On opening night of Haunt at Kings Island (September 21, 2018), as guests meandered through the fog an into the cemetery behind the iconic Eiffel Tower, a mysterious new plot of the deceased had been prepared for a new arrival.

The sign read,

Speculation immediately began to fly as guests looked for clues as to which ride would be removed.

Would is it be WindSeeker? Vortex? Firehawk? Kings Island quickly put an end to the ride debate by confirming on September 24, 2018 that a roller coaster would be the next to be removed.

Vortex celebrated 30 years of operation in 2017, and despite many claiming it would be the next to go from some rough ride experiences, its fate was not yet sealed.

Instead, Firehawk, the Vekoma Flying Dutchman, was officially announced today as the roller coaster to head to the ride graveyard.

Firehawk previously was built at Six Flags Worlds of Adventure/Geauga Lake in 2001 under the name X-Flight, where it resided until 2006. Following Cedar Fair’s purchase of Six Flags Worlds of Adventure, X-Flight was removed in 2007 and transferred to Kings Island.

Firehawk will give its last rides on the final weekend of Haunt and The Great Pumpkin Fest October 26-28, 2018.

#FirehawkFinalFlights #KIFirehawk

What is even more interesting is the look at the possibilities of what the removal of Firehawk means as far as park expansion.

With Dinosaur’s Alive removal following the 2017 season, and now all the property from Firehawk opening up, this presents a large footprint for future expansion without having to go into much of the undeveloped footprint owned by the park.

With Kings Mills Antique Autos returning in 2019, this could present some interesting tease opportunities for 2020 and beyond…

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