There will be a possibility to carry out launches of Russia's new Angara-A5M carrier rocket from the Plesetsk cosmodrome, Sergey Kuznetsov, the chief designer at the Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center, a Roscosmos subsidiary, told Sputnik
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 25th October, 2019) There will be a possibility to carry out launches of Russia's new Angara-A5M carrier rocket from the Plesetsk cosmodrome, Sergey Kuznetsov, the chief designer at the Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center, a Roscosmos subsidiary, told Sputnik.
Earlier in October, Kuznetsov told Sputnik that the first launch of Angara-A5M modernized launch vehicle was planned approximately for late 2024.
"At present, launches of the Angara-A5M launch vehicle are planned to be carried out from Vostochny cosmodrome, however, the design of this carrier rocket will allow [us] to launch it from the Plesetsk cosmodrome if necessary," Kuznetsov said.
Earlier this month, space industry sources told Sputnik that a test launch of the new Angara-A5 heavy-class carrier rocket had been delayed until 2020. As compared to Angara-A5, the Angara-A5M is a modernized version with a different first-stage engine that will allow it to carry heavier loads.
In September, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Borisov told Vedomosti newspaper that the Angara-A5 carrier did not meet the requirements of the main customer � the Russian Defense Ministry. Thus, a modernized Angara-A5M is necessary to bring the carrying capacity of the launch vehicle to the requirements of the ministry.
The Angara family includes several environmentally-friendly carrier rockets of various classes.
