Aerospace giant sells 22 planes to Copa Airlines

US aerospace giant Boeing is selling 22 aircraft to Copa Airlines, nearly doubling the Panamanian carrier’s fleet of Next-Generation 737s, the companies said.

Boeing and Copa announced an order for 22 Next-Generation 737-800s at a signing ceremony at the US Department of Commerce in Washington.

“This is the largest aircraft order in Copa’s history, which is a reflection not only of our confidence in the future of Latin America and Panama, but also of our successful business model,” said Pedro Heilbron, chief executive officer of Copa.

The 22 firm aircraft plus 10 options, which will be delivered between 2015 and 2018, “are an integral part of our medium-term growth plan,” he said.

Boeing previously had listed the order to an unidentified customer on its website.

The firm order for the 22 airplanes is valued at about $1.7billion at list prices and nearly doubles Copa’s existing Next-Generation 737 fleet, the firms said. Copa has an option to buy 10 more.

In the past two years, Copa purchased 37 new Next-Generation 737-800s from Boeing and entered into leasing agreements for an additional 10.

Operating out of Panama City, at the junction of North and South America, Copa provides service to 46 destinations in 24 countries.

“The signing not only celebrates the strong relationship between Boeing and Copa Airlines, but also symbolises the strong political and commercial ties between the US and Panama,” said Jim Albaugh, president and chief executive officer of Boeing Commercial Airplanes.