Flying roller coaster
As a Flying (Roller ) Coaster (german flying roller coaster ) refers to steel roller coasters in which the cars hang from the rail and where to take the passengers during the journey a more or less lying on his stomach, "flying" position.
Technically, the tracks are also related to the driving under the rail and Suspended Coaster Inverted Coaster. One of the peculiarities of the Flying Coaster is that forwards are possible due to the lying position of the passengers, including rollovers, which is possible with the exception of the 4th dimension coaster with any other type of roller coaster. Furthermore, the trains loops only go through if the passengers are at the entrance on the back. The required lateral rotation of the train by 180 °, as Fly To Lie ( fly to be ) called. If the train is then brought back to the position where the passengers are under the train, then one speaks of Lie To Fly ( lying to fly ).
The first system of this kind was Skytrak in Granada Studios (Manchester, England). This railway was opened in 1997, with a single car on a Einrohrschiene for one person, but it was implemented only less than a year due to technical problems and later demolished.
In 2000, opened the theme park California's Great America (Santa Clara, California ), the first built by Vekoma under the product name "Flying Dutchman " system with name Stealth. Unlike Skytrak, with side swing-out carriage rather a suspended coaster resembled technically, here trains were used similar to an inverted coaster with six cars for every four people. To get started, however ride the trains on the rail and rotated until after the lift hill in the " flight " position. The passengers go into a sitting position and be folded back into a lying position. Due to the rather rigid position to the rail and inversions are possible with this type. On the IAAPA 2008 trade fair Vekoma introduced a new " Stingray " said Flying- coaster type that allows significantly more compact installations and for the trains were completely revised.
Another Skytrak the similar building type, but with non-oscillating carriage for two persons, the company Hoei Sangyo in 2001 in Fuji -Q Highland ( Fujiyoshida, Japan) as Birdman built. After an accident injuring two in the same year the railway was closed and reopened after renovation in 2003 as inverted coaster Fuwa Fuwa Osora No Dai- Bouken.
The company Bolliger & Mabillard built in 2002 their first two flying coaster in the park Alton Towers ( Alton, England) as Air and Six Flags Over Georgia ( Austell, Georgia) as Superman: Ultimate Flight. Similar to the models of Vekoma also come with a B & M inverted coaster -like car with four seats next to each other to use, but also hang in the station beneath the rail. The entry of passengers carried sitting in the station, then the seats are folded up to the lying position to the rear.
The first track of the type " Volare Flying Coaster " Zamperla was opened in 2002 in Elitch Gardens (Denver, Colorado). These roller coasters Einzelchaisen be used for every four people. Climb to the car is opened, the passenger climb a small ladder type, is then folded and locked up. The position is more laid back than in the car from B & M and Vekoma. Zamperla has already sold six almost identical versions of this path with a relatively small footprint. One of them named Volare is since 2004 in the Vienna Prater.
As a still relatively new roller coaster type there are only a few plants of the Flying Coaster. An important reason for this is in comparison to other railways mechanically decidedly more elaborate trains.