Mike Hughes, a pilot who became famous for his stunts, died in a rocket launch that went wrong in California.
Two witnesses confirmed his death. It was his third launch in a rocket that he built. He had hoped to determine if Earth was flat.
The rocket’s launch ramp was made easier by a steel ladder that was connected to the cockpit.
However, when the vehicle hit the platform, it set the launch on an erroneous course.
According to Justin Chapman, a journalist, the parachute deployed by the rocket got caught in the force of the blast, and it then took the vehicle off the course.
The rocket, which was powered by steam, wobbled and went through a huge arc before crashing.
According to one of the witnesses, Hughes’ goal was to reach 5,000 feet. However, after the rocket took off, it nose-dived and fell into the desert floor about a half-mile away.
The San Bernardino County sheriff’s office said that deputies were called to a private property in Barstow at around 1:52 p.M. on Saturday after a man died following a rocket launch.
Waldo Stakes, a friend of Hughes, said that the group doesn’t know what happened.
According to Hughes’ publicist, Mr. Shuster, the claims about flat Earther principles were merely a means of generating publicity for his various stunts.
According to Stakes, the rocket landed about a mile away from where it launched.
About 50 to 60 people were at the event, which was organized for the Science Channel’s documentary about Hughes’ flight.
In March 2018, Hughes soared over the Mojave Desert and reached an altitude of over 1,800 feet. His parachute deployed and guided his vehicle back to the ground.
At the time of the incident, Hughes was relatively unscathed. According to the AP, he had been experiencing back pain, but he was thankful to not have died.
In 2014, he launched from a facility in Winkelman, Arizona, which flew 1,374 feet. Before he became a pilot, Hughes was a stuntman.
In 2002, Hughes jumped a stretched limousine, weighing over 6,000 pounds, from a parking area at Perris Auto Speedway.
According to Chapman, Hughes wanted to recreate Evel Knievel’s jump from Snake River Canyon.
He also started building rockets, which he used to launch himself.
