Top Russian missile designer resigns over test launch failure

MOSCOW, July 22 (Xinhua) -- The top designer of Russia's newest submarine-based ballistic missile has resigned over a failed test launch, a government spokesman said Wednesday.

A spokesman for the Russian Federal Space Agency said Yury Solomonov's resignation as general director and general designer of the Moscow Institute of Thermal Engineering has been accepted.

The institute is in charge of the development of Russia's strategic missile systems such as the Topol-M, RS-24 and the submarine-launched Bulava.

Alexander Dorofeyev, the institute's first deputy general director, has been named acting head until a new leader is appointed in September, the spokesman said.

Solomonov resigned after a Bulava missile failed during a July 15 test launch from a nuclear-powered submarine in the White Sea off Russia's northwest coast.

Six of 11 test launches of the Bulava have failed, including a December test in which a subcontractor supplied faulty ejection cartridges used in the separation of the missile's stages.

The Bulava, which is capable of carrying up to 10 individually targeted nuclear warheads and has a maximum range of 8,000 km, is designed to be deployed on Russia's newest Borei class of submarines. It is expected to become a key part of the country's nuclear arsenal.

A high-ranking spokesman for the Russian Navy said development of the Bulava missile will continue despite the failed tests.

"The Bulava issue remains a key priority. Efforts to adjust it will continue in any case," the spokesman said.