MOSCOW. Oct 29 (Interfax) - Six more successful launches should be conducted before the Bulava sea-based strategic missile is handed over to the Russian armed forces, Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov told journalists on Friday.
"Before the complex is allowed to join the armed forces, one launch from a new submarine and five qualification launches need to take place," Ivanov said.
Asked when the next launch of a Bulava missile could be held, the deputy prime minister said that it would be done as soon as everything was "ready".
"This launch will take place when the missile is ready," he said.
It will be held from a submarine, he said.
In Soviet times, a missile was required to have 25-30 successful launches before it was allowed to join the armed forces, Ivanov said.
"Ten failures out of 30 launches are an episode from the past as well," he said.
Out of 14 launches of Bulava missiles, only six ended in total failure, Ivanov said.
"The main conclusion drawn from the latest successful launch is that there are no design errors and all of the previous failures, as I have already said, were caused by production defects," the official said.
A total of 620 enterprises are involved in making Bulava missiles, he said.
"Fewer than 20 enterprises belong to Roscosmos (Russian Federal Space Agency), and all the others are ordinary companies. Theoretically, in order to be 100% confident of the quality of associated parts and components, it is necessary to form Defense Ministry acceptance committees at each of the 620 enterprises. Only this could offer 100% guarantees," Ivanov said.