In the spring of 2003, Six Flags' largest theme park on the east coast of America, New Jersey's Six Flags Great Adventure, rolled out their newest contribution to the well-being of coaster enthusiasts across the eastern seaboard: Superman: Ultimate Flight. Upon opening on April 17, Superman became the most recent addition to a new breed of steel coasters known as 'flying,' along with a similar Superman ride scheduled to open at Six Flags Great America in Illinois. The flying concept used will send trainloads of thirty-two Superman wannabes on the ride of their lives, departing from a lift height of 115 feet to swoop down into a maze of inversions, spirals, curves, and flips, all experienced in a head-first prone position parallel to the overhead track. The design of Great Adventure's Ultimate Flight is based on that of the Atlanta, Georgia-based Six Flags over Georgia's ride of the same name which opened in 2002, with two improvements: longer trains, and a modified first turnaround element, featuring a layout including two 360-degree vertical and horizontal inversions, the rare Pretzel Loop and Heartline Twist, into the experience. Superman: Ultimate Flight is designed and manufactured in Switzerland by the famed Bolliger and Mabillard and will become B&M's fourth steel project to hit Six Flags Great Adventure, previous additions being the east coast's first inverted steel looper, Batman: the Ride, of 1993; 1999's Medusa, the world's first floorless, above-track coaster; and Nitro, the east's tallest and fastest raised-seating mega-coaster, which blasted off in 2001.

To get into the Superman position from below the track, B&M have specially designed rider-cradles which are boarded in a sitting position, then mechanically raised to become prone to the red and yellow track above. After takeoff from one of two 'split' loading stations (similar to those used on X-Flight and Batwing), the flight starts out with a 90-degree curve and then the trip up to a 15-story altitude. At last, Superman impersonators get their wings. The Ultimate Flight gets to the good stuff with the first dive, heading down 100 feet and curving 135 degrees to buzz over the queuing line below. Soaring up, the course continues with the one-of-a-kind inversion mayhem of the Pretzel Loop, the train climbing to a height of 76 feet before diving downwards in the reverse-type loop. Climbing back to 7-story altitudes and exiting the Pretzel, the track swerves up and around in a left-hand fan-like curve diving right back through the center of the inversion. Diving underneath the final brake run section, riders fly through a highly-banked 180-degree curve before diving back to the ground. Meandering through another banked U-turn, the ride makes its way back under the final track section to enter a short tunnel. Exiting the tunnel, the track banks to a near 90-degree angle and sends passengers around an upwards Carousel Curve spiraling around straight into a final 360-degree Heartline Roll and then onto the brake run.

If you've ever wanted to fly like Superman, make your way to Six Flags Great Adventure and experience the flight of your life on Superman: Ultimate Flight!