Who we are

David Morgan.(UK)

Founder Patron

Director of Wattrain since April 2010; President-Emeritus since November 2018. President-Emeritus of FEDECRAIL (European Federation of Museum & Tourist Railways). Deputy President of Heritage Railway Association (Britain & Ireland). Former director of several UK Heritage railways. Trustee of Boiler & Engineering Skills Training Trust.

Stefano Benazzo (Italy)

President

President of Wattrain since November 2018 and a director since June 2015. In the Italian Diplomatic Service from 1974 to 2012, Ambassador of Italy (ret.). Photographer of stranded shipwrecks (40 personal exhibitions, books, catalogues, etc.). Sculptor, builder of architectural models and models of boats, ships, cars, motorcycles

www.stefanobenazzo.it

Chris Le Marshall (Australia),

Vice President

Founding Vice-President and Director of Wattrain since April 2010. Businessman and Naval Officer, Principal of Linqage International. He has experience advising Boards on successful, sustainable growth and funding opportunities. He works in a range of sectors including tourism, infrastructure, defense, technology and finance. He has wide experience consulting and working in the rail and tourist and heritage rail sector. Volunteer fireman on Puffing Billy Railway.

Robert "Bob" LaPrelle (USA)

Vice President

Vice-President and Director of Wattrain since March 2012. CEO of the Museum of the American Railroad and Board member of the Heritage Rail Alliance (N. America). Former President of the Association of Tourist Railroads & Railway Museums.

Gabriela Galizia (Argentina)

Director

Director and Executive Secretary of Wattrain since October 2013. Academic Director of Biltmore English Center, language school in Mar del Plata, Argentina. Certified translator and simultaneous interpreter. Wattrain representative at events in the UK, Europe, Japan, India and the USA. Conference organizer. Advisor to Latin-American railway operators.

Manikandan Venkataramanan

Director

A Philosopher in Finance and a Risk Management enthusiast.Working as a Manager of Interest Rates Risks at a unique multinational Bank, British at heart but with presence in major international markets. Voracious reader and collector of books on many disciplines, particularly the history of Railroading, Railway Technology and Management, Locomotives and Signalling.

Graduate in finance from the University of Pittsburgh and a FRM charter-holder, have imparted conceptual training to Professionals on Finance. Hobbies include exploring railway sites and sharing knowledge of railway history. Particularly interested in history, philosophical and religious symbolism of ancient temples dating from 7th Century to 13th Century CE in India, Cambodia and Indonesia.Other interests include exploring the cultural heritage of India, Indian and Greek philosophy, Indian classical music, military and industrial history with special reference to the United States.

Andrew Gill (UK),

Director and Membership Secretary

Membership Secretary, Treasurer and Company Secretary of WATTRAIN Ltd., spent most of his working life in the IT industry working initially as a programmer for an end user and then for some 12 years as a Systems Engineer for a multinational computer manufacturer. He retired early and obtained a qualification in horticulture, plants being one of his passions. His other passion is anything on rails, trams or trains. He spent 14 years a a Director and 8 years as Chairman of The Middleton Railway Trust in Leeds; he is a Director of the Wensleydale Railway Association Ltd., and Treasurer of the Rapid Response Network for Museums in Yorkshire and Humberside.

Peter Lewis (UK)

Webmaster & WATTRAIN Newsletter Editor

Came to an interest in railway history - and the emphasis is on the "social impact of railways" - relatively late in life, though he did manage a couple of iconic photographs on the Dawlish sea wall in the mid-1960s! He was co -founder of "Steam Tube"(now on Facebook), and writes and edits "On Shed", a monthly magazine. Currently edits and compiles "Rail Tube" on Facebook.. A pictorial volume on the Stratford-upon-Avon & Midland Junction Railway is due to be published in April 2019. He presents two programs on Internet radio station NCCR (www.northcotswoldonline.com) Oh yes… he edits Wattrain newsletter, and is getting to grips with the Wattrain website!

Andy Masters (UK)

Consultant

Has had a career in sales and New Product Development in the Non Metallic Minerals Industry and a passion for Steam Locomotives, Andy reached retirement with a strong desire to repay the Heritage Railway movement for all the pleasure it had imparted to him over about 70 years. Andy works on identifying projects aimed at solving real Heritage Railway problems, using the abundance of knowledge and experience available to Wattrain. The future consumption of coal is high on his agenda. One of the goals is to photograph all the ex-BR steam locomotives.

Clive Moore (Australia)

Independent Technical Adviser

Independent technical adviser to Wattrain since 2012. Mechanical engineer and Managing Director of M2H Pty Ltd, specialists in maintenance management & technology - also senior associate of Flagstaff Consulting Group engineering consulting and expert advisers for government , corporate and private businesses in multiple business sectors including public & tourist rail. Previous engineering career includes project construction and operational management in the international and Australian power, mining & resources, rail and manufacturing sectors, including executive roles with ABB and Siemens, managing the reliability and asset management of plant and services.

Sergio Rodriguez Zubieta (Argentina),

Patron of Wattrain.

Naval Architect & Marine Engineer, ship surveyor, designer of floating fish cages for aquaculture projects. He participated in the privatization of Gas del Estado. Executive Vice-chairman, CEO of the italian Holding Gruppo Camuzzi Spa. In 2002 became shareholder of the End of the World Railway. He worked on several projects with the municipality of Ushuaia, Tierra del Fuego, Argentina and with tourist steam trains in Argentina (Sierra de la Ventana, etc.), Guatemala, Chile, Ecuador, as consultant for the National Secretary of Tourism. As owner of a hotel business he has been related with the development of the tourism sector in Ushuaia. Today again in the energy sector as Director of ENGITEC, representing the French company Cryostar. Founder member and later Board member of several gas and electrical Associations in Argentina, Board member and later Treasurer of the Instituto Argentino del Petróleo y Gas (IAPG), Representative of the Argentinean gas industry at the International Gas Union (IGU). Consultant for the World Bank, Energy Department (1998-2000).

Lord Faulkner of Worcester (UK)

Patron of Wattrain

Member of British House of Lords for 19 years, currently serving as a Deputy Speaker, and is a former transport minister. President of the Heritage Railway Association of the UK and Ireland. Responsible for legislation that maintained legal protection for railway heritage artefacts and archives, and chair of Railway Heritage Designation Advisory Board. Chair of Great Western Railway stakeholder advisory board. President of two railway heritage preservation societies. Co-author of two highly acclaimed books on the politics of Britain’s railways since the 1960s (“Holding The Line” and “Disconnected”).

Courtney Wilson (USA)

Patron of Wattrain

Courtney Wilson is a lifelong historian and has spent nearly all his career in the heritage preservation, education and museum fields. His spheres of expertise are in the areas of early railway history, military history and material culture, antique furniture and decorative arts as well as architecture. From 1997 to 2018, he served as the CEO of the Baltimore & Ohio (B&O) Railroad Museum in Baltimore, Maryland (USA) overseeing tremendous growth in the organization and, in 1999, led the museum to become a full affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution. During that time, he obtained the rank of Major General in the State Defense Force. He has been an active participant in international museum conferences as well as efforts to preserve important railway resources. Mr. Wilson is currently pursuing opportunities as a historian and consultant to museums, tourist railways and other charities. He continues to serve as a trustee for a number of heritage organizations in the United States. Mr. Wilson holds two Masters Degrees in history with other post-graduate work in design.