Sky Pad attraction temporarily closes on Cruise Line 

The Sky Pad, a bungy-attached trampoline attraction paired with virtual reality headsets, is being temporarily closed on two cruise ships belonging to the Florida, USA-based cruise line Royal Caribbean, in the wake of a recent lawsuit. 

Sky Pad features on Royal Caribbean’s Mariner of the Seas (added as part of a $139 million renovation last year), Independence of the Seas and Spectrum of the Seas ships.

Royal Caribbean has said that it would be temporarily closing the ride on the Mariner of the Seas and Independence of the Seas vessels. The decision comes after the cruise line was sued by Casey Holladay, aged 26 following an incident on the attraction.

Holladay's attorney, Brett Rivkind, told USA TODAY that his client is seeking $10 million in damages.

According to the suit, Holladay says he was on a weekend cruise to the Bahamas on the Mariner of the Seas in February 2019 when he plunged to the ship's deck after the harness he was fastened to disconnected while he was six metres in the air.

The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court in Miami, Florida on 12th March. 

The suit states the activity was located on the 13th deck of the cruise ship, which has a hard surface with no padding or safety nets surrounding it.

Holladay has had several surgeries on his hip since the incident and Rivkind has said it was still adversely affecting his life.

Rivkind told the Miami Herald "right now he can't bear any weight (and) he's in and out of doctors' visits regularly to see how he'll heal. He's severely limited in his everyday activities. He still has pain."

The Sky Pad attraction promises guests an "out-of-this-world" experience as they bounce inside a large dome on the ship's deck.

Royal Caribbean advised "we're currently conducting a review of the safety as part of our commitment to safety for all of our guests."

A spate of injuries at trampoline centres in Australia, and subsequent legal actions, has seen Australia's stable of trampoline arenas fall be about 50% in the past year.

US-based attorney Brett Rivkind has considerable maritime legal knowledge and resources available to those who may have fallen into similar circumstances. For more information go to www.rivkindlaw.com.

Images top and above of Sky Pad attraction which is also shown on the back deck of Royal Caribbean's Mariner of the Seas cruise ship. (Supplied: Instagram/ Royal Caribbean)