Airtime
Airtime is an English-language term for the feeling of weightlessness or the feeling of being lifted out of the seat, especially on roller coasters , but also on other rides (e.g. free-fall towers ). The effect corresponds to a short parabolic flight or free fall .
Terms
Literally translated, airtime means “air time”, which is due to the fact that you float or even take off during airtime and thus “spend time in the air”. Depending on the strength of the forces generated, a distinction is often made between “floating airtime” and “ejector airtime”. “Floating” is understood to mean rather light forces around the 0 g limit (weightlessness), while with the “ejector” stronger negative g forces occur that induce passengers Lift it out of the seat for a short distance until it is held by the restraint bar.
Airtime is mainly generated by hills, but also by steep first drops and is mostly used on roller coasters without inversions .
Explanation
The feeling of weightlessness occurs while the movement of the passenger describes a trajectory parabola . In this phase, the passenger without contact with the train would have the same trajectory. If the roller coaster is more curved than the trajectory parabola, the train and passengers are also pulled downwards. In order not to take off, the chassis has so-called underfriction wheels .