Russia loses $550m from failed satellite launches
March 14, 2014
By Chris Forrester
Russian reports, prompted by a letter from the Russian Association of Aviation & Space Insurers, say that the total losses from recent failed satellite launches now top $550 million. Russia’s rocket launching sector has suffered a slew of problems over the past four years including catastrophic failures by its Proton and Soyuz-U rocket systems.
The letter from the Space Insurers says that five out of the past six failures (amongst a total of 100 launches) were uninsured as far the satellite payloads were concerned. An audit has also been carried out by the Kremlin, and this has been reported by Moscow’s Vedemosti newspaper, which says
Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin, who supervises the space and defence industries, said last week that Russia must focus on profits in the space sector to ensure a return on state investments. Russia’s space agency is reportedly submitting a draft law by the end of this year on compulsory insurance in the space industry, according to the Russian government’s website.