Gerstlauer Euro-Fighter Explained

The Euro-Fighter is a type of steel roller coaster developed by Gerstlauer. First launched in 2003, the trademark feature of the roller coaster is its beyond-vertical drop, which reaches an angle greater than 90 degrees. Although the majority of Euro-Fighters are custom designed for each installation, every design so far has included the trademark drop. A number of different track elements are possible, including vertical loops, diving loops and barrel rolls. Almost all Euro-Fighter models have a vertical chain-driven lift hill, although LSM launch systems are also available.

Riders are transported in individual cars around the track, which feature two rows of four seats. Two exceptions are Huracan at the Belantis amusement park in Germany and Dare Devil Dive at Six Flags Over Georgia, which both feature cars similar to those used on Gerstlauer's launched roller coasters. The cars have over-the-shoulder restraints and may be themed (to an extent) according to the customer's requirements. Dare Devil Dive's cars were the first to use a new lap-bar only restraint system in 2011 and were used on several following models. Over-the-shoulder restraints continued to be offered on Euro-Fighters and an updated design eventually appeared on Defiance in 2022.

Fluch von Novgorod, located at Hansa Park in Germany, was the first Euro-Fighter to incorporate both a vertical lift and an LSM launch in the same circuit.[1]

Installations

Name Model Park Country Opened Status
Vild-Svinet Model 500/8 Denmark 2003 [2]
Typhoon Model 670/8 Belgium 2004 [3]
Speed: No Limits Model 600 United Kingdom 2006 [4]
Rage Model 320+ United Kingdom 2007 [5]
Mystery Mine Custom United States 2007 [6]
SpongeBob SquarePants Rock Bottom Plunge Custom United States 2008 [7]
Custom United Kingdom 2009 [8]
Falcon Model 320+ Netherlands 2009 [9]
Flucht von Novgorod Custom Germany 2009 [10]
Huracan Custom Germany 2010 [11]
Dare Devil Dive Custom United States 2011 [12]
Untamed Model 320+ United States 2011 [13]
Takabisha Model 1000 Japan 2011 [14]
Eurofighter Custom Italy 2011 [15]
Iron Shark Model 380 United States 2012 [16]
Abyss Custom Australia 2013 [17] [18]
Krater Model 380 Colombia 2014 [19]
Serpent Model 320+ Morocco 2015 [20]
Predator Model 320+ United Arab Emirates 2016 [21]
Hydrus Model 320 United States 2017 [22] [23]
Adrenaline Peak Model 320 United States 2018 [24] [25]
Tantrum Model 380 United States 2018 [26]
TMNT Shellraiser Model 1000 United States 2019 [27]
Vertika Custom France 2020 [28]
Defiance Custom United States 2022 [29]
Vindfald Custom Denmark 2024 [30]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Gerstlauer's page for Fluch von Novgorod under 'New Projects' . 2009-03-08 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20090225052125/http://www.gerstlauer-rides.de/english/Gerstlauer_E.html . 2009-02-25 .
  2. Vild-Svinet. BonBon-Land. 2163. May 22, 2015.
  3. Typhoon. Bobbejaanland. 2229. May 22, 2015.
  4. Speed: No Limits. Oakwood Theme Park. 2721. May 22, 2015.
  5. Rage. Adventure Island. 3573. May 22, 2015.
  6. Mystery Mine. Dollywood. 3609. May 22, 2015.
  7. SpongeBob SquarePants Rock Bottom Plunge. Nickelodeon Universe. 3727. May 22, 2015.
  8. Saw - The Ride. Thorpe Park. 4162. May 22, 2015.
  9. Falcon. Duinrell. 3936. May 22, 2015.
  10. Flucht von Novgorod. Hansa Park. 4075. May 22, 2015.
  11. Huracan. Belantis. 9119. May 22, 2015.
  12. Dare Devil Dive. Six Flags Over Georgia. 9430. May 22, 2015.
  13. Untamed. Canobie Lake Park. 9517. May 22, 2015.
  14. Takabisha. Fuji-Q Highland. 9795. May 22, 2015.
  15. Eurofigther. Zoosafari Fasanolandia. 9363. May 22, 2015.
  16. Iron Shark. Galveston Island Historic Pleasure Pier. 10290. May 22, 2015.
  17. Abyss. Adventure World. 7444. May 22, 2015.
  18. Web site: Wilson. Richard. Adventure World coaster named Abyss. Parkz. 12 September 2013. 12 September 2013.
  19. Krater. Parque del Café. 4386. May 22, 2015.
  20. Serpent. Sindibad. 9363. May 22, 2015.
  21. Predator. IMG Worlds of Adventure. 13902. May 22, 2015.
  22. Hydrus. Casino Pier. 14231. May 22, 2015.
  23. Web site: Ride Entertainment celebrates opening of iconic Hydrus roller coaster at Casino Pier. June 30, 2017. Read. Charles. Blooloop. August 23, 2021.
  24. Web site: Portland's Oaks Park opens new Adrenaline Peak roller coaster. April 9, 2018. Attractions Magazine. January 31, 2021.
  25. Ardenaline Peak. Oaks Amusement Park. 15410. February 20, 2018.
  26. Web site: Darien Throws a Tantrum. Ride Entertainment Group. August 23, 2021.
  27. TMNT Shellraiser. Nickelodeon Universe Theme Park. 15594. June 12, 2012.
  28. Web site: VIDEO. Brest. La Récré des 3 curés rouvre, Vertika fait tourner les têtes . 5 June 2020 .
  29. Web site: Exclusive: This Colorado theme park is putting its newest roller coaster on a mountaintop. August 5, 2021. Levine. Arthur. USA Today. August 23, 2021.
  30. Vindfald. Tivoli Friheden. 20986. August 23, 2023.