Russian missile failure blamed on defect

MOSCOW, Oct. 26 (UPI) -- A defense industry source said Monday the failure of Russia's Bulava submarine-launched ballistic missile was due to a defective steering system.

The unidentified source said the July 15 test of the missile in the North Sea resulted in a self-destruct during its first stage because of the defective system. RIA Novosti said the test failure marked the sixth unsuccessful test of the missile system in 11 attempts.

Russian military expert Pavel Felgenhauer insists only one of those 11 tests was truly successful.

Despite such testing failures, the Russian military maintains there is no alternative to the Bulava missile. Military officials insist testing will continue until the missile used in July's launch from the Dmitry Donskoi submarine is ready for the Russian navy.

The Russian missile is intended for use on Borey-class nuclear-powered submarines.

RIA Novosti said the Bulava three-stage missile has a range of 5,000 miles and is capable of carrying 10 multiple independently targetable re-entry vehicle warheads.