Bloodhound finds rocket test site

The exact location of the test site is yet to be released but local press reports suggest the tests will take place at Newquay airport

Bloodhound project engineers are close to testing the hybrid rocket engine that they have developed for a 1,000mph land-speed record attempt in South Africa.

The exact location of the test site is yet to be released, but the local press in the South West has reported that the tests will take place at Newquay airport. 

The tests were originally slated to take place this summer but finding a suitable site in the UK has proved difficult. At least three locations have been ruled out over health and safety issues, raising fears that the delay in finding a test site could hold up the whole project. Daniel Jubb, developer of the Bloodhound rocket engine, said: “We now have a definitive location. We are getting close to getting all the arrangements in place. It is a really significant step for the rocket programme at a time when the car programme is making some really significant progress.”

He added: “We’ve waited a long time for this test and we are very excited to complete it and move forward with the programme.”

Journalists in Cornwall have reportedly seen documents from the local Aerohub enterprise zone that state that the Bloodhound Project rocket tests will come to Newquay airport. The static firing tests will see all the components of the rocket engine system brought together and tested with the hybrid chamber for the first time. Elements of the system such as the pump, the pressurisation and the control system have been tested individually. 

Jubb said: “We are doubling the pressure over a previous run so there is significant technical risk associated with this next test. We’ve done everything we can to ensure that the test goes well and we are expecting it to go well.”

Jubb added that large chunks of the Bloodhound car are currently in production.

• Want to work in the automotive industry? Visit our jobs board for latest industry vacancies www.topengineeringjobs.com