Topol ICBM

The Topol mobile ICBM was developed by the Moscow Thermal Technology Institute, MIT. The missile was launched for the first time on Sept. 29, 1981 and by the end of 2005, it flew 81 missions, of which 50 were training launches.

Element	Developer	Chief Designer	Location
Overall design	Moscow Teplotechics Institute (MIT)	Y. Solomonov	Moscow
Production	Votkinsk Plant	V. Tolmachev	Votkinsk, Udmurt Republic
Stages	NPO Soyuz	B. Zhukov	Lyubertsy (Moscow)

Selected launches of the Topol missiles:

1981 Sept. 29: The first launch.

2001 Oct. 4: The Russian Strategic Missile Forces, RVSN, have launched a 15-year-old Topol ICBM on a certification test mission. The missile blasted off on Oct. 3, 13:00 Moscow Time from a mobile launcher at the Plesetsk test range and after a ballistic flight successfully reached its target at the Kura test range on the Kamchatka Peninsula, RVSN officials said.

2002 June 6: The Russian Strategic Missile Forces, RVSN, have launched a Topol ICBM.

2002 Oct. 12: Russian armed forces had a busy weekend on Saturday, October 12, 2002, conducting the most extensive missile launching exercise in years. According to the Russian media, the nation's submarines stationed in the Sea of Okhotsk and the Barents Sea fired long-range missiles at the targets at Cape Kanin Nos in the Russia's northern regions and at Kamchatka Peninsula, respectively.

On the same day, strategic bombers launched cruise missiles aimed at targets beyond the polar circle and the Volga River region. To complete the picture, the Topol ICBM flew a training mission from Plesetsk to Kamchatka Peninsula.

2003 March 27: A week after the US-led coalition invaded Iraq, the Russian military launched an exercise, showcasing the country's missile might.

On March 27, 2003, an operational unit of the Strategic Missile Forces, RVSN, conducted a training launch of the Topol intercontinental ballistic missile (RS-12M). According to the official information, the missile blasted off at 12:27 Moscow Time from a mobile launcher, deployed at the Plesetsk test range. The operational unit of Russia’s Strategic Missile Forces, RVSN, conducted the launch, with the support of Space Forces, KVR.

The firing of the Topol missile became a culmination of a training exercise, which was underway in the Teikovo Division of RVSN in the Ivanovo Region, northeast of Moscow.

2004 Feb. 18, 13:28 Moscow Time (10:28 GMT): A Topol ICBM lifted off from Plesetsk and its warhead successfully reached the target at the Kura impact site on the Kamchatka Peninsula.

Accompanied by the Minister of Defense, the commander of the space forces and the chief of the cosmodrome, President Putin watched the activities from Plesetsk and thanked the personnel for the excellent performance. President Putin also visited the vehicle processing building in Plesetsk, where he reviewed a display of space hardware.

2004 Nov. 2: A Topol (RS-12M) ICBM blasted off from a mobile launcher at Russia's Northern Cosmodrome in Plesetsk and successfully hit the target area at the Kura impact range in the Kamchatka Peninsula on November 2, 2004. According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, the flight aimed to confirm the possibility of extending the service life of such systems to up to 20 years.

2005 Nov. 1, 20:10 Moscow Summer Time (17:10 GMT): Topol flew a test mission from Kapustin Yar. It tested a new penetration warhead and the extended service life of the missile.

2005 Nov. 29, 10:44 Moscow Time: Russian Strategic Missile Forces, RVSN, and Space Forces, KV, conducted a test launch of the old Topol missile, aimed to sertify vehicles of this type for the service period reaching 20 years.

The rocket blasted off from the "autonomous launch pad," APU, in Plesetsk and successfully hit the target area at the Kura impact range on the Kamchatka Peninsula.