Saurer 3C-H

Tintin and Captain Haddock did intercept the Chrysler New Yorker after a long chase in a Lancia Aurelia driven by our friend Arturo. However, they could not find Professor Calculus in the car’s boot, where they were expecting him. Arturo, was a really angry Italian now and gave a mouth full to the duo before driving away in a huff. Pondering over the matter, Tintin realised his mistake. He concluded that Professor must have been hidden under the rear seat of the car. As they walked away, they saw a small plane landing in a field. They followed the plane and realised that Tintin’s hypothesis was right, they found the Chrysler parked under a tree. The Professor had been hidden under the rear seat and was now being transferred to this small aircraft. Tintin chased the plan and tried to hang on but failed. By now, Professor’s destination was clear as the plane had Syldavian registration. The duo decided to head to Syldavia. In “The Calculus Affair” they are shown taking a coach to the airport.

The bus they took was a Saurer 3C-H. Suarer was a Swiss company, based out of Arbon which manufactured buses under the Saurer and Berna names between 1903 and 1982. Saurer started manufacturing petrol engines in 1896 and moved to producing automobiles in 1902. Though initially they started with cars, they shifted focus to commercial vehicles in 1903. This company produced commercial vehicles in Austria, France, UK , Germany and USA through subsidiaries which were later taken over by Steyr-Daimler-Puch, Unic, Armstrong-Whitworth, MAN and MACK respectively. In Italy and Poland their engines were manufactured under license and used to power tanks and buses. Saurer also manufactured electric trolley buses which were very popular in Central Europe and are still in used in many of these countries.

The bus depicted in “The Calculus Affair” is a Saurer 3C-H which belonged to the C-type which was manufactured from 1934 till 1959. This bus is shown in Swiss Air livery. Its bodywork was designed an built by Ramseier & Jenzer which was a Swiss coach builder based out of Berne. This bus was powered by a Saurer CT 2 D engine which was a 6 cylinder inline engine displacing 8,720 cc (532.13 Cu-inch) and produced 91 BHP. This bus could seat 29 passengers in addition to a driver and conductor. It was 9,000 mm (354.33 “) long, 2,250 mm (88.58″) wide and 2,850 mm (112.20”) high.