State-of-the-Art B&M Wing Coaster Coming To Six Flags Great America

Gurnee, IL — Thrill-seekers will be able to take flight at Six Flags Great America next summer when the park debuts X-Flight, a ground-breaking wing coaster featuring cutting-edge roller coaster technology. Six Flags is also the first park in the U.S. to announce plans for this type of roller coaster.

X-Flight will take riders on a flight, defying gravity, with no track above or below them. This unique roller coaster features trains with pairs of seats suspended on either side of the track.

"The coaster's train actually looks like a plane with seats suspended on either side of the track. It's like nothing you have ever experienced before," said Hank Salemi, Six Flags Great America Park President. We are thrilled to bring this revolutionary wing coaster to our guests for the 2012 season."

Six Flags Great America will open the X-Flight roller coaster, a stand-of-the-art B&M "Wing Coaster" in 2012.

This new roller coaster will feature unique trains and five thrilling inversions on the nearly 3,000-foot long course.

X-Flight will feature a signature "fly-through" element where the coaster makes a last-minute manuever to avoid the structure.

Riders will ride with their feet dangling as the train climbs 12-stories. The roller coaster will span 3,000 feet, reach a top speed of 55 miles-per-hour and feature five inverting elements, including a zero-G roll and barrel roll.

Six Flags says one of the most adrenaline-pumping moments on the ride is an extreme fly-through where the coaster speeds straight toward a structure making a last-minute vertical flip to fit through a keyhole cut out.

"Six Flags Great America has a long history of introducing legendary rides and first-of-its-kind roller coasters. What makes X-Flight so unique is soaring through 3,000 feet of high-speed drops, loops and turns, with nothing above or below you," added Salemi.

X-Flight is a product of Bolliger & Mabillard, the same manufacturer who designed the roller coasters – Raging Bull, Superman: Ultimate Flight and Batman: The Ride.

Construction on X-Flight will begin this fall with an expected opening of spring 2012. The roller coaster will be located in the County Fair section of Six Flags.