Seoul, South Korea – South Korean flag carrier Korean Air said Tuesday that it will buy 25 jets from Boeing Co. for about $5.5 billion, the largest aviation deal in the nation’s history.
Under the agreement, Boeing will deliver 15 passenger aircraft and 10 freighters to Korean Air Co. – the world’s biggest mover of air cargo – over a 10-year period beginning in 2009, the airline said in a statement.
“The addition of Boeing’s aircraft to our fleet will play an integral part in our development to become a leader in the world’s aviation industry,” Korean Air’s chief executive, Cho Yang-ho, said in a statement.
Korean Air will use the planes to take a larger slice of global passenger traffic and “become one of the world’s top 10 passenger carriers by 2010,” the statement said.
The Seoul-based company operates 118 aircraft in 33 countries.
