In 2024, we lost six roller coasters. While most of the loses make way for new attractions, we will surely miss the thrills that these coasters have offered. Let’s take a look at the coasters we lost in 2024.
Anaconda at Kings Dominion
Anaconda was a steel roller coaster and one of the classic Arrow looping coasters. The coaster featured four inversions and a 144 foot drop. What made Anaconda stand out from some of the other classic looping coasters was its underwater tunnel. It was the first coaster to feature such a tunnel when it opened in 1991. After leaked demolition plans, the closure of the coaster was confirmed in December of 2024. The removal of Anaconda makes room for the upcoming Rapterra coaster.
Nighthawk at Carowinds
Nighthawk was one of two remaining Vekoma flying roller coasters in the US. The coaster originally opened at California’s Great America in 2000 as Stealth. The coaster was reloated to Carowinds in 2004. The flying coaster featured a 103 foot drop and five inversions. Following the closure of Nighthawk, and the previous closure of Firehawk at Kings Island in 2019, the only remaining Vekoma flying coaster is Batwing at Six Flags America.
La Vibora at Six Flags Over Texas
La Vibora originally opened at Six Flags Magic Mountain in 1984. It was relocated to Six Flags Over Texas in 1986. The Intamin Swiss bobsled coaster was one of only two still operating in the US. The coaster featured a sixty foot drop and speeds of 32 miles per hour. The removal of La Vibora and the Super Loop attraction, El Diablo make way for a new “record-breaking” dive coaster.
Scorpion at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay
Scorpion was a Schwarzkopf steel coaster that originally opened in 1980. It was Busch Gardens Tampa Bay’s second coaster and the oldest operationg coaster at the park as of its closure. It included speeds of 41 miles per hour and one loop. Its was located in the Pantopia area of the park which has seen new attractions over the last few years including Serengeti Flyer and the new family coaster, Phoenix Rising. The removal of Scopion will make way likely for the new Wild Oasis interactive attraction, solidifying the updates of this area of the park.
Green Lantern at Six Flags Great Adventure
Green Lantern opened as the tallest, fastest, and longest stand-up coaster when it opned as Chang at Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom in 1997. When the park closed, the Bollinger and Mabillard stand-up coaster was relocated to Great Adventure where it reopened in 2011. It was a near mirror clone of Rougarou (formerly Mantis) at Cedar Point though exceeded its height, speed, and length records. Green Lanter featured speeds of 63 miles per hour and five inversions.
Kingda Ka at Six Flags Great Adventure
One closure that was speculated was that of Kingda Ka, the world’s talllest roller coaster. However, he iconic coaster’s closure was announced suddenly and without a proper send off. Many enthusiasts were disappointed that they couldnt get a “last ride” on the record-breaking coaster. It ceased operation in November of 2024.
The coaster was designed by Intamin and stood at 456 feet. The ride’s hydraulic launch system propeled riders from 0 to 128 mph in 3.5 seconds. After the rapid ascent up the top hat, riders would plummet 418 feet at a near-vertical angle. The ride finished out with a 129-foot camel hump. The coaster and its tallest record predacessor, Top Thrill Dragster both experienced many issues throughout the years due to the hydraulic launch system. Top Thrill Dragster notably closed to make way for the redesigned multi-launch Top Thrill 2. However, Top Thrill 2 had a less than exemplary first season in.
The retirement of Kingda Ka comes before the opening of a new world’s tallest roller coaster, Falcon’s Flight at Six Flags Qiddiya in Saudi Arabia. That coaster completed track construction in December 2024 and could see a 2025 opening. It stands at 640 feet tall and features a 519 foot drop. It will be the world’s first exo-coaster,
In addition to Kingda Ka and Green Lantern, Six Flags Great Adventure removed two other attractions. The removal of the attractions makes room for a new “multi-world-record-breaking launch roller coaster” expected to open in 2026. It is unknown whether this new coaster could be an updated version of Kingda Ka like we saw Cedar Point do with Top Thrill 2.
Which roller coasters will you miss the most?
