FUKUOKA -- A bullet train locomotive has been shipped to Britain for permanent display at the National Railway Museum in York, northern England, according to officials of West Japan Railway Co.

A first-generation shinkansen locomotive is loaded aboard a ship at Fukuoka's Hakata port and bound for Britain.

The first-generation bullet train locomotive is being donated to the world's largest railway museum by the Modern Transport Museum of JR West, and will be on display from July.

It will be the first time a Japanese locomotive has been exhibited at the museum, the officials said.

The two museums concluded a sister pact last April, and the NRM later sounded out JR West about donating a bullet train car.

The locomotive, known for its curved and aerodynamic appearance, is expected to be put on permanent display in the high-speed railway section of the museum, according to the officials.

Bullet trains made their debut in 1964 when Japan started services between Tokyo and Shin-Osaka in time for the Tokyo Olympic Games.

They ran at a maximum speed of 200 kph, but were later replaced by faster versions and very few of the initial type now remain.

The world's first locomotives were built and run in Britain in the early years of the 19th century. The NRM has a collection of about 300 locomotives on display.

"It is a great honor for the bullet train car to be displayed there as representative of Japanese trains," a JR West official said.

The locomotive was shipped Friday from Hataka port in Fukuoka Prefecture, at JR West's expense.