Russia test-fires intercontinental ballistic missile

Russia's Strategic Missile Troops test-fired an intercontinental ballistic missile from the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Thursday.

The RS-18 Stiletto missile was launched at 11:30 a.m. Moscow time (0730 GMT) and hit its target on the Kura training range on Kamchatka Peninsula, the Itar-Tass news agency quoted a source of the Defense Ministry as saying.

"The launch was made under the plan of combat training of the Russian Armed Forces with the purpose of assessing the possibility of extending the life of this type of ballistic missiles," said the Defense Ministry source.

The RS-18 missiles have been on combat duty for 30 years and the Stiletto is considered to be very reliable, said the source, adding that the missile's launches in recent years have approved the dependability of the Stiletto missiles and made it possible to extend their life by 20 years.

The RS-18, a two-stage rocket, is one of the most advanced ballistic missiles of Russia. With the launch weight of slightly above 105 tons, the Stiletto is capable of delivering a multiple or single warhead weighing 4,300 kg to an intercontinental range.

The missile, which is 24.3 meters long and 2.5 meters in diameter, is equipped with a modern control system and antimissile defense penetration aids, the Itar-Tass reported.

According to an Interfax report, the Strategic Missile Troops adopted the RS-18 missiles, also known as SS-19, in 1975, and then in 1980 adopted the modernized version.

The Strategic Missile Troops have more than 160 missiles of this type, each with six warheads. The RS-18 has a range of over 10,000 kilometers.

Source: Xinhua