re big amateur rockets pbd runyon cim cdc com paul dokas writes i was reading popular science this morning and was surprised by an ad in the back i know that a lot of the ads in the back of ps are fringe science or questionablely legal but this one really grabbed my attention it was from a company name personal missle inc or something like that the company was probably public missiles inc of michigan anyhow the ad stated that they d sell rockets that were up to in length and engines of sizes f to m they also said that some rockets will reach feet yup now aside from the obvious dangers to any amateur rocketeer using one of these beasts isn t this illegal i can t imagine the faa allowing people to shoot rockets up through the flight levels of passenger planes not to even mention the problem of locating a rocket when it comes down nope it s not illegal it is however closely regulated in order to purchase and use the big rocket motors required it is necessary to be one of the following a an employee of a government agency b an employee or student at a university doing research involving rockets c a member or representative of an educational organization involved in research or other uses of rockets there are two such organizations the tripoli rocketry association and the national association of rocketry members of either organization must demonstrate proficiency in construction and flight before they are allowed to purchase large motors on their own the faa will issue a waiver of its regulations upon request to any organization which can persuade them it has taken adequate precautions to avoid conflicts with aircraft the usual stipulations are only operation up to a specified ceiling is allowed depending on the location this ceiling may be from to feet agl the operator of the rocket is responsible for avoiding any aircraft within the operating radius around the launch site flight into clouds or beyond visual range in haze is expressly prohibited the faa will provide a notam informing other users of the airspace that unmanned rocket operations are taking place at the specified place and time most of the launches that are held and there are dozens of them every year are held in areas where air traffic is relatively light such as over the western deserts the black rock desert north of reno is particularly popular since it is x miles of nothing to hit on the ground the two rocketry associations test and approve motors for their members use to insure safety depending on motor size the launcher setback is from to or more feet by the way rockets under lb and powered by an f motor are exempt from most federal regulations on unmanned rockets anyway see far subpart c for details as for recovery although the higher altitude rockets can reach up to feet most of them only get to to feet the typical rocket is to inches in diameter and carries a to foot parachute or multiple parachutes depending on the payload many rockets also carry either a small transmitter or an audio sounder particularly at launches in the eastern us where there are more obstructions camera telemetry transmitter and video payloads are becoming quite common and no i m not going to even think of buying one i m not that crazy why not it s a lot of fun check out the traffic on rec models rockets for information about the model lb and under and high power everything bigger rocket hobbies as with all dangerous activities the key is to practice safety i ve been flying consumer rockets ranging up to lbs takeoff weight for years and still have all my extremities intact paul mine ll do feet and carries pounds of dynamite dokas that s another thing no explosive warheads of any kind are allowed on these rockets none please forgive me for shouting but that s one of the biggest misconceptions people have about our hobby just remember you will die someday true but it will not be related to the rocket hobby unless i get hit while crossing a road with a rocket in my hand mark johnson usnail ncr peripheral products division e mail mark johnson wichitaks ncr com n rock rd voice v wichita ks non business email compuserve com
