Boeing

Boeing Commercial Airplanes President and CEO Alan Mulally said on the eve of the Moscow Air Show that he is committed to continued close relationships with Russian civil aviation industries.

At a press conference held by Sukhoi Civil Aviation in Moscow, Mulally evoked the successful motivating tenet he has become known for -- "Working Together."

"We're committed to further strengthening and expanding our cooperation here in Russia," Mulally said in a videotaped statement. "I see the transition of Sukhoi from a 100 percent defense enterprise into the civil aviation field as a metaphor for the same transition happening around the world today. Boeing and Sukhoi 'Working Together' is a sign of the growing opportunities for two-way trade between our two countries and - more importantly - a symbol of peace."

Boeing, Sukhoi and the Ilyushin Design Bureau announced a cooperative study June 21 to determine the feasibility of jointly designing, manufacturing, certifying, marketing, selling and servicing a new regional airplane for global operations.

Mulally also recognized the historic leadership role Russian industry has played in aerospace and the valuable contributions it will make in the future.

"We're proud to be working together with Russian aviation industries on long-term, mutually-beneficial projects such as the International Space Station, Sea Launch, trans-polar routes, and the Boeing Design Center," he said. "This new, higher level of working together between the Russian aerospace industries and Boeing directly supports the efforts of Presidents Bush and Putin to expand U.S.-Russian relations on the basis of mutual trust and economic cooperation."