E5 and H5 Series Shinkansen

The E5 series (E5系) and the related H5 series (H5系) are Japanese Shinkansen high-speed train types built by Hitachi Rail and Kawasaki Heavy Industries.

The E5 series is operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East); it was introduced on Tohoku Shinkansen services on 5 March 2011 and on Hokkaido Shinkansen services on 26 March 2016. A total of 59 10-car sets are on order, with three sets in service in time for the start of new Hayabusa services to Shin-Aomori in March 2011.

The H5 series, a cold-weather derivative of the E5 series, is operated by Hokkaido Railway Company (JR Hokkaido); it has been in use on Tohoku and Hokkaido Shinkansen services since 26 March 2016. Ordered in February 2014, a total of four 10-car sets were built by Hitachi and Kawasaki Heavy Industries at a cost of approximately. The first two sets were delivered in October 2014.

Design
Technology incorporated in these trains is derived from the experimental Fastech 360S train tested by JR East. The initial maximum speed in service was 300 km/h, but this was raised to 320 km/h between Utsunomiya and Morioka from the start of the revised timetable on 16 March 2013. The trains feature an electric active suspension.

H5
The H5 series is directly based on the E5 series and has an identical maximum operating speed of 320 km/h, although this is limited to 260 km/h on the Hokkaido Shinkansen, and to 160 km/h on the dual gauge track extending through the undersea Seikan Tunnel connecting Hokkaido with mainland Honshu. All cars feature active suspension, and tilt by up to 1.5 degrees through curves, allowing the maximum speed of 320 km/h to be maintained even on curves with a radius of 4000 m. The units feature a number of cold-weather improvements, including an upgraded snowplow on the lead units, durable rubber to protect the various connections between cars and a stainless-steel underframe to protect the electronics (upgraded from the usual aluminium underframe protection for added durability). They also incorporate minor interior design differences compared with the E5 series.

Operations


, E5 series and H5 trainsets work with each other, and are used on the following services on the Tohoku and Hokkaido Shinkansen lines:
 * Hayabusa
 * Hayate
 * Yamabiko
 * Nasuno

E5 series trainsets were first introduced on the new Hayabusa services between Tokyo and Shin-Aomori from 5 March 2011, initially operating at a maximum speed of 300 km/h. From 19 November 2011, a total of six E5 series trainsets were in operation, with sets also used on some Hayate and Yamabiko services. Hayate services operated coupled with E3 series Komachi services, and were limited to a maximum speed of 275 km/h. From the start of the revised timetable on 17 March 2012, E5 series sets were also introduced used on some Nasuno all-stations services.

The H5 series is the first JR Hokkaido train type to use the "H" prefix, following the method used by JR East (with an "E" prefix).

Exterior
The exterior design of the trains is broadly based on the experimental Fastech 360S train, with a colour scheme of "Tokiwa" (常盤) green for the upper body and "Hiun" (飛雲) white for the lower body, separated by a "Hayate" pink stripe. For the H5 series, the "Hayate" pink stripe is replaced by a "Saika" (彩香) purple stripe intended to evoke images of lilac, lupin, and lavender flowers for which Hokkaido is famous.

Interior
The trains have three classes of accommodation: premium Gran Class (car 10), Green class (car 9), and Ordinary class (cars 1 to 8).

Gran Class
Car 10 is designated "Gran Class", featuring 18 power-reclining "shell" seats with leather seat covers arranged in 2+1 abreast configuration. Originally given the provisional name "Super Green Car", seat pitch in the Gran Class car is 1300 mm. Seats are 520 mm wide and recline to a maximum angle of 45 degrees. The pre-series set, S11, did not initially include Gran Class accommodation. The carpet in the H5 series's Gran Class car is blue with a pattern intended to evoke images of Hokkaido's sea and lakes. All seats in the H5 series feature AC power outlets.

Green car
Car 9 is designated as "Green car" (first class) accommodation with 55 seats arranged in 2+2 abreast configuration. Seat pitch is 1160 mm. Seats are 475 mm wide and recline to an angle of 31 degrees. The carpet in the H5 series's Green car is dark grey with a pattern depicting the ocean with fragments of drift ice. All seats in the H5 series feature AC power outlets.

Ordinary class
Ordinary-class cars (cars 1 to 8) have a seat pitch of 1040 mm, which is 60 mm larger than on the E2 series trains. Seating is arranged in 3+2 abreast configuration. AC power outlets are provided for window seats and rows of seats at car ends for the E5 series, and all seats for the H5 series. The interior of the H5 series's ordinary-class cars is intended to evoke images of snow and the night view of Hakodate.

E5
The production E5 series sets are formed as follows, with car 1 at the Tokyo end and car 10 at the Aomori end.

Cars 3 and 7 each have one single-arm pantograph, although only one is normally raised in service.

H5
The 10-car sets, numbered "H1" onward, are formed with eight motored ("M") cars and two non-powered trailer ("T") cars. Car 1 is at the southern end. Cars 3 and 7 each have one N-PS208 single-arm pantograph.

History
The pre-series set, S11, was delivered to Sendai Depot in May 2009 ahead of extensive test running on the Tohoku Shinkansen. Cars 1 to 5 were built by Hitachi in Yamaguchi Prefecture, and cars 6 to 10 were built by Kawasaki Heavy Industries in Hyogo Prefecture. Set S11 made its first appearance at Tokyo Station on 9 December 2009.

The first full-production set, U2, was delivered to Sendai Depot in December 2010.

In May 2012, the E5 series was awarded the 2012 Blue Ribbon Award, presented annually by the Japan Railfan Club. A formal presentation ceremony was held at Tokyo Station on 20 November 2012.

The pre-series set, S11, was upgraded to full-production standard in February 2013 and renumbered U1. It retains the flush plug doors for the passenger doors immediately behind the driving cabs, whereas the full-production sets have recessed sliding doors.

From the start of the revised timetable on 16 March 2013, the maximum speed in service was raised from 300 km/h to 320 km/h between Utsunomiya and Morioka.

H5 series
Details of the new H5 series trains on order were announced by JR Hokkaido in April 2014. The first set, H1, was shipped from Kawasaki Heavy Industries in Kobe to Hakodate Depot in October 2014. The second set was also delivered in October 2014.

In November 2014, JR Hokkaido officially announced details of the bodyside logos to be applied to the trains, combining an outline of Hokkaido with an image intended to portray the gyrfalcon native to Hokkaido.

Slow-speed test-running on the Hokkaido Shinkansen tracks within Hokkaido commenced from 1 December 2014, with the maximum speed of 260 km/h reached on 26 December. Test-running on the Tohoku Shinkansen south of Shin-Aomori commenced in November 2015.

E5
, the fleet is as follows.

H5
, the H5 series fleet is as follows.

Set H2 was withdrawn in April 2022 following damage sustained from the 2022 Fukushima earthquake. The set was dismantled as of December 2022. It was later moved to a Shinkansen depot in Nanae, Hokkaido where it will be used for staff training.

Accidents and incidents
H5 series set H2, coupled with E6 series set Z9 and operating as Yamabiko No. 223 bound for Sendai, derailed during the 2022 Fukushima earthquake while traveling between Fukushima and Shiroishi-Zaō stations. There were no injuries on board.

Export to India
The E5 series trains with red and grey livery have been chosen for use on the under-construction inr 1080000000000.0001 Mumbai–Ahmedabad high-speed rail corridor in India, scheduled to open in June-July 2026. A total of 24 trains are planned to be purchased while the deal for the first six is intended to be signed by the end of March 2024.

Hitachi and Kawasaki Heavy Industries started talks with Indian Railways on design changes such as the modification of the air conditioning system in order for it to operate efficiently at temperatures up to 50 degrees Celsius. One of the goal of Indian Railways is to replace the high-end technical offerings on Japan's train sets with indigenous bio-toilets. Similarly, the primary languages for documentation of facility usage instructions must be Hindi and English.

In media
The E5 series is featured in the anime Shinkansen Henkei Robo Shinkalion as the "Shinkalion E5 Hayabusa". The H5 series also is featured, referred to as the "Shinkalion H5 Hayabusa".