MOSCOW, April 14 (Xinhua) -- Russia will double spacecraft production by 2009 in response to a decision to increase crew members of the International Space Station (ISS) from two to six by then, Russia's leading space company said on Friday.

    The Experimental Machine Building Plant in Korolyov, outside Moscow, is to double production of the Soyuz and Progress spacecraft by 2009, the Interfax news agency quoted Alexander Strekalov, the plant's director and first vice-president of the state-controlled Energia spacecraft building corporation, as saying.

    "Our partners in the ISS program have agreed to enlarge the station's crew from two to six people by 2009. Given the restricted number of planned U.S. Shuttle flights, Soyuz spacecraft will have to deliver more crews to the ISS and bring them back to Earth. We will need more such spacecraft," Strekalov said.

    Currently the plant builds two Soyuz manned spaceships and four Progress cargo carriers every year.

    "We will be producing four Soyuz manned spaceships and seven to eight Progress cargo ships by 2009," Strekalov said. Enditem