Loop-O-Plane

{{Short description|Amusement ride}}{{Infobox attraction model|name=Loop-O-Plane|image=Feature. Belmont Park BAnQ P48S1P09132.jpg|caption=Loop-O-Plane ride in Belmont Park, Quebec.|first_produced=1933|manufacturer=Eyerly Aircraft Company|designer=Lee Eyerly|vehicles=2|riders_per_vehicle=4|custom_label_1=Nickname|custom_value_1=Hammers / clogs|custom_label_2=Capacity|custom_value_2=Eight riders|restraint=Lap bar}}

The Loop-O-Plane is an amusement park ride that originated in America. It was invented by Lee Eyerly and manufactured by the Eyerly Aircraft Company of Salem, Oregon, in 1933.{{cite journal | journal=Western Flying Magazine | title=Eyerly Invents "Loop-O-Plane" | volume=13 | year=1933 | publisher=Occidental Publishing Company | page=24}} The ride was immediately popular with customers{{cite journal | journal=Western Flying Magazine | title=Eyerly Loop-o-plane Wins Favor | volume=14 |date=January 1934 | publisher=Occidental Publishing Company | page=24}} and became a staple of amusement parks.

The ride was imported into Europe, where it was first used in the UK in 1937.[http://www.nfa.dept.shef.ac.uk/history/rides/looper.html Sheffield University: National Fairground Archive - Looping Rides] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140108192040/http://www.nfa.dept.shef.ac.uk/history/rides/looper.html |date=2014-01-08 }}. Accessed 8 January 2014

The ride has two 16-foot-long arms, each with an enclosed car at one end and a counterweight at the other. Each car holds four riders seated in pairs facing opposite directions making the maximum occupancy eight riders. Propelled by an electric motor, the arms swing in directions opposite to each other until they 'loop' taking the riders upside down. The minimum rider height requirement is 46 inches tall.File:1936 - Loop-O-Plane - Dorney Park - Allentown PA.jpg

An updated version of this ride exists known as the Roll-O-Plane. Some of the surviving machines were also converted into a variation named Rock-O-Plane.