Europe to Join Russia in Building Next Space Shuttle --ANATOLY ZAK

Fri 19 Aug 05 22:07 1900 GMT // IEEE Spectrum On-Line

http://www.spectrum.ieee.org/WEBONLY...0805nshut.html

Development agreement takes shape during the Paris Air Show

It's all but official-Russia and Europe will soon embark on a cooperative
effort to build a next-generation manned space shuttle. Speaking at the
Paris Air Show, in Le Bourget, France, in June, Russian space officials
confirmed earlier reports from Moscow that their partners at the European
Space Agency would join the Russian effort to build a new reusable orbiter,
dubbed Kliper. After the cautious optimism they expressed at the beginning
of 2005, Russians are now confident that their European partners will be on
board for the largest, boldest Russian endeavor in spaceflight in more than
a decade.
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