OVERALL LENGTH

MAXIMUM DIAMETER

TOTAL WEIGHT

HEIGHT OF EJECTION

OF FLARE

BURNING TIME

CANDLEPOWER

GENERAL:

This rocket is currently employed only by the Air/Sea Rescue Service to assist in sea rescue searches at night. It is fired from a hand-firing projector and is initiated by a 30 grain percussion cartridge.

DESCRIPTION:

The rocket consists of a steel rocket tube containing a rocket propelling composition which has a conical cavity left in the center. The rocket tube is fitted at one end with a metal flare container housing a wooden plug, a flare candle, and a cotton parasheet attached to the candle by a wire strop. Crimped into the other end of the tube is a wooden choke sealed by a paper disc.

Secured to the rocket tube is a steel bridle, which extends beyond the wooden choke and carries a hinged stirrup, to the base of which is secured one end of a steel rope tail. This end of the tail is protected from the heat of the burning propellant com-position by an asbestos sheath. The other end of the tail is spliced to form a loop to which is attached a hemp rope 12 ft. long. The rope is coiled into a paper envelope, which has a cotton loop attached to it. The envelope, with the rope inside, is attached to the rocket by a rubber band when supplied.

The wooden plug in the flare container carries a recess which houses a small quan-tity of gunpowder and a length of quickmatch. The quickmatch contacts the gunpow-der and the rocket composition.

The flare candle consists of a cardboard cylinder held in place in the flare container with cotton wool packing, and closed at one end by a wooden block. This block has a pin passing through it to take one end of the wire strop of the parasheet. At the other end of the cardboard cylinder is secured a washer housing some gunpowder, which is held in place by a muslin disc. Above this disc is placed a small amount of priming com-position. An illuminating composition fills the remainder of the candle.

The parasheet and the wire strop are packed into the flare container with packing cylinders and the container is closed by a metal lid secured with adhesive tape.

The flare container is painted aluminum overall, and filling and manufacturing infor-mation is stencilled on the container in black letters.

OPERATION:

When the projector, loaded with rocket and cartridge, is fired the explosion of the cartridge breaks the paper disc, and the flash passes through the choke and ignites the rocket propellant composition. The gases generated by the composition then take over and force the rocket along its trajectory. When the rocket composition is almost burned through, it ignites the quickmatch, and the flash from the quickmatch initiates the gun-powder in the wooden block. The flash from the gunpowder ignites the priming compo-sition in the flare candle, which in turn fires the illuminating composition. Simultaneous-ly, the pressure of the gases from the exploding gunpowder force the lid from the flare container and ejects the ignited candle and its attached parachute. The tail and the hemp rope act as flight stabilizers.