Apocalypse (Drayton Manor)

Apocalypse
Drayton Manor Resort
Area	Aerial Park
Status	Permanently Closed
Cost	£2,000,000
Opening date	27 May 2000, 2002 Floorless
Closing date	30th October, 2022
Ride statistics
Attraction type	Drop tower
Manufacturer	Intamin
Designer	Space Leisure
Model	Giant Drop
Theme	Industrial/Hazardous
Height	177 ft (54 m)
Speed	50 mph (80 km/h)
G-force	4
Capacity	520 riders per hour
Duration	1:15
Height restriction	120 cm (3 ft 11 in)

Apocalypse was a 54-metre-high (177 ft) freefall tower ride located at Drayton Manor Resort, England.

History

The original tower 2000-2001

Apocalypse opened in April 2000 and it had four towers. two of which were standing up and two sit down. In 2002 the ride was partially rebuilt to accommodate a 5th tower to use as the world's first stand-up floorless element, and was also dubbed as the fifth element. In 2016, tower five was down until 2018 when owners removed the outside queue line and the Entrance Arch to bring in a crane to fix it. In 2019, the station area was refurbished which includes new control panels, removal of the klaxons and beacons and replaced with a siren and new flooring was put in. It is the tallest ride at the park and is the only ride that can be seen outside the park and in parts the Wilnecote area of Tamworth.

Apocalypse was the first stand-up tower drop in the world and it kept the title as the only one until 2005 when Hurakan Condor opened in PortAventura Park.

Riders reached 50 miles per hour (80 km/h), falling 54 metres (177 ft) in 4 seconds.

In 2008 the ride received an Airtime Award from amusement park fansite CoasterForce.com, whose members voted it the "Best Thrill Ride in Europe".

As of 2020, the ride has been listed as for sale on the website interlink.

The ride was retired on the 30th October 2022 for future park developments. There was a photograph with a large group of fans.

It is due to be removed on Tuesday 1st November 2022.

Incidents

• Two days before its launch, an electrician who was working on the tower at night, fell 30 ft from the top onto a safety hatch. He sustained a broken back and leg and the entire incident was reconstructed for BBCs 999.