flying roller coaster
A flying roller coaster is a type of steel roller coaster meant to simulate the sensations of flight by harnessing riders in a prone position during the duration of the ride. The roller coaster cars are suspended below the track, with riders sec ...
located at
Carowinds
Carowinds is a amusement park primarily located in Charlotte, North Carolina. The park is owned and operated by Six Flags. Carowinds straddles the state line between North and South Carolina, adjacent to Interstate 77, with a portion of the park ...
. Constructed by
Vekoma
Vekoma Rides Manufacturing is an amusement ride manufacturer. Vekoma is a syllabic abbreviation of Veld Koning Machinefabriek (Veld Koning Machine Factory) which was established in 1926 by Hendrik op het Veld.
History
The company originally manu ...
, it was located in the Thunder Road section of the park. The roller coaster originally opened as Stealth at
California's Great America
California's Great America is an amusement park located in Santa Clara, California, United States. Owned and operated by Six Flags Entertainment Corporation, it originally opened in 1976 as one of two parks built by the Marriott Corporation. ...
on April 1, 2000. In 2003,
Paramount Parks
Paramount Parks was a subsidiary of National Amusements-owned Viacom, headquartered at its Paramount's Carowinds amusement park in Charlotte, North Carolina. At the time of its acquisition, the company owned and operated five amusement park/ wat ...
decided to relocate the roller coaster to Carowinds. It reopened as Borg Assimilator – the first coaster in the world to be themed to
Star Trek
''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the Star Trek: The Original Series, series of the same name and became a worldwide Popular culture, pop-culture Cultural influence of ...
– on March 20, 2004. After
Cedar Fair
Cedar Fair Entertainment Company, or simply Cedar Fair, was an American company headquartered at its flagship Cedar Point amusement park in Sandusky, Ohio, United States. The company was a publicly traded master limited partnership that origina ...
(now
Six Flags
Six Flags Entertainment Corporation is an American amusement park company headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, United States. It was formed on July 2, 2024, following a merger between longtime rivals Cedar Fair and the former Six Flags ...
) purchased Carowinds in 2006, the Paramount theming was soon removed from the park, and the ride was renamed Nighthawk. It was one of only two Flying Dutchman models still in existence from Vekoma, the other being Batwing at sister park
Six Flags America
Six Flags America is an amusement park in Woodmore, Maryland, United States,
History
California's Great America (2000–2003)
On June 22, 1999,
California's Great America
California's Great America is an amusement park located in Santa Clara, California, United States. Owned and operated by Six Flags Entertainment Corporation, it originally opened in 1976 as one of two parks built by the Marriott Corporation. ...
announced Stealth as "the world's first true flying coaster." For Stealth to be installed, the log flume, Logger's Run, had to be altered and the Yankee Clipper had to be removed. The ride officially opened to the public on April 1, 2000.
Stealth faced many issues during its run in California. The most notable of these was the electrical box, which monitored the restraints and locking devices that allowed the cars to raise and lower. It was placed on each train instead of being located in the electrical room. This created stress on the ride vehicles and components.
On August 21, 2003, the park announced that Stealth would close on September 1 to make room for a new water park, Boomerang Bay (now known as South Bay Shores). The station is still located in the water park today as the queue for the water slides (Coastal Cruz, NorCal Wipeout, and Mission Falls).
Carowinds (2004–2024)
In 1984, Carowinds added Smurf Island, which was a children's play area located on the island surrounded by the Carolina Sternwheeler. In the 1990s, Smurf Island was eventually closed and later demolished to make space for a new ride.
On August 21, 2003, Carowinds announced a new flying roller coaster that would be relocated from California's Great America. The ride's name was not announced at the time. On January 15, 2004, it was announced the new roller coaster would be named
Borg
The Borg are an alien group that appear as recurring antagonists in the ''Star Trek'' fictional universe. They are Cyborg, cybernetic organisms (cyborgs) linked in a Group mind (science fiction), hive mind called "The Collective". The Borg co- ...
Assimilator and would be the first
Star Trek
''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the Star Trek: The Original Series, series of the same name and became a worldwide Popular culture, pop-culture Cultural influence of ...
themed roller coaster. Regarding the design of the attraction, Dale Kaetzel, Vice President of marketing and Assistant General Manager, said:
Borg Assimilator subsequently replaced the Carolina Sternwheeler Riverboat, a paddle boat ride that took riders around the seven themed areas of the park. Original plans included preserving the boat, docking it on the left side of the river that is still intact, and renovating it into a restaurant accessed via bridges from the pathway under Nighthawk. The boat was eventually damaged during relocation causing these plans to be cancelled and the boat to be scrapped. Some modifications were made to the ride prior to opening. Park engineers worked out the prototype bugs and the electrical box was redesigned. It officially opened to the public on March 20, 2004.
Cedar Fair Entertainment Company
Cedar Fair Entertainment Company, or simply Cedar Fair, was an American company headquartered at its flagship Cedar Point amusement park in Sandusky, Ohio, United States. The company was a publicly traded master limited partnership that origina ...
purchased Carowinds in 2006 and was offered to use the rights of all Paramount properties for ten years at a nominal fee. Cedar Fair declined and renamed all Paramount-branded attractions, including Borg Assimilator. In 2008, the ride was renamed to Nighthawk and the Star Trek theming was removed, including the black sphere that was in the pond underneath the ride. In 2009, Nighthawk was painted with dark blue supports and yellow track.
On December 18th, 2024, Carowinds announced that Nighthawk, along with the
Drop Tower
A drop tower is a type of amusement park ride incorporating a central tower structure with one or more gondolas attached. In a typical modern configuration, each gondola carrying riders is lifted to the top of the tower and then released t ...
and Scream Weaver rides located in the park's Thrill Zone section, would be permanently closed and removed from the park, after the park’s operating season had already ended.
Ride experience
Track
The steel track was approximately in length and the height of the lift was approximately . While at California's Great America, the track was painted red and white with steel gray supports. When the ride was relocated to Carowinds, the track was repainted black and green and the supports remained gray. After the name was changed in 2008, the ride was once again repainted with yellow track and blue supports.
Nighthawk had a total of five inversions. It featured one
vertical loop
The generic roller coaster vertical loop, also known as a Loop-the-loop, or a Loop-de-loop, where a section of track causes the riders to complete a 360 degree turn, is the most basic of roller coaster inversions. At the top of the loop, rid ...
, a double
corkscrew
A corkscrew is a tool for drawing Cork (plug), corks from wine bottles and other household bottles that may be sealed with corks. In its traditional form, a corkscrew simply consists of a pointed metallic helix (often called the "worm") attach ...
, two "Lie to Fly" and two "Fly to Lie" elements. Each "Lie to Fly" and "Fly to Lie" element counted as a half inversion. A "Lie to Fly" element is when riders are on their backs, facing the sky and they are flipped and face the ground, while a "Fly to Lie" element is the opposite.
Layout
Once riders were seated and restrained, the
train
A train (from Old French , from Latin">-4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk of the beginnings of French, that is, when it wa ... , from Latin , "to pull, to draw") is a series of connected vehicles th ...
tilted backwards into a 'lay-down' position and was dispatched. The train traveled backwards out of the
station
Station may refer to:
Agriculture
* Station (Australian agriculture), a large Australian landholding used for livestock production
* Station (New Zealand agriculture), a large New Zealand farm used for grazing by sheep and cattle
** Cattle statio ...
, turned left and traveled up a
lift hill
A lift hill, or chain hill, is an upward-sloping section of track on a roller coaster on which the roller coaster train is mechanically lifted to an elevated point or peak in the track. Upon reaching the peak, the train is then propelled from t ...
. Once the train reached the top of the lift hill, it dipped down into a twist (called a "Lie-to-Fly") that turned the trains upside down into a flying position where riders faced the ground. After the twist, the train traveled down the first drop, reaching speeds of . Riders then went through an over banked Horseshoe Curve element. Following the Horseshoe, the train entered a "Fly-to-Lie" element that turned riders back to a lay-down position. After the banked turn, the ride entered a tall
vertical loop
The generic roller coaster vertical loop, also known as a Loop-the-loop, or a Loop-de-loop, where a section of track causes the riders to complete a 360 degree turn, is the most basic of roller coaster inversions. At the top of the loop, rid ...
, where riders experienced 4.3 G's. The train then went into another "Lie-to-Fly" element. Following the loop, riders went through another turn into the final "Fly-to-Lie" element before entering two consecutive
corkscrew
A corkscrew is a tool for drawing Cork (plug), corks from wine bottles and other household bottles that may be sealed with corks. In its traditional form, a corkscrew simply consists of a pointed metallic helix (often called the "worm") attach ...
s before making a right turn onto the brake run.
Theme
While the ride was located at California's Great America, there was no theme for the ride. When it was relocated to Carowinds in 2004, it was built as the first
Star Trek
''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the Star Trek: The Original Series, series of the same name and became a worldwide Popular culture, pop-culture Cultural influence of ...
themed roller coaster in the world. It was renamed Borg Assimilator and the story was that "
Borg
The Borg are an alien group that appear as recurring antagonists in the ''Star Trek'' fictional universe. They are Cyborg, cybernetic organisms (cyborgs) linked in a Group mind (science fiction), hive mind called "The Collective". The Borg co- ...
crash-landed in the middle of Carowinds and their ship – a giant gray and black sphere – has come to rest near the park's new flying roller coaster." There was a gray and black sphere located in the pond underneath the ride that the Borg crashed in. In addition to other theming, a voice was played surrounding the ride saying Borg quotes. After Cedar Fair bought the park, all the Star Trek theming was removed and the name was changed for the 2008 season.
Trains
Nighthawk operated with two trains. Each train had six cars that have four seats in a single row for a total of 24 riders. Riders were restrained by an over-the-shoulder restraint and a lap bar. Riders could put on the restraint themselves, but only a ride operator could push down the lap bar. While in the station, the trains reclined back to the laying down position.
Incidents
On March 17, 2007, seven employees received minor injuries when their seats changed position during a test run of the roller coaster. An inspection discovered that the ride operator accidentally pushed a button controlling the seat positions while the ride was in motion. That button was later modified to only work when the ride is stopped.
See also
*
Batwing (roller coaster)
Batwing is a steel flying roller coaster built by Vekoma at Six Flags America in Prince George's County, Maryland. The ride is a clone of the now-defunct Firehawk at Kings Island, and similar to the also-defunct Nighthawk at Carowinds, however ...
, another Vekoma Flying Dutchman at
Six Flags America
Six Flags America is an amusement park in Woodmore, Maryland, United States,Firehawk (roller coaster)
Firehawk was a flying roller coaster located at Kings Island in Mason, Ohio. Manufactured by Vekoma, it originally opened as X-Flight at Geauga Lake, Six Flags Worlds of Adventure on May 26, 2001, billed as the Midwest's first and only flying ...
, a now-defunct Vekoma Flying Dutchman at
Kings Island
Kings Island is a amusement park northeast of Cincinnati in Mason, Ohio, United States. Owned and operated by Six Flags, the park was built by Taft Broadcasting and opened in 1972. It was part of a larger effort to move and expand Coney Islan ...