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Russia’s Khrunichev center to make 11 Proton-M rockets before their production stops

Four rockets have been in production, seven more will be complete in 2020-2021

Proton-M carrier rocket Pyotr Kovalyov/TASS, archive

Proton-M carrier rocket

© Pyotr Kovalyov/TASS, archive

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Proton-M upper stage successfully separates from third stage

MOSCOW, September 17. /TASS/. Russia’s Khrunichev Center will manufacture 11 more Proton-M carrier rockets before their production is stopped and the project is closed, the center’s Director General Alexei Varochko told TASS on Tuesday.

"According to the current plan, the Khrunichev Center is to manufacture 11 rockets, four of them are already in production, seven more will be ready in 2020-2021," he said.

Roscosmos chief Dmitry Rogozin said on the sidelines of the forum Army-2018 that the manufacturing of Proton-M rockets will cease in 2020-2021. The rockets will be in use until 2025. All subsequent launches will be carried out by the Angara family of rockets, because it is more environmentally friendly.

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