The pop of a supersonic shred, scattering fins below…
and the beginning of a sparky spiral dance in the sky…

Here’s a rare catch of a fleeting midair moment – the forward retention for the solid-fuel motor has failed and so it thusts forward up through the rocket, pushing the parachute and nose cone out prematurely:

Even the little Estes motors can have a forward closure failure, with glorious results:

Sometimes the nozzle pops out the back, lowering thrust dramatically… and triggering premature separation and release of the smoke grenades:

The early parachute deployment creates an aerial u-turn…

and a convenient return close to the launch pad.

Clusters of motors offer more chances of a failure. With this one at DairyAire, one of the J motors exploded through its aluminum casing during airstart ignition. It ruptured the side of the rocket and blasted up through the body:

A fine family flying the flag for the Fouth. =)

The supersonic shreds spread the laundry in a yard sale in the sky, here with a Q motor CATO:

Sometimes they come back hot:

At times, it looks like an arcade game of Missile Command:

And makes you wonder the comprehensive policy on auto insurance: