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Russia test-fires ballistic missile
MOSCOW - Russia on Saturday successfully test-fired an inter-continental ballistic and other weapons that are able to pierce anti-missile shields, Russias state news agency RIA said, citing a spokesman for rocket forces. The RS-12M Topol, called the SS-25 Sickle by NATO, was successfully launched at 17:43 p.m. (1443 GMT) from Kapustin Yar firing range in southern Russia, RIA said.The launch was carried out with the aim of confirming the stability of the fundamental flying and technical characteristics of this class of missile, Rocket Forces spokesman Alexander Vovk told RIA. He also said the test was part of a trial of weapons that could pierce anti-missile shields. It was unclear what other weapons were tested. As configured in 1985, the Topol has a maximum range of 10,000 km (6,215 miles), and can carry one 550-kiloton nuclear warhead. The 20.5 metre (67 ft) long missile was designed in the 1970S and made its first flights in 1982. Posted by: Steve White 2007-12-09 |
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