Russia's Roscosmos Working On Launcher Capable Of Performing 100 Flights

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 07th August, 2020) Russia's State Space Corporation Roscosmos plans to create a new Soyuz-SPG (where SPG means liquefied natural gas) methane-fueled launcher with a reusable first stage that will be able to perform 100 flights � more than SpaceX's Falcon 9, Roscosmos Director General Dmitry Rogozin told Sputnik in an interview.

"We are working on a methane-fueled rocket that will replace Soyuz-2. It will be initially intended to serve as a reusable space complex. Not 'semi-reusable', like that of SpaceX, but truly reusable," Rogozin said, specifying that the launcher will be able to perform 100 flights.

"This will be the XXI century rocket," Roscosmos chief added.

Falcon 9 is designed for 10 launches.

In September 2019, Roscosmos said that the cost of the production of the new reusable medium-range methane-fueled rocket would amount to around $900 million, with the cost of the launch amounting to around $40.5 million. The new launcher will be able to put 9 tonnes of cargo from Vostochny spaceport into low orbits.