by Technical Park
Guests watching the planes at Linate Airport in Milan can now pilot one by boarding the new Flying Fury ride at Europark next door.
Officially opened in July after two months of tests, the ride is the fruition of four years’ development work by Technical Park, which first released drawings for the ride at the 2003 Euro Amusement Show in Genoa.
Four-seater planes are mounted to the end of two rotating arms, which lift riders up to 37 metres high. The speed with which the arms move depends on whether the riders take a passive or interactive ride.
In ‘turbo’ mode the arms move at 15rpm and the planes stay locked in place. However, a slower ‘game’ mode, at 7rpm, is enhanced by allowing riders to control the roll and yaw of the planes at 17 and 10rpm respectively, and so completing any number of diving movements. Plasma screens in the waiting area show pictures of the riders as they control the planes. Photos of the full ride construction next month.
