Date: ca. 1943-1944
Country of Origin: United States of America
Dimensions:
Overall: 2ft 7in. x 9in., 82lb. (78.74 x 22.86cm, 37.2kg)
Materials:
Steel; attached board, wood; electrical wires, steel, with plastic insulation, some with white plastic insulation; separate small electrical component, with brown plastic base and steel top; and white plastic insulated wires; two separate clear plastic rectangular plates, one with safety toggle switch, steel, and attached electrical wires with white plastic insulation
The U.S. Navy employed this 8AS-1000 solid fuel JATO (Jet-Assisted-Take-Off) unit at the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, as a training aid for the use of JATOs on heavily loaded seaplanes. It produced 1,000 pounds of thrust for 8 seconds. The 8AS-1000 JATO was among one of the first and most widely used products of the early Aerojet Engineering Corporation, which faculty and staff at Caltech in Pasadena founded. The motor was introduced in 1943 but was later replaced by the12AS-1000, producing 1,000 pounds of thrust for 12 seconds.
The U.S. Naval Academy donated this object to the Smithsonian in 1951.
Gift of the United States Naval Academy
