Putin Reprimands Roscosmos Head, Deputy PM for Delay in Vostochny Launch

Russian President Vladimir Putin has issued reprimands to Roscosmos head Igor Komarov and Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin, who oversees the country's space industry, for the delay in launching the first rocket from the newly-built Vostochny Cosmodrome, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Thursday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Earlier on Thursday, Russia successfully conducted the first launch from the newly-built Vostochny space center, putting three satellites aboard a Soyuz-2.1a carrier rocket into orbit. The launch was originally slated for Wednesday.

According to Roscosmos, the postponement was not connected to spaceport infrastructure and was not the result of human factors.

"Yes," Peskov told RIA Novosti when asked if Komarov and Rogozin had been reprimanded by the president.

Russian President Vladimir Putin watched the launch with Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin, who oversees the space industry, head of the Roscosmos state corporation Igor Komarov, the commander of the Space Forces Alexander Golovko.