Mourning the Loss of Funtime Founder Walter Pondorfer (†)
The Prater Tower and Black Mamba at Prater Vienna.
© Foto: Monsieur Sky
(eap) Walter Pondorfer, founder of the Austrian company Funtime and an entrepreneur in the Vienna Prater, died in a small aircraft’s crash in Croatia yesterday at the age of 65. Together with three other victims, he was on a private trip to Pula in Istria.
In the international leisure industry, Pondorfer was known in particular as a pioneer of freefall towers and chain-flyer rides. With his company Funtime, founded in the 1990s, which he also headed as Managing Director, he realised numerous ride installations in amusement parks and fairgrounds worldwide. In the Wiener Prater, the East Tyrolean entrepreneur built, among others, the Star Flyer “Prater Turm”, the high-speed swing “Black Mamba”, the propeller ride “Turbo Booster” and the suspended swing “Tornado”. His company FUN Vergnügungsbetriebe, which is managed by his daughter Viola Pondorfer, took over operation of the attractions.
Walter Pondorfer is survived by his family. The industry mourns the loss of a courageous visionary and developer who, with his ride concepts, made an impact far beyond Austria. ■
