The Russian Navy’s first fourth-generation strategic nuclear-powered submarine has successfully launched the Bulava ballistic missile in the White Sea, Russia, Defence Ministry spokesman colonel Igor Konashenkov said.

The submarine, for the first time, launched the missile in a submerged position. It hit the designated target as planned on the Kura test range in Kamchatka, Russia’s Far East.

Previous tests of the missile were carried out from the Typhoon Class submarine Dmitri Donskoy that was rebuilt into a test-platform for the missile.

Of 15 test launches that have been conducted to date, only eight were officially declared successful.

The three-stage Bulava SLBM carries up to ten MIRV warheads, has a range of over 8,000km and is designed for deployment on the new Borei Class nuclear submarines.