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An engineer at Russia’s Plesetsk space station has been jailed for 13 years after being convicted of selling missile test data to the CIA.

Lt-Col Vladimir Nesterets, a senior test engineer at the station, was convicted of treason, Russia’s FSB secret police announced.

He admitted passing on information about tests involving Russia’s latest strategic missiles, it said.

Russia’s missile programme has recently been hit by apparent design faults.

Plesetsk, a base in north-western Russia near the Arctic Circle, is used by the military for launching satellites into orbit and testing missiles.

The FSB (Federal Security Service) gave no further details of the case against Nesterets.

Recent (Free-Pr-Online.com) years have seen embarrassing setbacks for Russia’s missile programme, though not necessarily involving the Plesetsk base.

Most prominently, the submarine-launched Bulava ballistic missile was hit by a series of test failures before being finally approved in December.

Russian missile test launch fails

A Russian test launch of an intercontinental missile has failed, resulting in a white light seen over parts of Norway.

The submarine-based Bulava ballistic missile failed when launched from the White Sea, the Defence Ministry’s press office told Itar-Tass news agency.

Russian newspapers had earlier reported the failure. At least six of 13 previous tests also ended in failure.

The Bulava can carry six individually targeted nuclear warheads.

It is designed to have a range of 10,000km (6,200 miles), but its repeated failures have caused embarrassment for Russia which hoped it would support its nuclear deterrent.

Spiral light

Russian media reported that on Wednesday’s test the third stage engine failed.

t was fired from the Dmitry Donskoi submarine in the White Sea, the usual site for such missile tests by Russian submarines.

In Norway, a white spiral light was reported over the city of Tromso at the same time, with many people wondering if it was a UFO sighting or meteor.

In one of the recent tests a Bulava self-destructed after a malfunction during the first stage of its flight from the White Sea, Reuters news agency reported.

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