Rocketry team made up of Scouts BSA members brings home international championship

Three Scouts from Montville, New Jersey, have brought an international rocketry championship to the United States.

Makayo Cheung, 15, Thomas Jenkins, 15, and Chase Eagan, 17, from Troop 74 in Montville took first place in the 2025 International Rocketry Challenge in Paris, France, last month. They had previously qualified for the event by winning the title at the American Rocketry Challenge earlier this year.

After picking up the hobby of rocketry in his downtime during the COVID-19 pandemic, Makayo decided to share his passion and start a team with his fellow Scouts.

“It was a very unexpected surprise that helped validate our efforts for the past three years,” Makayo says.

The team, which competes under the name Troop 74 Rocketeers, was tasked with designing and building a rocket that could carry two raw eggs to altitudes as high as 815 feet and back to the ground without a crack.

They relied on their instincts, knowledge of engineering and Scout training to create a device that worked better than the rockets of 1,000 other teams at the American Rocketry Challenge and outperformed teams from the United Kingdom, France and Japan at the International Rocketry Challenge.

“The International Rocketry Challenge — and the American Rocketry Challenge at home in the United States — are launchpads for the next generation of aerospace leaders,” says Eric Fanning, president and CEO of the Aerospace Industries Association, which sponsored the competition. “Congratulations to the Troop 74 Rocketeers on their first-place victory and to all teams for their incredible performances. Your achievement today marks the beginning of an exciting journey toward building the rockets of the future.”

Scout skills in action

Makayo is a Life Scout who has served as assistant senior patrol leader in Troop 74. He is also a member of the Scouts BSA National Youth Council. Thomas is a Star Scout who has served as patrol leader. And Chase is an Eagle Scout who has served as assistant senior patrol leader.

The group worked under the mentorship of Makayo’s father, David, who also serves as an assistant Scoutmaster for Troop 74, and received sponsorship support from RTX, an aerospace and defense company headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, to attend the International Rocketry Challenge in Paris.

First, the group used computer-aided design software to design a rocket capable of meeting the rigorous flight and safety criteria. Then they used a model rocket simulator to simulate a launch.

Ultimately, though, it came down to a lot of trial and error — launching real rockets multiple times to find a design that worked best.

The American Rocketry Challenge was held in The Plains, Virginia, in May. The annual event invites youth to design, build and fly rockets to exacting requirements while gaining hands-on experience solving engineering problems.

“Our biggest challenge was building a consistent rocket,” Makayo says. “Our launch tower took nearly two hours to assemble, and balancing it against strong winds was tricky. But we were prepared.”

At the International Rocketry Challenge, which was held in Paris as part of the Paris Air Show, extra emphasis was put on competitors’ presentations, where teams had a set amount of time to explain their rocket design and flight-testing process to a group of judges.

“We had to improve our speaking skills as well as our rocketry skills,” Makayo says.

Rocketry in Scouting

Rocketry has been a popular activity for packs and troops for many years.

One-day “rocket academies” are great events not just for Scouts but also for communities and neighborhoods. They emphasize fun and teamwork, and they are opportunities to learn about science, technology, engineering and math.

There’s an entire chapter of the Space Exploration merit badge devoted to model rocketry. Requirement 3 of the badge is to build, launch and recover a model rocket; make a second launch to accomplish a specific objective; and identify and explain the parts of a model rocket.

If you’ve never participated in a rocketry event before, you should know that rockets can go really high up in the sky. I mean really high.

Before participating in a rocketry event, determine if there are any local rules and regulations regarding the type, size and launching of rockets within your community, and check out the National Association of Rocketry safety measures.

Scouting America’s Rocket Safety Moment should be your starting point for any official Scouting America rocketry activity.

The National Association of Rocketry can help you connect with a rocketry club near you.

Click here to learn more about the American Rocketry Challenge.

Photos courtesy of the American Rocketry Challenge