883 series

The 883 series is an AC electric multiple unit tilting train type operated on Sonic limited express services by Kyushu Railway Company, known as JR Kyushu, in Japan since April 1995, and the trains were built by Hitachi. The fleet was first formed as five seven-car sets and three five-car sets, the three shorter sets being told apart by silver, yellow and dark blue front ends. From July 2008 the five-car sets were lengthened to seven cars by inserting two cars of the -1000 subseries, which have aluminium bodies built to 885 series specifications. The first trains entered service on 20 April 1995, and all cars were made no-smoking from the revised timetable of 18 March 2007. Cars 2, 4 and 6 of each set carry one single-arm pantograph.