Prototype of Angara-NZh Rocket Installed on Vostochny Cosmodrome Launch Pad

A mockup of the heavy-lift launch vehicle has been installed on the launch pad, the Russian state space corporation Roscosmos reported.

A static prototype of the Angara-NZh ("NZh" stands for "ground fluidic") rocket was installed on the launch pad at the Vostochny Cosmodrome on November 16, the space agency stated. The 1:1 scale version of the complete launcher is necessary to carry out testing.

"Today, at 9 am, a rolling stock with Angara-NZh left the gate of the technical facility of the Vostochny Cosmodrome for the launch site of the Amur space rocket complex," the corporation said.

With the help of the transportation and installation unit, the rocket mockup was made upright and installed on the launch pad, the corporation highlighted. During the first stage of extensive testing, the Roscosmos specialists are to bring refueling communications to Angara-NZh.

"The tests will be held for a month. The team will have to practice the operational routine in accordance with instructions, including in terms of refueling and draining of rocket fuel components," the corporation noted.

On September 1, Roscosmos CEO Yuri Borisov stated that flight tests of the Angara-1.2 and Angara-A5 launch vehicles will be completed in 2024.

Earlier on August 14, Alexei Varochko, the CEO of the Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center said that the Angara-A5V heavy-lift launch vehicle, which uses a hydrogen stage and is capable of launching 37 tons of cargo into the low orbit, will be launched from the Vostochny Cosmodrome after 2025.