CTI VMAX restrictions

This was released today:

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Flight restrictions for CTI VMAX motors

To our members:

The National Association of Rocketry’s Standards & Testing and Tripoli Rocketry Association’s Tripoli Motor Testing Chairmen are hereby enacting temporary Safety restriction for all Cesaroni Technology, Inc. VMAX reload motors equipped with delay charges.

We have both seen a growing number of VMAX flights using delay only recovery coming in ballistic at our flying fields, due to delay snuffing. It is believed that delay snuffing is likely a result of any extremely high burn rate motor completing its burn with a significant drop in pressure and/or temperature, breaking the burn ‘chain’, extinguishing or ‘snuffing’ the delay slug.

In light of the unpredictable VMAX delay performance and the resulting significant safety issues, we will now require all VMAX motor flights flown at NAR and Tripoli launch sites to have at least one electronic system installed for primary recovery. These electronics need to be able to handle the short G period of these motors to insure “Flight in progress” triggers. The safety restriction will be lifted when the manufacturer has provided documentation to the three motor certification committee chairman which includes the root cause analysis, the corresponding design changes undertaken by the manufacture to address the issue, and implements the necessary changes.

Any questions about this restriction may be sent to your respective organization’s motor test chair

Regards,

Steve Lubliner
NAR Safety Committee Chairman

Paul Holmes
Tripoli Motor Testing Chairman

Deb Koloms 
Tripoli President

Ted Cochran
NAR President

John W Lyngdal
NAR Safety Committee"