Europe-Russia target 2018 for winged spaceship

Roskosmos and the European SpaceAgency are firming up plans to jointly build a craftthat could orbit Earth and travel to the moon.

The Russian agency says thecraft potentially could carrya crew of six and would lift off from a launch facility Russia will bebuilding in eastern Siberia.

Roskosmos said in astatement Wednesday that the space agencies want to conduct the first testflight in 2015 and the first manned launch in 2018.

It said Russia will buildthe capsule and the ESA will be responsible for the service module and theengine block.