Information > Safety & Insurance > Launch Sites
Everything you want to know about your intended launch site.
Where should my launch site be?
The UKRA maintain a list of registered
sites in the UK. If you want to launch from one of those, then contact the
UKRA and they will put you in touch with the
person responsible. They will explain if you can join the club that uses it or how you go about getting
permission to use it.
If you have your own land or access to private land, then you must abide by the following when
assessing if the site is suitable for launching/recovering rockets:
- The site must be large enough. This is detailed later.
- The site must not be within 5km of an airport or in an approach path to a main airport.
- The site must not be in restricted airspace, or of it is, you must ensure that you fly below
the restricted height.
- You must have permission from the land owner
- You must abide by all local Bye Laws
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How big should my launch site be?
Probably one of the most common questions. Your launch site has to be at least big enough to allow you
and spectators to stand the minimum safe distances back from the rocket, but more importantly it has to
be large enough to recover the rocket.
UKRA have published some minimum launch site data.
| Total Impulse of all Motors (Newton-seconds) |
Equivalent Motor Type |
Minimum Site Dimensions in Meters (ft) |
Equivalent Dimensions in km (miles/yards) |
| 0.00 -- 1.25 |
1/4A 1/2A |
15 (49) |
0.015 km (16 yards) |
| 1.26 -- 2.50 |
A |
30 (98) |
0.03 km (33 yards) |
| 2.51 -- 5.00 |
B |
60 (197) |
0.06 km (66 yards) |
| 5.01 -- 10.00 |
C |
120 (394) |
0.15 km (130 yards) |
| 10.01 -- 20.00 |
D |
150 (492) |
0.15 km (164 yards) |
| 20.01 -- 40.00 |
E |
300 (984) |
0.3 km (328 yards) |
| 40.01 -- 80.00 |
F |
300 (984) |
0.3 km (328 yards) |
| 80.01 -- 160.00 |
G |
300 (984) |
0.3 km (328 yards) |
| 160.01 -- 320.00 |
H |
450 (1476) |
0.5 km (492 yards) |
| 320.01 -- 640.00 |
I |
760 (2493) |
0.8 km (1/2 Mile) |
| 640.01 -- 1,280.00 |
J |
1600 (5,249) |
1.6 km (1 Mile) |
| 1,280.01 -- 2,560.00 |
K |
1600 (5,249) |
1.6 km (1 Miles) |
| 2,560.01 -- 5,120.00 |
L |
3200 (10,498) |
3.2 km (2 Miles) |
| 5,120.01 -- 10,240.00 |
M |
4700 (15,420) |
4.7 km (3 Miles) |
| 10,240.01 -- 20,480.00 |
N |
6445 (21,145) |
6.5 km (4 Miles) |
| 20,480.01 -- 40,960.00 |
O |
8045 (26,394) |
8.0 km (5 Miles) |
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How far back do I stand when launching a rocket?
UKRA have published some safe distances
data.
| Total Impulse of all Motors (Newton-Seconds) |
Equivalent Motor Type |
Minimum Distance From Rocket with Single Motor in Meters (ft) |
Minimum Distance From Rocket with Multiple Motors in Meters (ft) |
| 0.00 -- 1.25 |
1/4A 1/2A |
2 (7) |
3 (10) |
| 1.26 -- 2.50 |
A |
2 (7) |
3 (10) |
| 2.51 -- 5.00 |
B |
3 (10) |
6 (20) |
| 5.01 -- 10.00 |
C |
3 (10) |
6 (20) |
| 10.01 -- 20.00 |
D |
5 (16) |
10 (33) |
| 20.01 -- 40.00 |
E |
7 (23) |
15 (50) |
| 40.01 -- 80.00 |
F |
10 (33) |
20 (66) |
| 80.01 -- 160.00 |
G |
10 (33) |
20 (66) |
| 160.01 -- 320.00 |
H |
15 (49) |
30 (98) |
| 320.01 -- 640.00 |
I |
45 (148) |
60 (197) |
| 640.01 -- 1,280.00 |
J |
45 (148) |
60 (197) |
| 1,280.01 -- 2,560.00 |
K |
60 (197) |
90 (295) |
| 2,560.01 -- 5,120.00 |
L |
90 (295) |
150 (492) |
| 5,120.01 -- 10,240.00 |
M |
90 (295) |
150 (492) |
| 10,240.01 -- 20,480.00 |
N |
150 (492) |
300 (984) |
| 20,480.01 -- 40,960.00 |
O |
150 (492) |
300 (984) |
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