Rocket Launch (11/04/23)

Six years ago (November 4, 2017) I flew Tim Worley’s Estes Orion Starfighter for the first time since he built it 35 years ago. I repaired the shock cord, parachute, bent intake tube and missing toothpick. It had two successful flights, one on an A8-3 and a C6-5 motor. The combo pack, with the Estes Torellian Invader, was offered between 1980 and 1983 the same time as the Galatic Pirates (Patrol Cruiser Excaliber and the Dragon Ship 1) theme kits and the Black Hole Space Probe. Tim did a great job with the painting and decals. This is a really nice skill level 3 rocket from back in the good old days.

Kevin flew his model of the Estes X-Prize Eagle (1276) on a B6-4. The XPRIZE is a series of incentivized competitions designed to foster technological innovation and solve pressing global challenges. These competitions, organized by the XPRIZE Foundation, offer substantial cash prizes to individuals, teams, or organizations that can achieve specific goals or milestones.

Notable XPRIZE competitions include the Ansari XPRIZE, which incentivized the development of private spaceflight, and various others focusing on areas like energy, healthcare, environment, and education, aimed at inspiring innovation and addressing critical issues facing humanity.

Eagle was a design of Steve McGrath of Vanguard Spacecraft of Bridgewater, Massachusetts. The concept used a rocket powered vertical takeoff followed by a parachute descent to earth. The Vanguard Series Launch Vehicle consisted of two booster stages and a spacecraft. Alternate booster stage designs would use either utilize solid or liquid propellants. The structure of the Eagle was to consist of carbon fiber composite materials with honeycombed core for maximum strength and minimum weight.

I flew my Estes Ninja Kit (0882) on an A10-3T. It has an estimated altitude of 600 feet which I’m sure it made. It fluttered safely down on the streamer. It was introduced by Estes in 1987, has a 13mm motor mount, 10.563 inches in length, weighs 0.56 ounces, and has a diameter of 0.736 inches. The manufacturer description, in the 1987 catalog, was “Dark and sleek, this model speeds to heights of over 600 feet and lands gently via brightly colored streamer”. Mine has flown many times in the last 35 years.