The new generation of “Glonass” late – News

Photo: REUTERS / ILya Naymushin

Roscosmos forced to postpone the start of production of satellites” Glonass “next generation because formal restrictions. To announce the official competition for the production of the first batch of spacecraft “Glonass-K” Roskosmos need to significantly revise the existing federal target program (FTP) “Maintenance, development and use of GLONASS in 2012-2020.” This space agency experts engaged for several months, and while their efforts fail, a new generation of satellites for GLONASS will not be made.

– Satellites “Glonass-K” gradually modernized and technological sanctions by the United States was forced to replace them powerful part of the electronic-component base – told “Izvestia” a high-ranking source in the Russian Space Agency. – The current version of the GLONASS federal target program considers the process of making “Glonass-K” for serial production. In reality, this development work, which is much higher than estimates of production. To officially ordered from the manufacturer satellite “Glonass-K”, you must first correct the FTP, moving the section OCD about 60 billion rubles. The total cost of the federal program does not change.

The schedule updates GLONASS satellite constellation, attached to the existing FTP, transfer a new generation of spacecraft is scheduled for the current 2015. More precisely, it has been planned at the time of approval of the program in 2012. Then the customer in the face of state promised the following: in 2015, Roskosmos will orbit the latest cell phones “Glonass-M”, and then will gradually update the group, launching into orbit has only K-series phones new generation of satellites last longer and need to determine the exact position thanks more stable atomic clock.

Reality sold with plans FTP quickly enough: After the incident in 2013 crash, when ” Proton “collapsed right at the start of the table and buried three satellites” Glonnass-M “, Roskosmos began saving devices and run them according to plan and as needed. As a result, now on Earth nine new stores and ready for launch vehicles “Glonass-M”. They may need at any time, since seven of the main unit is now flying the main groups already expired guaranteed lifetime is 7 years. Then you will need updating groups of new generation.

Roscosmos expects that current satellites will be enough stock to maintain a full grouping within 2-3 years. More satellites “Glonass-M” do not planned to replace them must be ordered “Glonass-K”, which planned to do in the last year. But the date of announcement of the competition was moved because of sanctions – to find a replacement number of components and reach a claimed specification.

– Almost every device “Glonass-K” – nine pieces we are now waiting for the announcement of competition – will be slightly refined compared with the previous, it’s development work, – says Nikolay Testoyedov, CEO of JSC “ISS Reshetnev” manufactured GLONASS satellites. – It is not about increasing the amount of funding, but of throwing one article to another, so I do not think there can be unsurmountable difficulties.

This spring, representatives of the Russian Space Agency official said that the competition will be announced in April this year. But in the spring to complete the work on updating the federal program failed, and this process continues to this day. Now Roskosmos proposals studied in the Ministry of Economic Development.

– The Ministry reviewed the submitted projects FTP adjustments “Maintenance, development and utilization GLONASS system for 2012-2020 “, the corresponding conclusions were forwarded to the Federal Space Agency for its completion – told” Izvestia “press secretary of the Ministry of Economic Development Elena Lashkina. – The main problem is the justification of the calculations on the distribution of funds. Modified Roscosmos and the documents are now being considered.

Roscosmos now prefer not to give forecasts for the announcement of the contest for the right to build a new generation of satellites for GLONASS.

– Roscosmos working hard to make GLONASS satellites were launched in production as quickly as possible – the Russian Space Agency spokesman Igor Bourenkov.

Roscosmos first time experiencing difficulty with the approval of the Federal Target Program GLONASS ministries. It was also in 2012 when the agreement with the Ministry of Economic Development and the Ministry of Finance continued for over a year. This led to the fact that former FTP GLONASS completed, and the new, starting from 2012, does not start, since February 2012, the Federal Space Agency continued the coordination of the draft program in the ministries.