Korean Air wins bid to supply airplane wing parts to Airbus

Korean Air said Thursday it has won a contract to supply Sharklets, parts of the wings of airplanes, for the Airbus A330 NEO aircraft in a bidding that nearly took six months to finalize.

The contract is worth 100 billion won ($92.2 million). A Sharklet is a two-meter-wide, four-meter-long wing part that helps airplanes have less air resistance. It will also improve their fuel efficiency by 4 percent and reduce CO2 emissions.

The company will start producing the part from 2016. It said its successful business with Airbus helped it to win the contract. Since 2009, the company has supplied more than 2,200 Sharklets for Airbus A320 planes after it independently developed the part. It has also been manufacturing cargo doors for Airbus A350 airplanes since 2008.

Besides Airbus, the company also has business dealings with other global aircraft companies, including Boeing, as it has been developing and producing six core parts for the company’s B787 airplanes since 2004.