Korean Air announces an order for 103 Boeing airplanes amid Trump-Lee summit

Korean Air announced an order on Monday for 103 Boeing airplanes, coinciding with the visit of South Korean President Lee Jae Myung to Washington, sources told Reuters.

The order, the largest in the Korean air carrier’s history, is expected to include a mix of 787s, 777s and 737 Boeing airplanes, sources told Reuters earlier.

Boeing Commercial Airplanes CEO Stephanie Pope and Korean Air CEO Cho Won-tae attended an event to unveil the deal with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.

Reuters first reported the deal earlier.

Korean Air also announced a separate deal Monday with GE Aerospace on the purchase and maintenance of engines valued at $13.7 billion.

Part of the order is to re-equip Asiana, one of the sources said, a subsidiary of South Korea’s largest airline.

In March, South Korea’s industry ministry said Korean Air said it would soon finalize a $32.7 billion deal for new Boeing and GE engines.

Korean Air last year said it would order 20 777-9 and 20 787-10 planes from Boeing, with options for an additional 10 aircraft, and signed a memorandum of understanding in 2024.

Many countries negotiating trade deals with the Trump administration have announced or plan to announce significant Boeing airplane orders. Boeing has won a string of major orders in recent months.

Korean Air, a founding member of the SkyTeam airline alliance, was established in 1969 when state-owned Korean Air Lines was taken over by South Korean conglomerate Hanjin Kal.