Comments on: Burning question: Can you still launch Estes rockets?

By: jhollar

jhollar — Thu, 07 May 2009 14:33:13 +0000

i remember sneaking with my older brother off to the restricted areas near a small airfield in my town and firing off Estes rockets at incoming Cessnas. good times.

By: Fred

Fred — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 18:30:06 +0000

I grew up on Long Island and would launch with the Brooklyn Rocket Society at their launch site on Staten Island. It was not very far from the VNB and IIRC on the grounds of a mental hospital. I’ve heard that site is no longer empty.

Your best bet is to check on The Rocketry Forum and locate other folks in the area who are familiar with current Model Rocket launching regulations.

I know in Nassau County, we had to obtain permission from the regional park to launch (they gave annual permits and the fees went from $5 per year in the ealy 1970’s to zero in the late 1970’s). On a weekend in a park, it is VERY good to be able to pull a permit out of your pocket to show anyone on patrol who questions you.

By: Dan H.

Dan H. — Fri, 14 Mar 2008 22:04:29 +0000

I remember shooting the unbelievably un-aerodynamic Star Wars R2D2 Estes rocket off at a local school and having it crash into a basketball hoop and explode. It was kind of disturbing.

Looked a little like this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHJ5q9IHp50

John – What about Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn where they used to launch the Fuji blimp?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Floyd_Bennett_Field

By: Endless Mike

Endless Mike — Fri, 14 Mar 2008 15:41:38 +0000

I remember when I was a kid going to the local park with my dad to shoot rockets, and they told us we couldn’t do it there. We ended up in some empty field, instead.

By: John Biggs

John Biggs — Fri, 14 Mar 2008 15:18:46 +0000

All i remember is making a shoulder mounted rocket launcher with a heavy metal pipe and a wooden trigger assembly when I was 14 or so. I shot it at our shed while wearing a moped helmet and would have probably been arrested today.

By: Cody B

Cody B — Fri, 14 Mar 2008 15:17:02 +0000

I’m working on a project that envolves a RC rocket (minus the rocket engine), an air cannon, and a wireless video camera (in rocket). I will keep you posted. The numbers say its going to work, but what do numbers know right? There are just to many of them…..

By: Dan Pollack

Dan Pollack — Fri, 14 Mar 2008 15:07:30 +0000

When I was little we used to launch them at Marine Park in Brooklyn. I haven’t in 20 years but I’m pretty sure you still can.