MASON, Ohio — The Bat is back.
The popular suspended roller coaster at Kings Island, originally called "Top Gun" during its Paramount days, is running again after a mishap in June.
The park said it shut the ride down after a wheel came off while the ride was in motion. No one was injured, but the ride closed for just over 2 weeks for repairs.
Kings Island spokesman Chad Showalter confirmed to WCPO that the ride has been repaired and is now open for park guests.
For now, however, only one of the the ride's two trains is operating.
Older coaster with a history
The Bat is a suspended coaster that hangs from the track, and at nearly 30 years old, is one of the last of its kind in the country.
It was built by Arrow Dynamics, a now defunct company that closed in 2001.
Many Arrow coasters nationwide are now reaching the end of their lifespans, such as King's Island's former Vortex coaster, which was removed in 2019.
"The Bat," however, is a favorite of older fans, who remember the original Bat from the 1980's, which was a groundbreaking coaster when it first debuted.
Some worried the wheel incident might spell the end of the coaster, but like Tom Cruise in this summer's Top Gun Maverick, the old Top Gun coaster proved it still has plenty of life in it.
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