Galactica: Alton Towers announces first new ride since crash

Alton Towers has released details of its first new ride since a rollercoaster crash at the park in June left five people seriously injured, including two who lost a leg each.

Passengers on Galactica, which will open at the Staffordshire theme park in April after two years in the making, will wear virtual reality headsets. The park says it is the world's first rollercoaster "entirely customised for the virtual reality experience".

A video that will play in front of the eyes of riders will add an extra dimension to the ride, taking passengers on “a mesmerising journey through the wonders of space”, timed to coincide with the twists and turns of the carriages. Riders will be seated and strapped in, but positioned face down as if they were flying.

Over the course of the three-minute ride, passengers will reach a top speed of 75kph and experience a maximum g-force of 3.5gs, which the park says is more than astronauts typically experience during rocket launches.

Galactica is a rebrand and relaunch of the ride, Air, in the Forbidden Valley area of the park, which opened in 2002 and is made by Bolliger & Mabillard. The Smiler, the ride involved in the crash last year, was made by Gerstlauer.

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Gill Riley, Alton Towers’ marketing director, said in a statement: "There is nowhere else in the world that people can experience the feeling of a flying rollercoaster combined with soaring through the universe.

"For two minutes, our guests will be transported into space and we believe Galactica showcases the future for theme parks around the world – it’s a complete game changer."

She added to the BBC: "Obviously the safety and welfare of our guests is our number one priority.”

"Following the incident last year, we immediately put into effect additional safety protocols on our multi-car rollercoasters, of which this is one.

"In addition, once this ride is installed, as with every other new ride and experience, it will be subject to comprehensive pre-opening assessment [by us] and by an accredited independent inspection body."

Visitor numbers to the park fell last year in the wake of the June 2 crash on The Smiler, after which two young people lost legs. An investigation into the crash found that it was the result of human error.

It was announced this week that Alton Towers, which was opened in 1980, will remain closed on “quieter” days throughout the 2016 season in an effort to “allow [the park’s management] to focus our efforts on those days when we know we will be busy”.

Merlin Entertainment, the company behind the park, has warned shareholders that visitor numbers may not recover until 2017. Alton Towers has cut some 200 jobs since the incident.

It will be hoped the launch of Galactica can restore the fortunes of a park that was long the most popular in the UK. In 2014, Alton Towers was the ninth most visited park in Europe, ahead of Legoland (10th) and Thorpe Park (11th), with 2,575,000 annual visitors.

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