Boeing cooperates with Ilyushin on the redesign of 767 for cargo use

Published: 8/26/1999

Boeing is working with Ilyushin on the development of commercial transports, according to Sergey Kravchenko, Director International, Cooperation Programs CIS and Russia. A major project for the design team has been the modification of the Boeing 767 into a cargo aircraft at the Moscow-based Boeing Design Centre. The team involved comprises some 35 Russian engineers from Ilyushin and Boeing. Kravchenko claims that: “ Our Russian colleagues have profound experience in the re design of the Ilyushin-96M into the cargo carrier Il-96T. This experience will help to modify the Boeing 767 into a cargo airplane.” The other activities of the Boeing Design Centre, opened in 1997, include the design of tooling and ground support equipment for Boeing. Kravchenko claims that, to date, the design team, which has grown from an initial 12 engineers and to 60 by the year-end, has designed over 40 tooling components for Boeing and completed 3 redesign projects on the Boeing 777. The Russian design team has been trained both in Seattle and in Moscow, in order to equip them to fulfil Boeing's design tasks. Boeing's activities in Moscow started in 1993, when it launched its Technical Research Centre. This currently supports more than 30 technology projects, involving 350 scientists from Russian research institutes, according to the company.

Article ID: 804