Flying Aces is the biplane-themed wing coaster that anchors the aviation corner of Ferrari World Abu Dhabi, built by Swiss manufacturer Intamin and opened to the public on February 24, 2016. As only the second wing coaster Intamin had ever produced, following Skyrush at Hersheypark, it pushed the design further than any before it, debuting as the tallest, fastest, and longest wing coaster on Earth.
The ride is themed around Francesco Baracca, the World War I Italian flying ace whose personal prancing-horse emblem later became the Ferrari logo. Riders board biplane-styled trains and pass through a queue dressed as a WWI hangar and training camp before launching into a course built around a record-setting non-inverting loop that remains one of the most photographed structures at the park.
Quick Answer
Flying Aces is an Intamin wing coaster at Ferrari World Abu Dhabi that reaches a top speed of about 120 km/h (75 mph), climbs to roughly 63 m (207 ft), and runs about 1,500 m (4,921 ft) of track built around the world’s tallest non-inverting loop. It opened on February 24, 2016, and is themed around WWI flying ace Francesco Baracca, whose personal emblem became the Ferrari prancing horse logo.
How Fast Is Flying Aces?
Flying Aces hits its top speed of about 120 km/h (75 mph) partway through the course, after the train crests the 63 m (207 ft) lift hill and drops back down at a steep 51-degree angle. The lift itself climbs at a comparatively gentle 30 km/h (19 mph) on a cable-driven system, so most of the speed builds in the seconds after the train tips over the top and threads into the loop.
That 75 mph top speed made Flying Aces the fastest wing coaster in the world when it opened in 2016, and it still holds that edge today: Falcon at Wuxi Sunac Land in China (73 mph) and the launched Rapterra at Kings Dominion in Virginia (65 mph), both built since, are the closest rivals in the wing-coaster category and neither has matched it. Forces during the ride peak at around 5 Gs through the loop and the twisting return course.
Height, Length & Full Ride Stats
Park: Ferrari World Abu Dhabi. Manufacturer: Intamin. Opened: February 24, 2016. Height: about 63 m (207 ft). Top speed: about 120 km/h (75 mph). Length: about 1,500 m (4,921 ft). Inversions: 1, a roughly 52 m (171 ft) non-inverting loop plus a heartline roll. Maximum G-force: about 5. Height requirement: 130-196 cm. Trains: two, each with seven cars seating four riders across, for 28 riders per train and a stated hourly capacity of around 1,008 riders.
The Ride Experience
On a wing coaster like Flying Aces, riders sit in pairs on either side of the track with no floor, seat in front, or seat behind them, giving an open, exposed sensation as the biplane-style trains climb the 51-degree cable lift hill. The signature element is the non-inverting loop, the tallest of its kind at the time it opened, followed by a heartline roll and a fast, twisting return course packed with airtime moments and sharp direction changes.
The queue is themed as a WWI hangar and training camp, with vintage aircraft props and period detailing that set up the Baracca story before riders even board. Four-across biplane seating means every row gets the same wing-seat view, with nothing hanging over the open air except the rider.
Records and Recognition: Is Flying Aces Still the World’s Tallest Wing Coaster?
When it opened in 2016, Flying Aces was certified by Guinness World Records as the tallest, fastest, and longest wing coaster on Earth. Those Guinness titles have never been revoked, and by the raw numbers Flying Aces still measures up: at 207 ft, it’s taller than both Falcon in China (197 ft) and the launched Rapterra in Virginia (145 ft, which claims its own record specifically among launched wing coasters), and at 4,921 ft of track it’s also longer than either.
Its theming ties directly into Ferrari’s brand history, since Francesco Baracca’s personal cavallino rampante emblem became the prancing horse still used on every Ferrari today.
The Francesco Baracca Story Behind the Theme
Francesco Baracca was Italy’s top fighter ace of World War I, flying with a black prancing horse painted on the fuselage of his aircraft as a personal emblem tied to his cavalry roots. After Baracca was killed in action in 1918, Enzo Ferrari won a race at the Savio Circuit in Ravenna in 1923 and was introduced to Baracca’s parents; his mother, Countess Paolina Biancoli, suggested Ferrari put her son’s prancing horse on his cars for luck.
Ferrari kept the horse black and added a canary-yellow background, the color of his native Modena. The emblem finally appeared on a racing car in 1929, on the Alfa Romeos of the newly formed Scuderia Ferrari, and has marked every Ferrari since. Flying Aces’ WWI hangar queue and biplane trains recreate the world Baracca flew in, making the coaster the park’s most literal tribute to the logo’s origin.
What You’ll See in Photos of Flying Aces
Most photos of Flying Aces are shot from below the loop or from the queue area, where the scale of the structure against Ferrari World’s red-roofed skyline is most obvious. The recurring subjects are the non-inverting loop itself, the red-and-white biplane-styled trains mid-climb on the 51-degree lift, and the WWI-style hangar set pieces riders pass through before boarding.
For close-up detail on the ride’s engineering and layout, Wikimedia Commons and Coasterpedia host public-domain and Creative Commons photos of the loop and trains; Ferrari World’s own site also publishes official ride imagery.
Planning Your Visit
Flying Aces is included in standard Ferrari World Abu Dhabi park admission rather than sold as a separate add-on, and riders must be between 130 and 196 cm tall to board. Ferrari World, on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi, typically runs seasonal daily hours and periodic ride closures for maintenance, so times and any single-ride restrictions can shift.
Because exact hours, ticket tiers, and current ride status change throughout the year, check the official Ferrari World Abu Dhabi website before you go for up-to-date pricing, opening times, and any Flying Aces closures.
Flying Aces wing coaster FAQs
Where is the Flying Aces roller coaster located?
Flying Aces is located at Ferrari World Abu Dhabi on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
What type of roller coaster is Flying Aces?
It is an Intamin-built wing coaster, meaning riders sit in pairs on the outer edges of the train with nothing directly in front of or behind their seat.
How fast does Flying Aces go?
Flying Aces reaches a top speed of about 120 km/h (75 mph), which made it the fastest wing coaster in the world when it opened in 2016 and still keeps it ahead of newer wing coasters like Falcon (73 mph) and Rapterra (65 mph).
How tall is Flying Aces, and how tall is its loop?
The ride’s lift hill climbs to about 63 m (207 ft), and its signature non-inverting loop stands roughly 52 m (171 ft) tall, which was the tallest loop of its kind when the ride debuted.
Is Flying Aces still the world’s tallest wing coaster?
Its 2016 Guinness World Records titles for tallest, fastest, and longest wing coaster have never been revoked, and at 207 ft and 75 mph it remains taller and faster than the other most-cited wing coasters built since, including Falcon in China and Rapterra in Virginia.
What is the height requirement to ride Flying Aces?
Riders must be between 130 cm and 196 cm tall to board Flying Aces.
Why is the ride called Flying Aces?
It’s named for Francesco Baracca, Italy’s top WWI flying ace, whose personal prancing-horse emblem was given to Enzo Ferrari by Baracca’s mother in 1923 and became the Ferrari logo.
How long is the Flying Aces track?
The course runs about 1,500 m (4,921 ft), one of the longest wing coaster layouts in the world.
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