Austrian media: The ‘King of the Prater’ from East Tyrol died in a plane crash near Medulin

Walter died in a terrible plane crash with three other Austrians in the crash of a small plane, and the cause of the accident is still unknown.

He was considered one of the most famous pioneers of the amusement park industry in Austria. Krone writes that he gained world fame with the company Funtime. He founded the company in the early 1990s and developed attractions for amusement parks around the world.

Its giant free-fall towers are especially famous. One of these towers, over 100 meters high, is located in Vienna’s Prater. His company’s facilities are located in the USA, Great Britain, Saudi Arabia and Dubai, among others.

Let’s remind you, at a height of about 300 meters, everything went wrong for an as yet unknown reason. The plane crashed headlong into a field near the Kaštijun landfill, about two kilometers as the crow flies from the airport.

The plane crashed at around 11.20 am. All emergency services were immediately alerted. Firefighters, police, emergency services went to the field… When the teams arrived at the crash site, they found a smaller plane crushed. Unrecognizable. All that remained of him was a pile of iron.

Klaus Hohenauer from the Tyrolean Aviation Authority told Krone that the pilot had a reputation for being exceptionally prudent and conscientious. He duly submitted the flight plans for both the departure flight to Croatia and the return flight planned shortly thereafter.

Walter’s company is currently being sued in the US. In the spring of 2022, Tyre Sampson (14) died in the amusement park ICON Park in Orlando.

Youngć fell from a freefall tower over 120 meters high because the safety bar was not lowered enough during the ride. The investigation later determined that the seat had been modified so that larger passengers would have more space than originally intended.

The jury awarded the young man’s parents 310 million dollars in damages, and the lawsuit is directed against several parties, including Funtime as the manufacturer of the tower. The family believes that additional safety measures or warning systems could have prevented the teenager’s death.

Funtime rejects the accusations, stressing that the plant was properly constructed, tested and delivered. The responsibility for the accident, according to the manufacturer, rests with those who subsequently modified and managed the attraction. The case is considered one of the most significant amusement park lawsuits in recent years in the US.