Newest Russian SLBM explodes after launch

From DefenseNews

Posted 10/25/06 13:23

Russian Missile Explodes After Test Launch

By DMITRY SOLOVYOV, REUTERS, MOSCOW

Russia’s newest intercontinental ballistic missile, which military sources said was successfully tested on Oct. 25, actually fell into the sea several minutes into its flight, Russia’s navy said.

The failed test comes after the latest series of mishaps at Russia’s navy, once the focus of national pride and symbol of its military might.

Navy sources told local news agencies earlier on Oct. 25 that the Bulava missile had been launched from a nuclear submarine in the White Sea and flew nearly the length of the giant nation to the Kura military testing site in the Far East.

"Several minutes after the launch the missile veered off its planned trajectory. Apparently, its self-destruction system was enacted and the rocket fell into the sea," a navy spokesman told Reuters.

"A special commission, including Defence Ministry officials and Bulava designers, will conduct an investigation to find out what caused the failure."

Local news agencies quoted navy officials earlier as saying the Bulava missile had been successfully launched at 1705 Moscow time (1305 GMT) from the nuclear submarine Dmitry Donskoy.

"The test launch itself, made from a submerged position, went off without a hitch," the navy spokesman said. "The submarine’s crew coped with (this) task all right."

Bulava’s previous launch last month was a failure -- the rocket fired from a submarine in the Pacific fell into the sea.

Adding to the navy’s humiliation, a fire on a nuclear powered submarine killed two crew members the same month.

Bulava is a flagship project intended to be an equivalent to the U.S. Trident, according to Russian media.

Russia’s submarine fleet is the world’s second largest after the United States and is a key part in Russia’s defense shield.

[Looks like Russia is still having plenty of problems with the SSBN component of their nuclear triad. Makes one wonder just how dangerous these SSBNs were during the Cold War .. of course, the true danger was always in the perception of a threat, rather than whether the threat was truly real, wasn't it ? ]