Welcome to Jetex UK. This site is dedicated to Jetex and model flying using Jetex power and related systems, namely Jet-X and Rapier.
A Jetex motor is a specialised type of solid fuel rocket motor with slow burn, long duration characteristics specially designed for use in free flying, aerodynamically lifting model aircraft.
The thrust profile is for the most part a steady one. The thrust builds up for a couple of seconds immediately after ignition and will then be largely steady, possibly increasing slightly until the charge is almost consumed, then often a final 'spike' of thrust will mark the final consumption of the charge. The most common Jetex size, the 50 produced about 1/2 an ounce of steady thrust for around 16 seconds. These characteristics make JETEX¹ suitable as a means of propulsion for free flight model aircraft.
Jetex was introduced in 1948 and a variety of different sized motors with thrust ranging from .35 of an ounce to around 5 ounce were produced. During the fifties, a time of great innovation in full-size aviation, Jetex became enormously popular. The Jetex company and other model manufacturers of the time produced numerous duration designs and scale models of contemporary jet aircraft. For a much more detailed account of the history of Jetex, and its revival as Jet-X and Rapier see the entries on my links page.
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