ANGARA: Will It Replace Russia's Proton Launch Vehicle?

A remark made by an industry official at a recent aerospace conference in the city of Kazan, it seems likely that the Angara rockets could fully replace Russia’s long-serving Soviet-era Proton launch vehicles as early as 2024.

Proton rockets have been in service since 1965. In recent years Russia and International Launch Services (ILS) have utilised the rocket in its 58m tall “M” variant to send military and commercial satellites to orbit. About three to eight Proton-M launches are typically conducted annually from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, although this is decreasing every year as the production of the rocket is drawing to a close and no new launch contracts are likely to be signed in the near future.

According to remarks made by Yuri Koptev, Chairman of the Science and Engineering Board of the staterun Rostec corporation, Proton rockets will apparently still be in service for at least another six years as the number of constructed Angara launchers apparently is not enough to meet requirements.