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The Russian leader inspected the production facilities and was shown a Strela-type light-weight launch vehicle and a heat-resistance test bench.

President Putin inspected the production workshop of the Russian-Indian joint venture BrahMos that manufactures Yakhont (Onyx) anti-ship cruise missiles with a 300-km range. According to experts, such missiles will remain the best in their class for another decade. Corporate general director Herbert Yefremov said Russia had successfully tested the missiles and that the Russian army had adopted them. India plans to hold similar tests before the end of the year.

Mr Yefremov also said the Russian-Indian joint venture had enabled his company to recruit additional personnel, and that it was hiring 80 to 90 young specialists annually.

President Putin praised the work of the company and its efforts to retain its employees. He asked corporate managers to comment on the defence industry reform and efforts to establish an integrated science and production company.

The Russian leader said the successful performance of defence industry companies depended on the level of state support, their efforts to accomplish specific objectives, and that the plants now had to turn out essential competitive products.

NPO Mashinostroyeniya, a leading Russian manufacturer of missiles and military spacecraft, was established in the 1940s and started developing military equipment under the supervision of famous designer Vladimir Chelomei. Throughout the 1950s and the 1960s, the company developed state-of-the-art cruise missiles for the Soviet navy, multi-role inter-continental ballistic missile (ICBM) systems and spacecraft.

The company was instrumental in developing the Salyut/Almaz orbital stations. Many of their engineering solutions were used to build the Mir orbiter and the International Space Station.

NPO Mashinostroyeniya now mostly develops multi-role, naval, ground and air-launched cruise missiles, as well as ground ICBMs. Under a corporate conversion programme, it develops remote-sensing satellites, communications satellites and information technologies.