So this is basically a DIY mini rocket clearly advertised to be used in an asymetrical war. I do not expect this project to remain on github for long.

Insanity. Airbus fighter jets, open-source rockets on github...

Straight up admitting that it's meant to implement MANPADS is certainly a choice, I hope the author doesn't get himself in hot water.. ITAR or something..

(Would be cool to see an ATGM variant too!)

As the YouTube comments say:

> This guy really wants that defense contract.

This is bonkers. Video on GitHub: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DDO2EvXyncE

I'm impressed by the kid's engineering and gumption, but I think he's a bit.. misguided, if you'll pardon the pun. The video ends with shots of Russian drone war, and, bizarrely, photos of David Koresh.

I don't think this ends well.

> This project manifesto declares a fundamental shift: advanced air-defense capabilities—once locked behind billion-dollar state arsenals and classified labs—are now within reach of determined individuals using consumer electronics, open-source software, and rapid prototyping.

I guess a lot of people will not be happy with this xD

Be very careful. Google and GitHub will turn you over without hesitation, and everyone who downloads this will probably be vanned.

Remember kids, the warrantless search is only illegal if they don’t find a surface to air missile. Anything can be made retroactively legal if they find something like this.

The engineering is genuinely impressive for $96, but naming the repo "MANPADS-System-Launcher-and-Rocket" on GitHub is going to attract exactly the kind of attention you don't want. ITAR implications aside, the interesting part is the mid-flight trajectory recalculation on a $5 sensor. That's the same basic problem military guidance systems solve with hardware that costs thousands.

The gap between consumer electronics and mil-spec capability keeps shrinking and this is a pretty stark demonstration of where that trend leads. A few years ago this would have required an IMU that cost more than this entire build. The democratization angle cuts both ways though - the same accessibility that makes this cool for hobbyists makes it genuinely concerning from a proliferation standpoint.

Given the navigation is done by the cameras (not GPS) you will also need to do some work with the second repository (by the same guy)-

https://github.com/novatic14/Distributed-Camera-Node-Trackin...