BBC Friday, 13 April, 2001, 18:56 GMT 19:56 UK

Boeing signs Russian space deal

US aerospace giant Boeing and the Russian aviation and space agency RKA have signed a deal to launch commercial satellites and market a future Russian module for the International Space Station (ISS).

There was also agreement to develop two new jetliners within the next four or five years, a business-class plane and a regional passenger aircraft similar to the Russian Tu-324.

Correspondents say the deal highlights Western interest in the former jewel in the Soviet crown and Moscow's determination to court international partners.

"We have begun our journey together with small steps and achieved some very great things," Boeing chief executive Philip Condit told reporters after signing a wide-ranging co-operation agreement.

The deal will "open new frontiers in global aerospace, changing life on or above our planet", he said.

It was "especially fitting that the agreement was finalised during the 40th anniversary celebration of Yury Gagarin's historic space flight", he added.

Neither Mr Condit nor RKA chief Yuri Koptev would comment on financial details of the agreement.

Boeing and the Russian agency agreed to conduct a feasibility study on commercial uses of the Russian-built FGB-2 module - the back-up for the Functional Cargo Block, also called Zarya, which became the first segment of the ISS.

The FGB-2 is reportedly 70% complete and only needs specialised equipment for commercial work.

Sea launch

The agreement also envisages studying the prospects of converting the Zenith booster used for the international Sea Launch project for launches from the Baikonur cosmodrome in the former Soviet republic of Kazakstan.

Sea Launch is a Boeing-led international consortium, including Russia, which launches satellites into orbit from a converted oil platform in the Pacific Ocean.

"What we've agreed to do is to look at the opportunities and try to take advantage of the capabilities that are in the FGB and in the Zenith launch vehicle and find the best commercial answers," said Mr Condit.

The agreement also covers the expansion of joint space research, Boeing's purchases of Russian titanium and other products and the development of Russian polar air routes.

Boeing opened a research centre in Moscow in 1993, and now employs more than 500 scientists and engineers in seven Russian cities, the company said.

-- Anonymous, April 13, 2001