Summary

The Murawa solid fuel, two-stage rocket motor was designed by Bristol Aerojet Ltd in the late 1950s as a powerplant for the Ikara guided anti-submarine missile developed by the Government Aircraft Factories in Australia. Ikara missiles were used by the Royal Navy, Royal Australian Navy, Royal New Zealand Navy as well as the navies of Chile and Brazil. Production began in 1963 and around 1400 Murawa units were built in Australia at the Maribrynong Explosives Factory in Melbourne which was sub-contracted by GAF to develop and test the Ikara propulsion system. This included the Mattina boost motor used to clear the launcher. Ikara was out of service by the early 1990s.

The Museum's Murawa rocket motor is a Model M.2073, serial no. 912 built in June 1970. It is stored in a custom-built metal transport container. It was donated to the Museum in 1994 by the Department of Defence, Maribrynong Explosives Factory.

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