Bulava failure must not stop tests - Russian arms sector official

On July 15, a Bulava SLBM self-destructed after its first stage malfunctioned when it was fired from the submerged Dmitry Donskoi strategic nuclear-powered submarine in the White Sea.

"The tests of the Bulava should be continued after a thorough investigation of the incident. These failures are unavoidable during the development of new missiles," the source in the Russian government's Military-Industrial Committee said.

He added, however, that the failure during the separation of the first stage was a serious concern because this had never previously been a problem.

The source said the Bulava program had been overly politicized and fierce competition among the companies involved in the project was negatively affecting the manufacturing and the testing process.

Six of the 11 test launches of the Bulava have ended in failure. The launches were temporarily suspended and the missile components were tested in the labs after a series of previous failures.

An investigation established that the failure in December last year occurred because one of the subcontractors supplied faulty ejection cartridges which were used in the separation of the missile's stages, Kazinform refers to RIA Novosti.

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