Flight of the Hippogriff
| Flight of the Hippogriff | |
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A vehicle ascending the lift hill on Flight of the Hippogriff. An animatronic Hippogriff can be seen in the background, to the left side of the lift hill.
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| Previously known as Flying Unicorn (2000–2008) | |
| Islands of Adventure | |
| Park section | The Wizarding World of Harry Potter |
| Coordinates | 28°28′21″N 81°28′26″W / 28.472454°N 81.473803°WCoordinates: 28°28′21″N 81°28′26″W / 28.472454°N 81.473803°W |
| Status | Operating |
| Opening date | June 29, 2000 |
| Universal Studios Hollywood | |
| Park section | The Wizarding World of Harry Potter |
| Status | Operating |
| Opening date | April 7, 2016 |
| Universal Studios Japan | |
| Park section | The Wizarding World of Harry Potter |
| Status | Operating |
| Opening date | July 15, 2014 |
| General statistics | |
| Type | Steel – Junior |
| Designer | Universal Creative |
| Model | Junior Coaster (335m) Youngstar Coaster (custom) |
| Lift/launch system | Drive tire |
| Height | 42.7 ft (13.0 m) |
| Length | 1,099.1 ft (335.0 m) |
| Speed | 28.5 mph (45.9 km/h) |
| Inversions | 0 |
| Duration | 1:06 |
| Height restriction | 36 in (91 cm) |
| Trains | 2 trains with 8 cars. Riders are arranged 2 across in a single row for a total of 16 riders per train. |
| Queue host | Rubeus Hagrid (voice) |
| Manufacturer |
Mack Rides (Hollywood) Vekoma (Orlando, Japan) |
 Universal Express available |
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 Wheelchair accessible |
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 Must transfer from wheelchair |
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 Assistive listening available |
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 Closed captioning available |
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Flight of the Hippogriff at RCDB Pictures of Flight of the Hippogriff at RCDB |
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Flight of the Hippogriff is a junior roller coaster in the The Wizarding World of Harry Potter section at three theme parks – Universal Studios Japan, Universal Studios Hollywood, and Islands of Adventure of Universal Studios Florida. Designed by Universal Creative, the first installation opened at Islands of Adventure on June 18, 2010. The new ride was a redesign of an existing roller coaster known as Flying Unicorn, which the park closed in 2008 to begin its transformation. The design change was implemented to fit the new Harry Potter themed area that was being constructed at the park. Flight of the Hippogriff is a mild alternative to the area's more extreme rides such as Dragon Challenge and Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey. Following a successful launch, identical versions of the roller coaster were installed at Universal Studios Japan and Universal Studios Hollywood over the next several years.
Flying Unicorn was one of the first rides to be added to Islands of Adventure after its grand opening, debuting on June 29, 2000, in the park's Lost Continent area. The ride took place in an enchanted forest, like something from a fairy tale. Various signs along the queue tell the story of a wizard who found a baby unicorn's horn, which it shed (once every thousand years). He then used the horn to create this ride. The magic from the unicorn's horn is used so that it can fly. Guests rode in carts designed to look like mechanical unicorns, and travel over a track, to the top of the lift, then dropped through various dips and turns before being deposited at the start of the track.
Following the announcement of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter section in May 2007, both Flying Unicorn and fellow previous incarnation Dueling Dragons were shown to be in the new area, but it had not been confirmed whether they were to be closed and re-themed as of that time.
After eight years of operation, Flying Unicorn was closed on July 7, 2008 to allow construction to proceed on The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. The attraction was closed off to the public and listed as Standing But Not Operating (SBNO).
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