Flyers - Flash Fad or Untapped Potential?

[Antinos]

CF's recent NL competition was to build a flying coaster through windows. The more windows threaded, the more bonus points received. It forced the contestants to design some fairly unique tracks and this led me to think if we could possibly see a resurgence in flying coasters.

Currently, there's three companies that build flyers; Zamperla, Vekoma, and B&M. We all know that Zamperla's models are all clones and they all suck, so for all intents and purposes, I'm giving them no attention in my post. The Vekoma models that have been built have been very similar; Nighthawk/BORG/Stealth being the oddball here. Despite the similarities in their current models, I feel that Vekoma would be most willing to step outside the box. They've really shown what they're capable of in the last few years with Expedition Everest and the dueling coaster in Singapore. I even think Vekoma would be willing to do a launched flyer if asked. B&M, as we all know, has built the most flyers - most of them Superman clones. Tatsu and Air are definite favorites and are both unique experiences, but I personally think that B&M came pretty close to hitting the nail on the head with Sky Scrapper.

Most of today's flyers are pretty 'run of the mill,' if one can say that. They tend to have similar layouts and none really have anything standout or crazy with the exception of Sky Scrapper. One huge complaint of enthusiasts is the lack of forces generally associated with flyers. After building my own coaster for the NL contest and riding all the entries, I'm beginning to think that it might not be so much about G crunches and forces as it is disorienting riders in any way possible. Three of the four rides entered featured some pretty wild, unique elements and were filled with directional changes and maneuvers that were dizzying to watch even on a computer screen. I personally believe that the most ideal flyer layout would be something more resembling X-flight at Six Flags Great America (the name is simply ironic) than any Superman clone out there.

What are your thoughts? Do you guys think we could see a resurgence? Is it possible that one day soon we could see a launched flyer? Would more rolls, flips, directional changes, and wild maneuvers provide better dynamics than giant pretzel loops and turns?


Lastly, if anybody is curious, here's a link to the contest results thread:

viewtopic.php?f=62&t=36354

 

[Snoo]

Yes and yes. They coulda did more but I don't think there will be a comeback anytime soon.

 

[furie]

I think they've just kind of taken the place of the Invert. They've become a pretty standard installation and a lot of parks have a version by somebody.

We'll probably see the odd one here and there as we do inverts, but I think generally, the industry has moved on now to the next big thing "Wing trains"

 

[Bottom_Feeder_13]

I think that they are a passing trend but they are similar to Arrow suspendeds, those not matched to the terrain are decent at best but when paired closely with terrain and featuring a mixture of both rider positions, mixing Sky Scrapper with Eagle Fortress

 

[metalhead7]

I think they've just kind of taken the place of the Invert. They've become a pretty standard installation and a lot of parks have a version by somebody.

We'll probably see the odd one here and there as we do inverts, but I think generally, the industry has moved on now to the next big thing "Wing trains"

Took the words right out of my mouth! I think we will definitely see more, but nothing too extreme.

I always thought it might be interesting to have a flying shuttle coaster, that drops like one of the old free fall rides, goes through a layout feet first. Then when it reverses direction it becomes a typical flying coaster. I've wanted to build something like it on NL but never found a layout I liked.

 

[rollermonkey]

Neither?

Not a flash fad, but honestly not a lot of untapped potential, either.

We'll continue to see them built, but I don't think any will truly push the envelope.

 

[Ben]

I really like Flyers, Manta and Tatsu are both one of the best coasters in Florida and California respectively.

And anyone saying they're not forceful, Starry Sky Ripper and Tatsu disagree.

I don't think they're untapped, there's enough good ones to disprove that. There could stand to be more, but, they're not a fad or untapped.

 

[Hyde]

Flyers are a great design, but face new competition from Wingriders.

Looking at market penetration of B&M products, we saw a huge surge of B&M Flyers in 2002 and 2003 with Air and Superman: Ultimate Flight, and then sporadic builds in 2006, 2009, and 2011. Overall, there have been 8 B&M Flyers built over 11 years.

B&M Wing Coasters in comparison have seen a lot wider adoption, 7 B&M Wing Coasters over 2 years (Raptor at Gardaland being the first). In comparison to B&M Flyers, Wing Coasters have seen adoption across a wider range of amusement park chains (e.g. Cedar Point, Dollywood, SFGA, Thorpe Park, Heide Park) while flyers have remained relatively exclusive to Six Flags and Alton Towers.

A wider adoption of wing coasters across amusement and theme parks would indicate an ability to cater to a wider preference of roller coasters. Cedar Point wanted a roller coaster to highlight the front of the park, Thorpe Park wanted a theme coaster, Dollywood wanted a good thrill ride, etc. Flying coasters have been more straight forward with their application as a large thrill ride with larger inversions.

I would envision a scenario where the flying coaster takes a backseat to the wing coaster, which offers a similar flying experience and a greater variety of options for design.

That being said, there is definitely more that could be done with the flying coaster. While Tatsu showed a brute force strength of the flyer, Manta offered a more tranquil approach that emphasizes the flight experience. Sky Scrapper threw many believed standards of flyers out the window and introduced a completely new design, especially for inversions.

There is plenty of potential for future flyers, but B&M needs to be able to make the case for flyers outside of the intense thrill ride design.

 

[MouseAT]

Whether we'll see more flyers remains to be seen, but I think there's potentially a lot more life left in the design if a park is prepared to build one.

Back in 2008, I remember saying that B&M had the better quality and train design when it came to flying coasters, but Vekoma had the better layout with the flying dutchman. Starry Sky Ripper (or whatever the hell it's called - it seems to have multiple English names) looks amazing. It's like B&M took lessons on ride layout from Vekoma. I just wish they had built the ride a bit closer to home. SOMEBODY BUILD ANOTHER ONE PLEASE!

 

[theRock-steel]

I like the B&M's, but they need to come up with another design in the tracks. Pretzel loops, in-line twists, and sudden drops close to the ground are nice but something else should be tried. A large airtime hill, a 120 ft loop, a cobra roll, or an Immelmann are parts of this builder's rides but not on this model.

 

[Edward M]

They could certainly do much more with it.