Council consent for Euro-Fighter ride
Planning permission has been granted for Thorpe Park’s fourth major rollercoaster. Construction on the new ride, a Gerstlauer Euro-Fighter, will begin on site in May of this year, ahead of a 2009 opening.
Named at this stage simply “2009 Rollercoaster” the ride will be the third of its kind on British shores, and was given full planning consent by Runnymede Borough Council on January 30. The ride’s signature feature will be a “beyond vertical” drop of 97º from a height of 100ft, followed by a number of thrill elements unique to Thorpe Park.
“Building on the successful launch of our iconic Stealth ride in 2006, the new coaster will add an element of edge to the already adrenalin packed breadth of thrills on offer,” says Thorpe Park general manager, Peter Ronchetti. “We are determined to establish Thorpe as the UK’s most thrilling attraction and adding this to our current portfolio will certainly do that.”
With a total of four loops, the new ride will make the London park the number three in the world in terms of total ride inversions – an impressive 18 – as many as 10 of which can be found on the coaster Colossus. The new coaster will feature a total of track length of 2362ft, last 1 minute and 40 seconds and feature an on-board DVD system.
