Flight Deck (Canada's Wonderland)

Flight Deck is an inverted roller coaster located at Canada's Wonderland in Vaughan, Ontario, Canada. It originally opened in 1995 under the name Top Gun. It was renamed Flight Deck in 2008 after Paramount Parks sold Wonderland to Cedar Fair, which necessitated the gradual removal of all Paramount names and trademarks from the theme park.

History

The roller coaster was based on the 1986 film ''Top Gun'' (produced by Paramount Pictures, a sister company of Paramount Parks), and is meant to simulate the feeling of riding in an F-14 fighter jet. The ride was themed heavily after the movie, with various props alongside the queue, including models of the F-14 aircraft, hangars, radar installations, army trucks, and informational posters about the making of the movie. The "Top Gun" movie theme had marked a shift in the design of the park, as the ride no longer matched the theme of the "land" in which it was situated.

When Vekoma announced the 689m Standard Suspended Looping Coaster, Paramount had cancelled their plans with Bolliger & Mabillard (B&M) to make an inverted coaster to go on the land where Behemoth currently stands. This was due to Cedar Point's contract on having no B&M inverted coaster in the radius of a Cedar Fair park. Because Canada's Wonderland was situated from Cedar Point, the custom inverted coaster was cancelled and the SLC was put in place. The ride was built where the "Zumba Flume" (a water log ride) was once located, and became the flagship ride in the park until being succeeded by Behemoth in 2008. The ride was renamed Flight Deck in 2008 following the park's sale to Cedar Fair.

Characteristics

Queue & Station

The station of Flight Deck was one of the most themed stations in the park, and was shaped like an airplane hangar. The queue for the ride is under the hangar, and it curves back-and-forth between the two sides of it. The trains for Flight Deck wait under it as well in the station. Previously around the hangar were many military objects that are themed to the movie''Top Gun''. Some of those objects included trucks, airplanes, and radar. Very few of these remain today.

The colours of Flight Deck matched in with the theme of ''Top Gun''. The supports are grey with the track itself coloured with a much lighter shade of grey. The trains on Flight Deck are coloured mainly red, but also have a bit of white on the back of the seats. The station for Flight Deck is all grey.

Rider requirements

Riders may not carry loose items during the ride. Riders are encouraged to remove glasses and hats due to the high velocity of the ride. Onlookers will notice many guests riding in their bare feet as flip flops and sandals can come off very easily.

Ride mechanics

Flight Deck features a number of roller coaster elements including a sea serpent roll (two inversions), a sidewinder loop, and a double inline twist. First, the trains of Flight Deck go up to the top of the lift hill which is almost tall. Then, the trains go down the hill which does a 90-degree turn to the right on the way down, speeding at 80 km/h. At the bottom of the first drop, the passenger's feet are just a couple of feet away from the ground. The ride has many near miss effects with the ground, track and supports. After that, the roller coaster's train goes through a half loop, an inline roll and then another half loop, followed by an overbanking turn and a sidewinder loop. Next, Flight Deck's trains go through a 180-degree turn and through two barrel rolls. Lastly, the trains make another 180-degree turn and head into the final brake run.

Trains

The trains to Flight Deck are inverted, meaning that the passengers' feet hang free with no floor under them.

Flight Deck has two trains working all the time. Each of the two trains has ten cars, and each of the cars can hold two people. Therefore, each train can hold 20 passengers at a time and 40 passengers can ride Flight Deck at a time. The cars of Flight Deck's trains have a shoulder harness which is attached to the bottom of the seat with seatbelts.

The trains were originally named ''Maverick'' and ''Iceman'', going along with the callsigns of the two pilots in the ''Top Gun'' film. For the 2010 season, the trains were renamed ''Firehawk'' and ''Raptor''.

Reception

''USA Today'' gave the ride a poor review, saying "its ride is so rough it bats riders' ears mercilessly."

In popular culture

A scene from the TV show '' Flashpoint'' was filmed on the evacuation stairs of Flight Deck during the 2008–2009 offseason. The episode aired on April 10, 2009, and is titled " The Perfect Family".

References

External links

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{{Wonderland

Roller coasters introduced in 1995
Roller coasters in Ontario
Roller coasters operated by Six Flags
Aviation attractions