Rocket Man

If you were to accuse VNS Federal Services Principal Engineer David King of having his head in the clouds, he wouldn’t disagree with you.

For nearly two decades, King has been building and flying high-powered rockets and sharing that passion in his community and across Washington State. Although he’d built small rockets from kits as a child, the hobby began in earnest for King when he witnessed a high-power rocket launch during his son’s time in Boy Scouts in the early 2000s. He started building them himself in 2005 and has flown successfully to 26,000 feet. He holds the highest level of certification from the National Rocketry Association.

King said rocketry is a great way to combine his engineering and design skills. The rockets he’s constructed and launched up and down the West Coast range from eight ounces to 35 pounds. His latest rocketry accomplishment, in 2022, was to build and successfully fly a two-stage 7?-foot high-power rocket. “There are a lot of challenging things that have to be constructed, configured and programmed correctly for everything to go right,” he explained. For example, the timer to separate the two rocket stages in flight. Or the altimeter to light the second stage and safely deploy the parachutes.

King is in his ninth year as president of the Tri-Cities Rocketeers. The club’s monthly launches continue to draw hundreds of flyers of all ages and experience levels. King and other group members also serve as mentors to local high school and college students, part of their desire to pay it forward to the younger generation and promote interest in STEM-related activities.

The Tri-Cities club recently purchased a high-power wireless launch control system – thanks to a grant from the Tripoli Rocket Association. Using off-the-shelf components, King also built the club’s wireless launch system for low-power rockets and used his own funds to purchase a large trailer to haul the hundreds of pounds of equipment to the launch sites (one of his many club duties).

King has more than three decades of experience as an electrical engineer and has been Principal Engineer for VNS Federal Services since 2014. He recently transitioned from full- to part-time as part of his journey to retirement. “Oddly enough, it seems that I may have less time for rocketry once I fully retire,” he said. He and his wife plan to do more traveling and will be taking lots of trips to see their new (first) grandchild. In anticipation of King having less time to spend with the Tri-Cities Rocketeers, the club is currently working to merge with other rocket clubs in Washington, which will result in more volunteers to help run launches. “The future of our club looks bright, and I am excited for the future as I step back and watch it grow and continue to serve the community as a safe and fun place to fly model rockets.”