Rocket launch over Amboy delayed

“Mad” Mike Hughes’ scheduled launch today of his self-made rocket over the Route 66 town of Amboy, California, was delayed after the Bureau of Land Management nixed it, saying he didn’t have permission.

However, Hughes told the Washington Post he would launch the rocket — with him inside — sometime next week on private property in Amboy city limits, about three miles down the road.

The newspaper reported:

“It’s still happening. We’re just moving it three miles down the road,” Hughes told The Washington Post on Friday. “This is what happens anytime you have to deal with any kind of government agency.”

Hughes claimed the Bureau of Land Management said he couldn’t launch his rocket as planned Saturday in Amboy. He claimed the federal agency had given him verbal permission more than a year ago, pending approval from the Federal Aviation Administration.

A BLM spokeswoman said its local field office had no record of speaking with Hughes and that he had not applied for the necessary special recreation permit to hold an event on public land.

Hughes also told the Post he encountered a technical difficulty with a motor that also delayed his setup with the rocket.

Instead, he anticipates launching the steam-powered rocket Tuesday. He’ll go about 500 mph for a mile and up to 1,800 feet in elevation. He aims to document via photographs during his flight the Earth is flat.

His last manned rocket-launch attempt in Arizona in 2014 went for more than 1,300 feet. He needed at least three days to recover because of the effect of the G-forces.

UPDATE 11/28/2017: Hughes told the Washington Post the launch scheduled tentatively for Tuesday was delayed again because of high winds in the forecast for the next few days. He said the probably would happen within a week or so.

(Image of “Mad” Mike Hughes and his rocket via Facebook)

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