Maybe the makers of G.I. Joe just need to find out how the US Army does it with “up close and personal” launched rockets?
The Stinger missile has the power of, something like an L or M rocket motor? Forget safety codes, who in their right mind would want to ignite an engine that powerful right next to their EAR?
Well, the Stinger does not do that. The Stinger is tube-launched, and is two-staged. But the first stage engine is called the “Ejector Motor,” And only has enough power to start the missile forward out of the tube, so that by the time the Stinger leaves the tube, the Ejector Motor has burned out. So, there is no flame that the missile operator (the guy firing it) is exposed to. The Stinger coasts out about 30 feet or so, then its engine ignites. By that point, the guy firing it is not exposed to any dangerous exhaust, other than maybe breathing the smoke (but then WE face that smoke breathing problem all the time).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FIM-92_Stinger
Three Stinger missile pics at the bottom of this page, then first 7 pics of the next page:
https://www.redstone.army.mil/history/archives/missiles/missiles0018.html
Here is a pic of a Stinger starting to leave the launch tube, with a lot of smoke out the back of the tube. The “ejector motor” is probably already burned out by this moment:
https://www.redstone.army.mil/history/archives/missiles/stinger_04.jpg
Stinger out of launch tube, coasting, about to ignite in another 10-20 feet
https://www.redstone.army.mil/history/archives/missiles/stinger_02.jpg
The music attached to this video is junk, but at 1:56 and 2:33 into the video you can see the Stinger’s Ejector motor, burned out but with some flame, leaving behind the missile, and the missile ignite it’s own engine 30 feet or so away.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=39fv908PT1o
Here is another Youtube video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJBGV2nHf5U&feature=related
At about 24-25 seconds into this one, you can see in slo-motion how the ejector motor fires, to move the missile out of the tube, and the missile leaves the tube without any exhaust burning. The ejector motor itself is not seen leaving the tube. Are about 38 seconds, in a slo-motion replay of a dual Stinger firing ,you can see both missile leave the tube, coasting totally dead, starting to slow down as though they would fall to the ground 50-70 feet away, until each Stinger’s engine ignites.
Ah, found this one on Youtube. It seems to be an actual US Army film to familiarize people how it works:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CyrDh2K7b8M&feature=related
At about 2:20 into that video, there is a nice test shot showing the ejector motor being used, plus other footage related to testing to make sure the operator would be safe. Also of course, how the Stinger actually works.
Now actually, for something the size of that GI Joe missile, the short burn ejector motor method would probably not be so well suited. So at the least, the operator would be enclosed in something. The US Army MRLS - Multiple Rocket Launch System comes to mind, the crew is inside of it while the missiles leave the firing rack/tubes mounted on back. Sort of the real-world version with the fireworks cube “Saturn Missile Battery”.
https://www.army-technology.com/projects/mlrs/
I know, it’s only a toy. And something like a MLRS vehicle, big enough for a G.I. Joe to fit inside of, would be sort of big and costly to be a viable G.I. Joe toy.
[edit - I was sort of wrong. Found something the size of an MRLS that was a G.I. Joe toy, even if it is a rolling command center and the missiles are puny. At:
https://www.generalsjoes.com/reviews/2005/vehicles/rocc_1.html
]
BTW - in the “More Dangerous to the Pilot” - real world, really flown category, it is hard to top the German “Natter” vertically launched rocket fighter plane. Which had a 100% kill rate, the acceleration breaking the Natter’s pilot’s neck at launch.
- George Gassaway
OL JR 
