In this winter season not much flying gets done and not much posting either. So let’s go back to September and I’ll tell you about a dual deployment flight I made then. I want to document this so that people will know I do fly these rockets but I am not often caught doing it. During most of the major launches during the year I am working the range or with students and teachers and don’t have time to personally fly anything complicated. Toward the end of the flying season I have more time to

pull out my higher flyers and the weekend after Labor Day looked good. I got an AT I245 for my PML Sudden Rush that would be my first 38mm green formula motor. I use AT reloads because that’s what hardware I have. I got the CPR “Close Proximity Recovery” system prepped with no problems and got the rocket on the rail with no waiting. The green flame lit up nicely and the Sudden Rush with its Doppler shift paint job boosted well. The drogue came out nominally at apogee and the main deployed at the low altitude setting.
For having hit 2167’ there was no drift in the dog day doldrums and the bird plopped down about 20’ from the pad. That’s certainly better than spending an afternoon in ticksville to find it inaccessible in a tree, but I didn’t expect the recovery to be this effortless and I’ll take it.

I also brought out two Vortigo models that spin going up and coming down. I had tried designing a rotating saucer but when I saw this cruciform kit I gave that up and just got it. The Rocketarium model comes in 29mm and 18mm sizes of which I got both. The first flight on an A8-0 showed how the rocket really spins and buzzes as it flies. The next flight with the larger diameter on an E15-4 suffered a cato that frightened the range crew, but the motor is open at the top so the rocket was not damaged by the failed black powder grain firing flame out the front up into the sky. I tried another motor from that pack with caution. This one burned fine with the Vortigo rapidly reaching terminal velocity quickly on ascent and then was winding down as it fell. They are a little more interesting than a plain saucer and will serve well for school demos in small fields.