News about COBRA

On 18 August 2023, Cobra drew renewed attention after a striking ride stoppage. Looopings reported that the train of the boomerang coaster came to a halt on the cobra roll: an emergency stop slowed it down enough for the first inversion to be completed, but not the second. The incident began at 16:35, and the fire brigade was called in to remove all 28 passengers from the train using an aerial platform. By around 17:50, the evacuation was complete. For visitors, it was a dramatic interruption of a ride that normally features a backwards lift, a free fall, three inversions and then the same route in reverse. For fans, the wider context was just as notable. Around the same time, Boomerang at Bellewaerde Park and Speed of Sound at Walibi Holland also suffered problems. All three parks belong to Compagnie des Alpes, and the rides involved are Vekoma boomerang coasters. That turned the incident into more than a local breakdown: it became part of a broader conversation about classic shuttle coasters and reliability.

In August 2014, Cobra faced a very different kind of problem: this time, pressure came not from the ride system, but from its surroundings. Looopings reported that nearby residents wanted Walibi Belgium to remove and relocate the boomerang coaster, or fully cover it. Their complaint focused on noise from screaming riders. That placed Cobra inside a sensitive debate about the relationship between the park and its neighbours. The timing was notable because Psyké Underground had already been enclosed after years of complaints. Cobra now appeared to be the next major coaster targeted by local residents. For visitors, nothing immediately changed about the ride experience, but for fans the news was important because it showed how vulnerable an existing coaster can be outside the purely technical sphere. A popular attraction can also come under pressure from liveability concerns, noise rules and earlier legal conflicts. In Cobra's history, this belongs to the wider story of a ride that faced external threats more than once.

At the end of July 2011, there was finally good news for Cobra: the boomerang coaster was running again. Looopings reported that Walibi Belgium had needed more than fifteen weeks to reinforce the foundations of the subsided ride. That ended a long period in which one of the park's recognisable major attractions had been missing from the line-up. For visitors, the reopening meant the coaster offering became more complete again in the busiest part of the season. For fans, the technical background was especially interesting. Cobra had not closed because of a routine fault, but because of problems with the ground and foundations, making the repair much more serious than normal maintenance. The article also placed the reopening in a wider period of technical worries at Walibi Belgium: as Cobra returned, Vampire closed for an unknown period. For Cobra itself, this remained an important turning point. The ride survived its foundation problems and could welcome guests again after months of uncertainty.

The summer of 2011 was difficult for Walibi Belgium, and Cobra remained a visible symbol of those problems. In July, Looopings published a visitor account showing that the boomerang coaster was still closed after 97 days. The issue did not stand alone: Vampire, Weerwolf, the Ferris wheel and the park train also had problems that day. For Cobra, the most important detail was the length of the closure. Earlier foundation damage was no longer a short interruption, but a drawn-out operational headache shaping the guest experience in the middle of high season. Visitors saw the ride line-up shrink and pressure on the remaining attractions grow. The article reported that free return tickets were handed out and parking was made free, underlining how seriously the park had to manage the impact. In Cobra's history, this moment marks the period when the coaster was not only a technical problem, but also a major operational burden for Walibi Belgium.

In April 2011, Cobra made the news for a problem that went far beyond a routine technical fault. According to Looopings, severe flooding the previous year had affected the ground beneath the boomerang coaster so badly that its foundations had become unstable. During a test run, the ride proved unreliable enough for Walibi Belgium to keep it closed to guests. For fans, that was a serious blow: Cobra was one of the park's major coasters, and the summer season was approaching fast. The park first had to carry out soil investigations and then plan repair work before the train could safely return to the track. Visitors felt the impact immediately, because losing Cobra removed a major part of the coaster line-up. The story gives Cobra a striking chapter in Walibi Belgium history. This was not a cosmetic refurbishment or a simple breakdown; the ground itself had become a threat to the future of the ride.