How do I join the club?
Come to a launch or the annual general meeting and pay your dues to the club secretary. Membership dues are $30 per year for adults, $5 a year if you’re under eighteen and $35 a year for a family membership. Your first visit to launch rockets is free and guests or spectators are always free. Just bring your rockets and motors as we provide all the launch equipment.
When is your next launch?
We generally fly every two weeks on Sundays subject to weather conditions. It is important to either join our Facebook Group or our Groups.io Forum in order to see the GO or NO GO call made in the morning of a scheduled launch. The scheduled events are listed on the Launch Calendar page.
How to get there?
We are visitors that have been granted access to a secure, military installation so we have DND supplied procedures to follow to get to our launch site. Please READ and follow the information on the Launch Site page on how to get to the P1 parking lot at the end of Rifle Road.
Please note that you need to be at the P1 parking lot on time. We enter the base and the controlled access launch site as a group. If you are late, Range Control will NOT grant you access.
Once at our launch site, we cannot see or hear people at the secure entry gate. Another reason for being on time is that all flyers and spectators need to attend the MANDATORY safety briefing before the start of the launch.
At what time are you done? When can I leave?
We have the location from 10 AM until 4 PM during summer hours and 12 Noon until 4 PM during winter hours. You are free to leave at any time. There is a button inside the secure perimeter to open the gate to leave. Always wait until the gate control gives you the green light before leaving. Please respect the speed limit on the base.
Can I use the field by myself at other times?
No. You can only access it during one of our scheduled launches.
Is your club still active?
Yes. The club is active. The best way to see what we are up to is to have a look at our Facebook page or Groups.io Forum
Can I fly home made motors at an ORG launch?
No. You need to use commercially manufactured certified motors at our launches. The Ottawa Rocketry Group does not encourage or support the manufacturing of solid rocket motors by amateur rocketeers.
What commercially manufactured and certified motors can I fly at an ORG launch?
Model rockets (under 1.5kgs) can be flown on any motor up to G impulse class. High power rockets can be flow on any impulse class as long as the maximum altitude is below 750’ AGL. Yes, 750’ AGL is low for a high power rocket but it is what Transport Canada approved for this site. Flyers wishing to fly high power rockets must provide a flight simulation to the RSO proving the authorized altitude limit will not be broken before the flight can proceed. The RSO’s decision to allow the flight to proceed is final so communicating with them before planning a high power launch is recommended.