1. JATO Bottle On An Ercoupe
Back in 1941, engineers wanted to know how much improvement to takeoff performance strapping a small rocket to the side of an Ercoupe could make. Answer: a lot. The test,…
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Back in 1941, engineers wanted to know how much improvement to takeoff performance strapping a small rocket to the side of an Ercoupe could make. Answer: a lot. The test, conducted at March Field in Southern California, used a solid fuel rocket---yes, they still call it a JATO (jet-assisted takeoff) and not a RATO---that put out a modest 28 pounds of thrust for 12 seconds. Doesn't sound like much, but that Ercoupe really went up fast!
J BeckettWriter
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