MOSCOW, Oct. 25 (Xinhua) -- A sea-launched Bulava ballistic missile was self-destroyed several minutes after the test-launch due to a deviation from the preset trajectory, Russian Navy press service said on Wednesday.

    "The missile deviated from its trajectory several minutes after the launch. The system of self-destruction may have been triggered, and the missile fell into sea," the Navy was quoted by the Interfax news agency as saying.

    "A commission consisting of the designers and manufactures of the missile will determine the reasons behind the failure," the Navy said.

    The Dmitry Donskoi submarine launched the Bulava missile from the White Sea toward the Kura training grounds in Kamchatka at 5.05 p.m. Moscow time (1305 GMT).

    The test was staged in line with a program on the testing of the fourth-generation Bulava missile system for ships in September7, 2006. The warhead of the missile was airborne for several minutes before falling into the sea.

    The Bulava system may carry ten independently targeted nuclear warheads. The range of the Bulava missile is 8,000 kilometers.