MOSCOW. April 8 (Interfax-AVN) - Construction of the Soyuz-2 rocket launch system will be completed at the Plesetsk cosmodrome in northern European Russia this year.
"The construction of the launch system for Soyuz-2 (Rus) medium space rockets is to be completed at the Plesetsk cosmodrome this year," Space Troops Commander Anatoly Perminov told a planned session of the troops' military council on Monday.
Construction of the launch system for Angara rockets has been scaled up at Plesetsk as well. Meanwhile, the launch system for Strela light rockets is being built at the Svobodny cosmodrome in the Russian Far East. Work is underway to improve missile and space defense facilities, Perminov said.
"Nevertheless, despite positive work we have done, irrational spending, losses and theft of money and materials do not decline in troops. Adjustment of military units to new economic relations is very slow, and a set of organizational measures to arrange financial and economic activity is obviously insufficient," the commander noted.
"Problems of high importance for the troops' life and activity were discussed at the session," the Space Troops press service told Interfax-Military News Agency on Tuesday. In particular, participants in the session summed up results of economic activity, implementation of capital construction plans, and control activity in the Space Troops in 2002 and determined goals in this sphere for 2003," the press service said.
Moreover, the session analyzed flight security in the Space Troops, determined missions of military control bodies and aircraft units in the sphere of preventing aircraft accidents, and worked out measures to prevent accidents involving private and service vehicles.
"The year 2002 was the first full-scale training year after the Space Troops were fully established as a new arm of service," Perminov said.
While discussing flight security in the Space Troops' military transport aviation, the participants in the session noted that preventive work of commanders is a decisive factor in preventing aircraft accidents alongside with improvement of planes', helicopters' and airfields' technical readiness.
The military council passed detailed resolutions on each considered issue.