Aboriginal culture.

The US and Australian media made a big thing of the fiery Tesla crash that took more than four hours and 121,000 litres of water to put out. Police at one stage had to call Tesla for advice how to extinguish the battery fire.

Well, this column back in November 2018 warned about battery fires saying they could go off in a big way with a spray of molten lithium metal and a thick, acrid cloud of choking toxic gases like carbon monoxide, hydrogen fluoride and particulates of oxides of nickel, aluminium, copper, and cobalt. And that was according to a Tesla model X emergency response guide. The resultant fires are very difficult to put out and, in fact, take at least 19,000 litres of water. Handling the battery or moving it could make it more prone to reigniting.

Orange Fire Brigade remarked they couldn't put one out because they couldn't carry enough water. So, what do you think about electric cars?

Here's another Orange link to Prince Philip. Retired Orange Qantas pilot John Ellis in 1965 was flying between Sydney and Singapore on a B707.

Prince Philip was a passenger and John had to fly his flag from the top of the aircraft on landing by pushing a pole through a small opening with the carefully folded flag around it but it wasn't folded correctly and didn't fly. The Prince wanted to be on the flight deck for the landing and sat beside John on a jump seat just behind the captain but as he left he hit his head on the flag pole which was still hanging down about 45 cm and his response: "The bloody thing..."

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