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Leopard
Part of Rook
British test vehicle. Two stage aerodynamic test vehicle consisting of 1 x Rook + 1 x Gosling. Developed from the basic Rook vehicle for tests requiring higher velocities.

Status: Retired 1962. First Launch: 1959-10-22. Last Launch: 1962-11-30. Number: 11 . Gross mass: 1,500 kg (3,300 lb). Height: 6.00 m (19.60 ft). Diameter: 0.44 m (1.44 ft). Apogee: 20 km (12 mi).

The Rook motor was 0.43 m in diameter and 5.28 m long. It contained a case-bonded charge of 846 kg of non-aluminized plastic propellant giving a total impulse of 1760 kN-seconds in 5.6 seconds; with a maximum thrust of 323 kN and a specific impulse of 213 seconds. The motor was capable of withstanding the 40g acceleration it provided during firing. It was employed as the first propulsion stage of the Leopard and Jaguar (Jabiru) supersonic test vehicles, and by itself in single-stage test applications.

Four Gosling motors with canted nozzles were used as boosters for the British Thunderbird ramjet surface-to-air missile. 664 Gosling IV motors were supplied for the Thunderbird, Bloodhound, and Seaslug Mark II missiles.

For sounding rocket applications, motors were supplied with in-line nozzles. The Gosling IV had an a all up mass of 256 kg, was 3.00 m long, and 0.254 m in diameter. It produced an average thrust of 124 kN over its 3.15 second burn time.

Family: test vehicle. Country: UK. Launch Sites: Aberporth. Stages: Rook engine, Gosling. Agency: Royal Aerospace Establishment. Bibliography: 2, 572.
1959 October 22 - . Launch Site: Aberporth. LV Family: Rook. Launch Vehicle: Leopard. FAILURE: Failure.
1960 January 2 - . Launch Site: Aberporth. LV Family: Rook. Launch Vehicle: Leopard. FAILURE: Failure.
1960 January 7 - . Launch Site: Aberporth. LV Family: Rook. Launch Vehicle: Leopard. FAILURE: Failure.
1960 February 23 - . Launch Site: Aberporth. LV Family: Rook. Launch Vehicle: Leopard.
1960 April 29 - . Launch Site: Aberporth. LV Family: Rook. Launch Vehicle: Leopard.
1960 April 29 - . Launch Site: Aberporth. LV Family: Rook. Launch Vehicle: Leopard.
1960 May 5 - . Launch Site: Aberporth. LV Family: Rook. Launch Vehicle: Leopard.
1960 May 27 - . Launch Site: Aberporth. LV Family: Rook. Launch Vehicle: Leopard.
1960 July 12 - . Launch Site: Aberporth. LV Family: Rook. Launch Vehicle: Leopard.
1961 July 20 - . Launch Site: Aberporth. LV Family: Rook. Launch Vehicle: Leopard.
1962 November 30 - . Launch Site: Aberporth. LV Family: Rook. Launch Vehicle: Leopard.
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