REUTOV, Moscow region. April 2 (Interfax) - The first all-weather radar satellite Kondor-FKA will be launched in 2022 instead of 2021, and the second satellite will be put into orbit in 2023, General Director and Designer of NPO Mashinostroyenia, an affiliate of the Tactical Missiles corporation and a Soyuzmash member, Alexander Leonov told reporters.
"Consistent with the adjusted plans of Roscosmos, it is planned to launch Kondor in 2022 and to put the second satellite into orbit in 2023," Leonov said in response to Interfax's question in the course of the academic readings on cosmonautics on Friday.
He underlined the absence of any lag in the process.
"We are on schedule envisaged by the contract. We follow the plan envisaged by the government contract," Leonov said.
He noted that Roscosmos had been adjusting its plans for various reasons.
"Sometimes, they combine rocket payload for optimizing the launch of two satellites instead of just one. Sometimes, the current year's budget does not allow performing a launch. There are various reasons but, once again, we are on schedule coordinated with Roscosmos," Leonov said.
It was said earlier that Kondor-FKA No. 1 would be put into orbit in 2021.
As to the current stage of work on the Kondor-FKA-M satellite, Leonov said, "We have prepared a rough design of Kondor-M. So, this is an advanced stage."
He noted that the project was quite expensive.
"Given substantial cuts of Roscosmos' budgets, I am unable to say when and how that might happen, because our contracts do not end with stages leading to the Kondor-M launch," Leonov said.