LOS ANGELES, June 14 (Xinhua) -- A U.S. House panel gave its backing to Boeing's production of the C-17 cargo plane, a move that would save a Boeing factory which employs 6,500 workers, according to Bloomberg News on Wednesday.

    The House Appropriations Committee, in a defense spending bill set for a full House vote next week, would provide 798 million U.S. dollars to buy three C-17s more than the 180 delivered or on order, brushing aside Defense Department objections, said the report.

    The Senate has not yet acted on its version of the measure.

    Boeing's factory which produces the C-17 in Long Beach, Los Angeles, would close in 2008 without additional orders for the aircraft, which cost about 200 million dollars each. Almost 150 of the planes have been delivered.

    "It's an important economic asset for Long Beach, but it's probably equally important for Southern California" because many of the plant's workers live in the region, said Robert Swayze, manager of economic development for Long Beach.

    About 5,600 employees of suppliers in California also rely on the C-17, he said.

    Rep. C.W. "Bill" Young, chairman of the Appropriations subcommittee on defense, said the full committee acted "in recognition of the C-17 Globemaster's performance in the global waron terrorism and to preserve" the production line.

    The action by the committee, which approves the money spent by the U.S. government for the fiscal year, mirrors moves by the House and Senate panels that authorize defense spending.

    Chicago-based Boeing, the No. 2 U.S. defense contractor, has been lobbying Congress this year to overturn the Pentagon's decision to end production.

    The company and representatives of about 150 subcontractors met with lawmakers on March 8 in Washington to protest the planned shutdown.

    The Pentagon decided to stop making the aircraft after 2008 because a review of military mobility concluded that the Air Force

    had adequate aircraft and the Navy had enough fast sealift vessels

    in the planned inventory to move Army and Marine Corps ground units in a timely manner.

    The four-engine C-17 can haul an 85-ton payload and fly as far as 2,400 nautical miles without refueling, according to the Air Force. It features a rear cargo door through which vehicles and pallets can be loaded. Enditem