Cook Cherokee

The Cherokee research missile, built by Cook Electric Co., was used in the mid 1950s by the U.S. Air Force to test crew ejection seats at high speed and altitude.

Photo: via Ordway/Wakeford

Cherokee

The Cherokee was air-launched at about 10 km (6 miles) altitude. It first descended by parachute to about 8 km (5 miles) before the solid-fueled rocket motor accelerated the missile to supersonic speed. After motor ignition, the test seat was ejected, and its descent path monitored by ground-based optical and radar tracking equipment. Maximum weight of the test payload was 136 kg (300 lb). The missile also had a telemetry link to transmit flight data to the ground.

Specifications

Note: Data given by several sources show slight variations. Figures given below may therefore be inaccurate!

Data for Cherokee:

Main Sources

[1] Frederick I. Ordway III, Ronald C. Wakeford: "International Missile and Spacecraft Guide", McGraw-Hill, 1960
[2] Norman J. Bowman: "The Handbook of Rockets and Guided Missiles", Perastadion Press, 1963

Back to Directory of U.S. Military Rockets and Missiles, Appendix 4