Flying roller coaster
From Free net encyclopedia
A flying roller coaster is a roller coaster where the riders are secured in flying position with the track overhead. The loading process varies by manufacturer.
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Vekoma
Vekoma's 'Flying Dutchman' model was the first flying coaster and came with two types, the prototype and a longer version costing around 17 million USD. The first flying coaster is Stealth (now relocated to Paramount's Carowinds on the NC/SC line under the name BORG Assimilator.) These coasters are loaded more like a traditional seated coaster with the track below the rider. At the top of the lift hill, the track rotates a half turn to flip the riders into the flying position. This type of design is not considered to be a true flying coaster by many enthusiasts, but rather a variation on a standard steel design as the passengers do not start the circuit in the flying position and spend large amounts of time on top of the track rather than suspended underneath it. As a result many people credit B&M with the first flying coaster, Air.
B&M
In a Bolliger and Mabillard (B&M) Flying Coaster model, the passenger takes a sitting position with their legs dangling in a similar fashion to B&M's inverted roller coaster. The coaster then tilts them forward, placing passengers in a flying position for the duration of the ride. The first B&M flyer was Air, which opened in 2002 at Alton Towers. B&M's flying coaster is said to be more comfortable and features an intense Pretzel Loop element, which also debuted in 2002 - a month after Air's opening - on Superman: Ultimate Flight at Six Flags Over Georgia. But it can be very expensive, priced at 12 million euros (about 14 million US dollars).
Zamperla
Zamperla's flying model is 'Volare' (Italian for To Fly). Riders lie down in the cars, which hang from an upper rail at a 45 degree angle. The car is then lifted up into a flying position while holding the riders inside. This model is very compact and cheap (estimated to be 6 million USD) and comes with a unique spiral lift hill in which a tall spinning column with 2 vertical poles connected to it which push the cars up the spiralling track. But riders have complained that it was quite uncomfortable as there is a lack of harnesses on the cars. Sometimes the ride can cause headaches.
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