Test rocket crashes and explodes on Alaska’s Kodiak Island

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — There were no injuries when a test rocket fired by an aerospace company crashed and exploded on a hillside on an Alaska island. The Anchorage Daily News reported the rocket operated by Astra from the nearby Pacific Spaceport Complex-Alaska crashed on Kodiak Island. Officials say the fire caused by the crash was put out quickly and no one was hurt after the rocket drifted from its planned trajectory and the flight safety system shut down its engines. The startup firm with a goal of delivering satellites for low-Earth orbits says the launch was a successful step in its development plans.