Jacket, Rocket Engine, Liquid Fuel, 3000-A-1

This is the jacket for a regeneratively-cooled liquid fuel 3000-A-1 rocket engine developed by Reaction Motors, Inc. (RMI), beginning in 1943. the motor was a JATO (Jet-Assisted-Take-Off) unit to be used on heavily loaded seaplanes. The jacket fitted over the motor liner, creating a double walled chamber that allowed fuel to flow around the combustion chamber prior to being injected into the chamber. This cooled the motor and preheated the fuel, increasing the efficiency of combustion.

The motor produced 3,000 pounds of thrust and used liquid oxygen and gasoline for tests. The Navy used this motor on an experimental basis, but adopted the simpler and cheaper solid propellant JATOs developed by the Aerojet General Corporation. RMI did, however, use principles from this engine to develop others including the 6000C-4, which was used in the Bell X-1.

RMI donated this engine jacket to the Smithsonian Institution in 1985.