Air (roller coaster)

Air
Location	Alton Towers
Park section	Forbidden Valley
Coordinates	52.9859°N 1.88205°W / 52.9859; -1.88205
Status	Operating
Opened	16 March 2002
Cost	£12,000,000
Type	Steel - Flying
Manufacturer	Bolliger & Mabillard
Designer	John Wardley
Model	Next Generation Flying Coaster
Lift/launch system	Chain lift hill
Height	82 ft (25 m)
Drop	67 ft (20 m)
Length	2,756 ft (840 m)
Max speed	46 mph (74 km/h)
Inversions	2
Duration	1:30
Max vertical angle	42°
Capacity	1,500 riders per hour
Max G force	3.5
Height restriction	4 ft 7 in (140 cm)
Single rider line available
Air at RCDB
Pictures of Air at RCDB
Amusement Parks Portal

Air is a steel flying roller coaster located in the Forbidden Valley area of Alton Towers in Staffordshire, England. The ride was the first flying roller coaster designed by the Swiss manufacturers Bolliger & Mabillard. Guests ride in a prone position and experience the feeling of flight by 'flying' close to the ground, under footpaths and gliding narrowly past objects such as trees and rocks.

It was formerly sponsored by Cadbury Heroes and its slogan is "Assume the position."

History

The idea for Air came to fruition after many years of planning, and construction started towards the beginning of 2001. Numerous advertisements for the attraction were placed around the park towards the end of the same year. In early 2002, testing began on one of the world's most technologically advanced rides ever made, and the ride opened on March 2002 at a cost of £12million. It holds the title of one of the most expensive rides jointly with Oblivion at Alton Towers, which was built at a cost of £12 million. Special crash test dummies were brought in to aid with testing. The passengers of the first ride were the manufacturers and the designers. After more adjustments, the ride was open to the public in 2002.

Early difficulties with unreliability were reduced towards the end of the first year, and problems are now rare.

When it was launched, ride designers said that the way forward for roller coasters was to go higher and faster. Air's popularity suggested that this was not the case, and that roller coaster enthusiasts seek unique, different ride experiences, not just bigger and taller thrill rides.

The ride has also become a popular attraction at Alton Towers, most likely due to Air's distinctive 'flying' roller coaster design, which is incomparable with other roller coasters at Alton Towers.

The ride's project name was Secret Weapon 5 (SW5), which followed other similar project names at the park. SW4 was Oblivion, SW3 was Nemesis and SW1 and 2 were ideas not implemented on the site of Nemesis. SW6 was the code name for the park's latest roller coaster, Thirteen, which opened in March 2010.

People riding the rollercoaster

Statistics

1. Construction started: Mid 2001
2. Designed by: John Wardley
3. Manufacture: Bolliger & Mabillard
4. Ride type: B&M flyer
5. Constructed by: JJ Cavanagh Construction
6. Programmed by: Consign AG
7. Ride opened: 16 March 2002
8. Total cost: Approx £12million
9. Length: Approx. 840 metres
10. Highest drop: Approx. 20 metres
11. Top speed: Approx. 75 km/h
12. Maximum Gs: 3.5 g₀ (34 m/s²)
13. Number of trains (crafts): 3
14. Passengers per craft: 28
15. Max throughput per hour: 1500
16. Ride duration: Approx. 90 seconds

Ride experience

Air commences with a short passage through a tunnel out of the station, followed by a lift hill. Air's first drop dips to the right, rises up to a 180 degree turn, and drops down in to a large drop to ground level. Air's track then twists over so Air's riders are riding on their backs, performing a large upward left turn before twisting back so riders are once again in the prone position, flying underneath a small ravine. Air's track then pitches up in to a tight turn before performing a 360 degree barrel roll. Air's train hits the brake run and re-enters one of Air's two stations.

External links

• Official Alton Towers website
• Air data on Theme Park Junkies
• Air at Alton Tower Net
• Air Fact File at Alton Towers Almanac
• Air Info and pictures at the Alton Towers Guide