Free Republic

A state investigation commission has recommended the continuation of tests on the troubled Bulava ballistic missile following a probe into the most recent test failure, a first deputy defense minister said on Wednesday. Only 5 of the 12 Bulava launches have been officially reported as successful and late last month the commission sent the government the results of its investigation into the latest failure: a launch from the Dmitry Donskoy cruiser in the White Sea in early December 2009. "The state commission, which had been set up to investigate the failed launches of the Bulava, completed its work in June...

The Russian Navy will retain its Akula class nuclear attack submarines in service till 2019, the country’s Navy chief has said. “They (the Akula class subs) will remain in the fleet at a minimum until 2019,” Navy Commander Admiral Vladimir Vysotsky was quoted by Arms-Tass as saying. The Navy Chief said that modernisation opportunities for the attack submarines “are very large, there are several options.” The Russian naval fleet at present comprises of three Project 941 Akula class (NATO name Typhoon) nuclear submarines out of the six constructed. One of them – the Dmitry Donskoy – has been refurbished to...

A special investigation commission will announce on May 20 the official results of a probe into the latest failure of Russia's ill-fated Bulava ballistic missile, the Navy commander said on Friday. The latest launch of the missile, which Russia hopes will be a key element of its nuclear forces, from the Dmitry Donskoy nuclear submarine in the White Sea ended in failure in early December 2009. Only five of 12 Bulava launches have been officially reported as being successful. "The conclusions of the commission will be announced on May 20," Adm. Vladimir Vysotsky said. He added that the Russian military...

Yury Solomonov, the designer of the troubled Bulava ballistic missile, said that the poor state of the Russian defense industry was the main cause of the weapon's failed test launches. Solomonov resigned from his post as general director of the Moscow Institute of Thermal Technology (MITT) in July 2009 after a series of unsuccessful Bulava tests, but retained his post as general designer of the missile. "I can say in earnest that none of the design solutions have been changed as a result of the tests. The problems occur in the links of the design-technology-production chain," Solomonov said in an...

Russia plans to carry out at least four test launches of the Bulava ballistic missile by June end, a media report said. "Two Bulava launches will be carried out from the Dmitry Donskoy nuclear submarine, followed by two launches from the Yury Dolgoruky nuclear sub," RIA Novosti quoted a senior Navy official as saying. "The second test on the Yury Dolgoruky will be a salvo launch," he said. The Bulava-M (SS-NX-30) ICBM carries up to 10 nuclear warheads and has a range of 8,000 kilometers (5,000 miles). The three-stage ballistic missile is designed for deployment on Borey class Project 955...