Orion

View of Orion.

***Orion*** is a giga coaster located in Area 72 section at Kings Island that opened in 2020. It is a Hyper Coaster model from manufacturer Bolliger & Mabillard, which became the seventh giga coaster in the world and the largest investment in park history, costing an estimated $30 million. Orion stands 287 feet (87 m), features a 300-foot drop (91 m), and reaches a maximum speed of 91 mph (146 km/h). Its track stretches 5,321 feet (1,622 m) on the site formerly occupied by *Firehawk* and *Dinosaurs Alive!*.

## History

On September 27, 2018, Kings Island announced that *Firehawk* would close permanently on October 28, 2018. The ride was demolished prior to the 2019 season. In early 2019, Kings Island submitted construction blueprints to the City of Mason for approval. Dennis Speigel, co-founder and previous employee of Kings Island, stated that plans indicated a new roller coaster was being built, with a likely height estimate of at least 300 feet (91 m) that would qualify it as a giga coaster. The plans were approved on April 24, 2019. Cedar Fair also applied for national trademarks for the names *Orion* and *Polaris* as a marketing teaser tactic to keep enthusiasts guessing between the two. On August 15, 2019, Kings Island held an evening event open to both the media and public that officially announced the new coaster as Orion. It was confirmed to have a 300-foot drop (91 m), making it the seventh giga coaster in the world. In November 2019, Orion's train design was revealed at the annual International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA) Amusement Expo in Orlando. Unlike Diamondback’s train configurations from B&M that feature staggered, two-seat rows, Orion's trains were designed to seat four across in a straight line. In February 2020, Orion successfully completed its first test run. The coaster was originally set to open for the 2020 season on April 11, but the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic delayed the opening of the park (and therefore the ride) to July 2.

## Story and Ride Experience

### Story

Guests enter the Fort Mason Research Compound Active Testing Site where some photos and a tablet can be seen on the right. The line begins when guests go through a left turn and a right turn followed by a staircase. Various voices can be occasionally heard in the area, along with several banners and Outpost passages being seen. On the left side, there is a blue canister that says Radium XL-200 which is a reference to *Magnum XL-200 at Cedar Point.* Igneous-12E which is a reference to defunct ride *Disaster Transport at Cedar Point.* Sedimentary-325 which is a reference to *Fury 325 at Carowinds.* Metamorphic-VTBC which is a reference to defunct ride *Volcano the Blast Coaster at Kings Dominion*. The meteors are painted rocks from *White Water Canyon*. There is a switchback that goes through the Outpost 20(*Orion*) and Outpost 7(*Firehawk*) passages. On the right wall of the hangar is a basket with rocks. A switchback section passes through the Outpost 87(*Vortex*) passage. Guests walk into the hangar where several offices and lockers can be found. Several easter eggs can be found, including the defunct roller coasters *Firehawk* and *Vortex*. There are some television monitors that play a video, which is the Pre-Show, the story of what is about to happen on the ride. The ride features the latest prototype vehicle developed by the Project X initiative. Scientists are in a race against time to develop technology capable of weaving transport vehicles through a coming meteor storm and traveling to a new planet within the Orion constellation. For the program to be successful, it needs volunteers to help with testing. Then, guests go upstairs and enter the loading station where they get on the train.

### Ride Experience

The train leaves the station and climbs a 287 ft tall chain lift hill. At the top, riders plunge down a 300 ft drop at an 85-degree angle, reaching a max speed of 91 mph. After passing under some black sand, the train heads through a 174 ft tall banked airtime hill followed by a 202 ft horseshoe. Riders race through a 56 ft airtime hill and a 147 ft tall airtime hill with trim a brake. Then, the train spirals through a 125 ft figure-8-like helix, also known as an ampersand turn. Following that is an on-ride camera which takes a picture of the riders. After a 90 ft left-handed overbanked turn, riders go through an 83 ft tall airtime hill before stopping at the final brake run. The train slows down on the slope and makes a left turn. Now returning to the station, riders unboard the train and exit the ride.

## Trivia

* *Orion* is the seventh giga-coaster in the world, meaning its first drop is over 300 feet.
	+ It is also the fifth giga-coaster built for a Cedar Fair park, following *Millennium Force* at Cedar Point, *Intimidator 305* at Kings Dominion, *Leviathan* at Canada's Wonderland, and *Fury 325* at Carowinds.
* Though the coaster replaced *Firehawk*, its entrance was actually repurposed from the former coaster's on-ride photo booth.
* The on ride photo camera is reused from *Firehawk*.
* The barrels in the queue were repurposed from the International Street Fountains bases, The Security Post was repurposed from the *Flight Commander* drive box.
* Orion is currently the tallest, fastest, and longest coaster at Kings Island, having beaten all of those records from *Diamondback*, which had held the record for thirteen years.
	+ Ironically, both coasters are remarkably similar in several aspects, including having the same manufacturer, and similar track and car design.

## Gallery

### Videos

Orion Front Seat POV 2020 FULL HD Kings IslandOn Ride Video