SkyScreamer
SkyScreamer at Six Flags Fiesta Texas
Ride statistics
Attraction typeTower Swinger
ManufacturerFuntime
ModelStar Flyer
Speed43 mph (69 km/h)
Vehicles16
Riders per vehicle2
Height restriction50 in (127 cm)
Flash Pass available
Single rider line available

SkyScreamer is an amusement ride located at several Six Flags theme parks in North America. Designed by Funtime, an Austrian ride manufacturer, the attraction is one of their "Star Flyer" models. Since 2011, Six Flags has installed SkyScreamers in ten of their parks.

Riders aboard SkyScreamer are carried aloft in two-person swing-like chairs attached to a rotating gondola mounted on a central tower. When the gondola reaches the top of the tower, riders are swung in a wide circle at speeds approaching 43 miles per hour (69 km/h), with expansive views of the adjacent countryside. The ride is marketed to both thrill-ride enthusiasts and patrons seeking a more family-friendly experience.

History

The first two SkyScreamers were announced in late 2010 for Six Flags Discovery Kingdom and Six Flags St. Louis for the 2011 season.[1][2] On May 14, 2011, SkyScreamer officially opened at Six Flags St. Louis,[3] where it replaced the Riverview Racer.[4] On May 27, 2011, SkyScreamer made its debut at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom, adjacent to the Medusa roller coaster.[5]

In September 2011, Six Flags announced the addition of SkyScreamer to two more parks, Six Flags Fiesta Texas and Six Flags Great Adventure.[6][7] On January 19, 2012, Six Flags announced that La Ronde would also receive a Star Flyer tower.[8] On May 19, 2012, La Ronde opened their attraction, using the name Vol Ultime (French for "Ultimate Flight") instead of SkyScreamer.[9] On May 23, 2012, Six Flags Great Adventure opened SkyScreamer as part of their new Adventure Alley section, which was based around the idea of retro-style amusement rides.[10] On May 27, 2012, Six Flags Fiesta Texas opened their SkyScreamer in the Spassburg section of the park; season passholders were allowed to experience the ride one day earlier.[11]

In July 2012, Six Flags New England submitted plans to the city of Agawam, Massachusetts requesting special approval to construct a 385-foot-tall (117 m) Star Flyer ride, as the proposed height exceeded the city's height limit.[12] The approval was granted a week later, with an additional conditional approval to build as tall as 410 feet (125 m), in case a competing park built a taller model first.[13] The planning documents revealed that the ride would replace the park's Skycoaster, "Taz's Dare Devil Dive" as well as the former spot of "Catapult".[13]

However, when Six Flags announced its 2013 capital investments in August 2012, the Six Flags New England Star Flyer was not included.[14] Instead, two other parks, Six Flags Over Texas and Six Flags Over Georgia, were set to receive SkyScreamer attractions.[15][16] Six Flags Over Georgia's 242-foot (74 m) version replaced the Wheelie and officially debuted on May 24, 2013, after two weekends of passholder previews.[16][17] Six Flags Over Texas' model, dubbed the Texas SkyScreamer, was awarded the title of the "world's tallest swing carousel ride" by Guinness World Records.[18] Although reports suggested it took this record from the 117-metre-tall (384 ft) Prater Turm in Vienna, Austria,[18] Eclipse at Gröna Lund actually held the record for a period of a month standing at 120 metres (390 ft), 3 metres (9.8 ft) shorter than the Texas SkyScreamer.[19]

On August 29, 2013, Six Flags announced that they would be adding the New England SkyScreamer to Six Flags New England in 2014.[20] The over 400-foot-tall ride debuted officially on May 23, 2014 in the park's North End section.[21] At the time of its debut, New England SkyScreamer held the title for the tallest swing ride.

As part of its 2015 attractions presentation on August 28, 2014, Six Flags announced that Six Flags Mexico will be the next park to receive a SkyScreamer, a 242-foot (74 m) model and the only attraction of its kind in Latin America.[22]

Two years later after the announcement of Six Flags Mexico addition, Six Flags announced that they would be adding yet another Funtime Star Flyer for the 2017 season after a hiatus of building the swing ride back to back. Six Flags America announced on September 1, 2016, that for the following season they would be constructing the tallest ride in the park, Wonder Woman Lasso of Truth a 242-foot (74 m) SkyScreamer.[23] The ride would become one of the first SkyScreamers to be themed to a DC Comics character. Six Flags Mexico rethemed their SkyScreamer to Supergirl in 2018 to be a part of the new theme area the tower was already located in. Also in 2018, Six Flags added a SkyScreamer installation to Six Flags Darien Lake for the 2019 season. The 242-foot-tall ride was labeled the tallest ride in the state of New York.

From 2019 to 2023, there had been no other news with the SkyScreamer attractions at the Six Flags parks. Six Flags announced for the 2024 season, Six Flags Fiesta Texas' SkyScreamer would be rethemed to Supergirl, as the park expands their new DC Universe themed land in parts of Spassburg.[24]

Ride experience

New England SkyScreamer with sign used before RMC conversion of Cyclone into Wicked Cyclone

While the heights of the various SkyScreamer installations vary from park to park, the basic operation of the ride is consistent. Riders sit in one of 16 two-seat chairs connected to a gondola mounted on a central tower, which brings the gondola up and down.[5] A seat belt is placed over the rider's waist to keep them firmly in their seat, and a lap bar is fastened into place.[10] When the ride cycle begins, the gondola rises to the top of the tower, beginning to spin slowly around the central tower and picking up speed as it ascends further.[10] By the time it reaches the top, it rotates around the tower at its full speed of approximately 43 miles per hour (69 km/h), with riders rotating around the tower in a circle 98 feet (30 m) in diameter.[5] The gondola remains at the top of the tower for a period of time, then it descends and slows down slightly before returning to the top.[10] At the end of the cycle, the gondola lowers to the ground and slows its rotation such that, by the time it reaches the bottom of the tower, all rotation ceases and the riders are able to depart. Optionally, SkyScreamer can be set to rotate in the opposite direction during its cycle, such that riders are traveling backwards. Thus far, the installations at St. Louis, Discovery Kingdom, Fiesta Texas, New England and La Ronde have operated in this manner, with each running them in this mode during special events or as a limited-time promotion.[25][26][27]

The New England SkyScreamer and Texas SkyScreamer differ from the standard models, although the actual ride experience is intended to be the same. The gondola of the two rides hold 12 two-seat chairs instead of 16.[15] When the gondola reaches full height, the chairs rotate in a larger circle—124 feet (38 m)—but at a slower speed—35 miles per hour (56 km/h).[15][20]

Installations

All rides were installed by Ride Entertainment Group, who handle all of Funtime's operations in North America.[28][29]

NameParkAreaHeightOpening dateRefs
SkyScreamerSix Flags St. LouisIllinois72 metres or 236 feetMay 14, 2011[2][3]
SkyScreamerSix Flags Discovery KingdomSky46 metres or 151 feetMay 27, 2011[5]
Vol UltimeLa Ronde45 metres or 148 feetMay 19, 2012[9]
SkyScreamerSix Flags Great AdventureAdventure Alley74 metres or 243 feetMay 22, 2012[10]
SkyScreamerSix Flags Fiesta TexasSpassburg61 metres or 200 feetMay 27, 2012[11]
SkyScreamerSix Flags Over GeorgiaScreamPunk District74 metres or 243 feetMay 24, 2013[16]
Texas SkyScreamerSix Flags Over TexasUSA122 metres or 400 feetMay 25, 2013
New England SkyScreamerSix Flags New EnglandNorth End122 metres or 400 feetMay 23, 2014[21]
Supergirl Sky FlightSix Flags MexicoHollywood74 metres or 243 feetMarch 7, 2015[22]
Wonder Woman Lasso of TruthSix Flags AmericaGotham City74 metres or 243 feetJune 13, 2017
Six Flags SkyScreamerSix Flags Darien Lake74 metres or 243 feetMay 18, 2019

Reception

SkyScreamer has been described as being a "classic" and "retro" ride by the press.[10][11] It is marketed as a compromise between riders who prefer roller coasters and similar thrills and those who prefer more family-friendly rides.[10][11] Roller coaster enthusiasts, who are often sought out to sample new thrill rides, have been generally positive about the attractions. Frankie Gobel, a roller coaster fan whose father, Charlie Gobel, wrote a book about their experiences entitled Flying With Frankie: Three Hundred Days in Amusement Parks Riding Roller Coasters With My Son, described the ride as not being "your typical swing set" commenting that "It’s not too intense for Mom or too dull for a teenager. It’s the perfect family ride - assuming your family has a strong stomach."[10]

Gary Slade, the publisher of Amusement Today magazine, said that while SkyScreamer doesn't have the same drawing power as a new roller coaster, it still was the type of ride parks needed to install to keep guests returning.[11] Slade said, in regards to the attraction at Six Flags Fiesta Texas, "I think it's really going to be a huge hit for them."[11]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Brady MacDonald (October 7, 2010). "Six Flags Discovery Kingdom to add tower swing ride for 2011". latimes.com. Tribune Newspapers. Retrieved February 10, 2013.
  2. 1 2 Evan S. Benn (September 16, 2010). "More rides, more fun: Six Flags to add SkyScreamer". stltoday.com. St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved February 10, 2013.
  3. 1 2 Huy Mach (May 16, 2011). "Video: Take a peek at Six Flags' new SkyScreamer ride". stltoday.com. St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved February 10, 2013.
  4. ↑ Six Flags St. Louis (September 16, 2010). "where is the ride..." Facebook. Retrieved February 10, 2013.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Amy Maginnis-Honey (May 25, 2011). "Six Flags launches new ride with support from Travis AFB". dailyrepublic.com. Fairfield-Suisun Daily Republic. Retrieved February 10, 2013.
  6. ↑ Guillermo X. Garcia (September 2, 2011). "SkyScreamer ride to be built". mysanantonio.com. Hearst Newspapers. Retrieved February 10, 2013.
  7. ↑ "Great Adventure, Dorney Park announce new rides for 2012". NJ.com. New Jersey On-Line LLC. September 1, 2011. Retrieved February 10, 2013.
  8. ↑ La Ronde (January 19, 2012). "La Ronde will set the limit in 2012 with its upcoming new extreme tower ride" (PDF). Press Release. Six Flags. Retrieved January 19, 2012.
  9. 1 2 "La Ronde ouvre ses portes et nous entraîne dans son Vol Ultime!". quebec.huffingtonpost.ca (in French). Huffington Post. May 19, 2012. Retrieved February 10, 2013.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Jacob E. Osterhout (May 24, 2012). "Six Flags Great Adventure debuts new SkyScreamer ride". nydailynews.com. New York Daily News. Retrieved February 10, 2013.
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 6 William Pack (May 23, 2012). "New ride screams onto park scene". mysanantonio.com. Hearst Newspapers. Retrieved February 10, 2013.
  12. ↑ Constantine, Sandra (July 23, 2012). "Six Flags New England seeks to build world's tallest swing set ride in Agawam". News Article. MassLive.com.
  13. 1 2 Constantine, Sandra (July 30, 2012). "Six Flags New England gets Agawam OK to build highest swing set ride in world". News Article. MassLive.com.
  14. ↑ "Six Flags New for 2013". SixFlags.com. Retrieved August 30, 2012.
  15. 1 2 3 Karen Robinson-Jacobs (August 30, 2012). "Six Flags plans to launch world's tallest swing ride next spring". dallasnews.com. Dallas Morning News. Retrieved February 10, 2013.
  16. 1 2 3 Beth Sawicki (August 30, 2012). "Six Flags, White Water unveil new rides". 11alive.com. Pacific and Southern Company. Retrieved February 10, 2013.
  17. ↑ Tom Kelley (May 10, 2013). "Six Flags' SkyScreamer gets you in the swing of things at 24 stories". myajc.com. Cox Newspapers, Inc. Retrieved May 11, 2013.
  18. 1 2 "Guinness World Records certifies Six Flags' Texas SkyScreamer as 'world's tallest swing ride'". The Dallas Morning News. July 9, 2013. Retrieved July 10, 2013.
  19. ↑ "Officially the world's tallest Star Flyer!". Park World Magazine. Datateam Business Media Limited. June 13, 2013. Retrieved July 11, 2013.
  20. 1 2 "New for 2014". August 29, 2013. Archived from the original on September 1, 2013. Retrieved August 29, 2013.
  21. 1 2 Kristi Palma (June 4, 2014). "New SkyScreamer Ride at Six Flags New England Inspires Photos, Videos, Tears". boston.com. Boston Globe Media Partners, LLC. Retrieved July 28, 2014.
  22. 1 2 "Six Flags México anuncia emociones de altura con el nuevo SkyScreamer". sixflags.com.mx (in Spanish). Retrieved August 28, 2014.
  23. ↑ "Six Flags America Announces New WONDER WOMAN Lasso of Truth to Open in 2017". Six Flags. Retrieved September 1, 2016.
  24. ↑ King, Cody (August 27, 2023). "Three new attractions coming to Six Flags Fiesta Texas next summer". KSAT-TV (in Spanish). Retrieved August 30, 2023.
  25. ↑ "Six Flags St. Louis Presents Expanded Fright Fest with Extra Days, New Haunted Attractions and More Scare Zones". The Wall Street Journal. September 23, 2013. Retrieved June 3, 2014.
  26. ↑ "Experience Surprising Twirling Thrills On Skyscreamer Backwards". Six Flags. March 19, 2014. Retrieved June 3, 2014.
  27. ↑ "Vol Ultime". sixflags.com. Six Flags. Retrieved June 6, 2014.
  28. ↑ "Star Flyer opens in Vancouver". Park World Magazine. August 5, 2011. Archived from the original on December 3, 2013. Retrieved November 22, 2013.
  29. ↑ "Projects". Ride Entertainment Group. Retrieved November 22, 2013.
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