description
The 98mm forward closure jumped the threads and blew out forward. The nozzle broke into multiply pieces. The liner slipped out of the casing with the fuel grains still glued in place but burning through both ends. The aft closure, though it had jumped a couple of threads, reminded on the casing. The stainless steel forward seal disk has not been recovered.
Comments
The motor assembly process was closely supervised and scrutinized by Tripoli TAP member, Jim Livingston, and also observed by L3 certified person, Paul Gagnon. Prior to assemble, AeroTech technical support was consulted to verify the latest procedure for motor assembly. The fuel grains were glued into the liner on the evening of August 17, 2017 using Elmer's Glue-All Max as recommended by AeroTech. The motor assembly was completed on the field on August 19, 2017 at about 1:30pm. The rocket was launched at about 4:15pm. Per the video reviews, the motor burned for approximately 1 second before the cato, which is the peak in the thrust-time curve for this motor.
