27 July 2006
Lukashenko said to have taken news of satellite's failed launch calmly

A representative of Russia's Federal Space Agency (Roskosmos) said that Aleksandr Lukashenko had taken the news of the Belarusian first-ever satellite's failed launch "with fortitude."

The Belarusian leader traveled to Kazakhstan to observe Wednesday's launch of Russia's RS-20 Dnepr rocket carrying BelKA (Belarusian Spacecraft) and 16 other satellites from the Baikonur spaceport. The Dnepr, a converted intercontinental missile, crashed back to Earth after 86 seconds of flight. The crash was blamed on failure of the first-stage engine.

"After realizing that the rocket expected to carry Belarus' first satellite BelKA into orbit had been lost, Aleksandr Lukashenko showed no signs of anxiety, vexation or agitation," the RIA Novosti news agency quoted Roskosmos spokesman Igor Panarin as saying.

Mikhail Myasnikovich, head of the Belarusian National Academy of Sciences (BNAS) who accompanied the Belarusian leader on the trip to Kazakhstan, said that the $9-million satellite was insured, according to official information sources.

Built by Russia's spacecraft company Energiya in cooperation with Belarusian experts, the satellite was to provide mapping data for agencies working on the ground. Special stations were established in Belarus to receive and process data from the satellite.

The project was to pay off within a year and BelKA was expected to stay in orbit for five years.

The launch of BelKA was initially scheduled for June 28. It was delayed until July 26 over faulty equipment aboard a Dnepr rocket. The rocket was replaced with another Dnepr that successfully passed all testing. //BelaPAN