Dmitry Donskoy submarine of the Northern Fleet performed a test launch of a Bulava ballistic missile. The missile was launched from a submerged submarine deployed in the White Sea. A representative of the Ministry of Defense was quoted as saying that the launch was successful and all warheads reached their targets at the Kura test range in Kamchatka.
This is the 13th launch in the Bulava test program and the first one since the failed test that took place on December 9, 2009. It was originally scheduled for August 2010, but was postponed several times. Two more test launches are expected this year - one more from the Dmitry Donskoy submarine and one from the Yuri Dolgorukiy submarine of the Project 955 class.
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Today the launch was commented by Igor Korotchenko, the member of Russian MoD Community Board (http://www.rian.ru/defense_safety/20101007/283139668.html)
According to him, the Bulava has a new designed "nuclear charge" and upto 8 MIRV warheads. I guess it is a noticeable information and it seems to be close to reality.
Wasn't there supposed to be a volley launch of two missiles?
No, I don't think it was supposed to be a salvo launch - it is planned for some time in 2011.
I very much doubt Korotchenko is a reliable source. As for the nuclear warheads, it is quite possible that Bulava has a new nuclear charge (although "new" is relative - it is an old tested design). If the warheads are small enough it can carry eight or even more, but it was declared as carrying six in START data exchange.
Maybe a delicate question, but how "targets" were placed, concerning each other distance and total spread for MIRVs.
Hi, Pavel. Do you know how many patrols of the russian SSN and SSBN have been conducted in 2010 and the last years? Do they are being increased or decreased? Thanks!
Hans Kristensen at FAS regularly publishes data on submarine patrols. I doubt we'll see any serious change this year.
Yeap! But I don't found any data after 2008! And recently, there are some reports at "rusnavy.com" and some british papers that the russian submarines are much more active in the last two years.
Pavel, what do you think means 'arrived at the Kura test range'? Original Russian MoD report was that the warheads 'arrived at the test range' yet not 'hit the targets' (in Russian pribili na полигон Kura). If I understand Russian military novoyaz correctly, it means that the warheads have fallen somewhere at the Kamchatka peninsula. Thus, can we think that the test launch was successful?
Links to the data would be very appreciated.
"Arrived at the test range" means that the test was successful. It's just a jargon.