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We talked to Vojtěch Filipi about what attracts him to space and rockets and what it’s like to lead the association remotely as the number of members continues to grow.

What is it about space and rockets that attracts you and when did your interest begin? And why space research and development?

Space, as it is for most of us, has been fascinating and inspiring to me since childhood. Over time, however, I became more interested in engineering than in the actual exploration of space, such as astronomy. So I became more interested in how we get into space, what we do there, and what we get out of it.

I’m most attracted to the rockets themselves. These giant colossi are pure, untamed power, harnessed in engines and tanks that man has learned to control. But unfortunately, sometimes disaster strikes. I remember watching a documentary about the space shuttle Discovery as a kid and couldn’t believe that a piece of insulating foam released during launch could punch a hole in the rocket’s heat shroud and wreak havoc on the entire mission.

What was your path to CRS? How did CRS come about?

CRS was founded during the COVID period in the spring of 2021, when two Czech students studying abroad said they would love to have a student rocketry society in the Czech Republic, which was missing until then.

The society was created on a green field, because there is no such society in the Czech Republic. Nevertheless, we have managed to build a society with almost 100 members across Czech and foreign universities, while growing steadily.

What does it mean for you to be part of such an association?

For me, being in a society is both an honour and an obligation. In my family and among my group of friends, I have earned the simple name “racket man”, which I personally like because it describes something I like to do. On the other hand, I manage a diverse group with dozens of people, spread across the country and abroad, with a sizable budget and commitments to partners and sponsors. But I think I have learned a lot of skills and gained a lot of experience in the association that I will use in the future.

You are still studying abroad in Bath, how can you combine being president of the Czech Rocket Society and studying? Both certainly require a lot of time. What are the biggest challenges?

If one tries and sacrifices the time and effort, it can be done. As I said, we are a Czech Rocket Society, so we have members and facilities in different places. Also, most of the meetings are online, so there is no difference if I am abroad or at home. Also, due to the nature of rockets, we don’t launch every week and launches are scheduled long in advance, so I will be there when I can. On the other hand, if something has to be dealt with in a hurry and preferably in person, there are 5 of us on the Board of Directors and we all have the same competences, so I can be represented by one of my colleagues in the Czech Republic.

As we develop dynamically, the challenges change every year. On the technical side, this year it is to complete the aforementioned StarFox liquid fuel engine, where there has been a delay in development. On the organizational side, it is to keep people passionate about the projects even as life has returned to “normal” after COVID-19.

What is the most interesting thing you have ever experienced in connection with space and the Czech Rocket Society?

The most interesting thing for me is that we exist and that we can successfully launch our projects. There have been attempts to start a rocket team or society in the Czech Republic long before us, even a university branch and team was in the offing, but it always came to nothing. We finally succeeded. It started with a random group of rocket enthusiasts who saw each other live for the first time only 3 months after working together online on Hitchhiker. After a successful first official flight, we grew quite a bit and things got more serious. We were given our first contract – to deliver a rocket to launch CanSats – which we fulfilled. This was probably the best project I’ve ever been a part of. In the same year, we held our first Czech Rocket Challenge and almost 80 teams entered, which is simply incredible. In the last year we have been working on the most powerful 3kN thrust engine ever built and yet to be built in the Czech Republic. So hopefully we will be able to achieve this feat as well.

What was your biggest achievement with the association last year (2023)?

The successful Czech Rocket Challenge 2023, which the participants liked according to the feedback and where we had a rare guest – ESA backup astronaut Ales Svoboda.

And what failure crossed your paths?

We have learned the hard way that the Society is a hobby, we are all still just students, and so older members leave, but new ones come in. This has caused us some setbacks in making the rocket and organising the launch. This year hopefully the situation has stabilized.

Jaké jsou vaše, jakožto prezidenta CRS, cíle, kterých chcete se spolkem dosáhnout
(ať už v horizontu 5, 10 let)?

Cíl, který jsme si vytyčili už při založení spolku je účast na evropské soutěži EuRoC v té nejtěžší kategorii, což je právě kategorie motorů na kapalné látky. O toto nadále usilujeme a snad se to v nejbližších letech povede. Zároveň spolek není jen o jednom projektu, takže bychom rádi ještě rozšířili naše působení do dalších oblastí jako je například pokročilá živá telekomunikace mezi raketou a řídicím stanovištěm nebo nový typ motorů na tuhá paliva. Dalším cílem je také etablování Spolku mezi studenty. Zakládající členové už pomalu stárnou, tak je důležité nabírat nováčky a vychovávat nové členy. Počet členů nám nemusí růst do nekonečna, hlavní je abychom nadále doručovali kvalitní výsledky naší práce.

Jak byste popsal uplynulý rok v Czech Rocket Society?

Přerod. I když to byl ve výsledku úspěšný rok, tak jsme narazili na řadu problémů, které nás uvedly do reálného světa raketové vědy. Nepodařilo se nám například implementovat vylepšení na raketu Sherpa, které jsme chtěli, a dokonce jsme měli i jedno tvrdé přistání, každopádně CanSaty byly všechny vypuštěny, tudíž mise byla ve finále úspěšná. Také se nám zdržel projekt StarFox, který nám ukázal složitost a komplexnost podobných projektů.

Na druhou stranu se nám povedlo založit nový spolkový orgán – Bezpečnostní Organizace Spolku (BOS), který se stará o minimalizaci rizik spojených s výrobou a starty raket, a tím zvyšuje jejich bezpečnost a spolehlivost. Součinnost BOS a projektu jsme si již otestovali na zkušebním letu v listopadu 2023 a odpal dopadl úspěšně. Figurky Pat & Mat, které byly na palubě jako náklad by souhlasily.

Jaké jsou cíle Czech Rocket Society pro rok 2024?

Cílem pro tento rok je dále zahrnout BOSku do každého projektu a startu, který děláme. Letos pořádáme čtvrtý ročník soutěže Czech Rocket Challenge, na který se můžete těšit v červenci tohoto roku. Soutěž prochází značnou reorganizací, pro týmy budou připraveny nové výzvy, nové bodování i ceny.

Určitě bychom rádi tento rok zažehli již zmiňovaný motor StarFox. Po něm se začne připravovat již letově optimalizovaná verze motoru, která se umístí do rakety. V neposlední řadě je to dokončení velkého upgradu na raketě Sherpa, zejména pak celý nový mechanismus vypouštění CanSatů, vypouštění padáku, nový letový software a živý přenos dat a videa z rakety.