Qatar Airways committed to buying five Boeing 777 Freighters valued at $1.8 billion at list prices at the Paris Air Show on Wednesday. Signing the deal with Boeing Commercial Airplanes CEO Kevin McAllister in the presence of Qatari ministry of transport and communications Jassim Saif Ahmed Al-Sulaiti, Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker noted the deal would increase the size of his 777 freighter fleet by 20 percent. The airline plans to take all five airplanes next year.

Al Baker also announced three new freighter services to start next month—Hanoi to Dallas/Fort Worth, Singapore to Chicago, and Singapore to Los Angeles and Mexico City—as the Doha-based airline continues to work to overcome what he called the illegal blockade of Qatar by four Gulf neighbors that led to the immediate suspension of 18 routes in 2017.

“Our cargo freighters overnight became a vital link to my country from the rest of world,” said Al Baker. “Each day since then Qatar Airways Cargo brings around 350 tons of food to the population of Qatar and maintains the supply of critical medical and manufacturing supplies.”

Al Baker also stressed the importance of the division to the entire group’s financial health. “Cargo is a very important and profitable division of Qatar Airways Group that makes a vital contribution to our P&L,” said Al Baker. “As we add new routes like the seven we introduced in 2019, cargo will be a vital part of our overall development. Our cargo business showed tremendous growth in 2018, faster than any of competitors, increasing our global market share by almost one percentage point.”

Al Baker added that the airline plans to start retiring its initial batch of 777Fs in 2025 and expressed interest in becoming the launch customer for a freighter version of the 777X, if Boeing launches such a program.

Notwithstanding his reference to the blockade, Al Baker declined to talk politics when asked about how the current tensions in the Gulf would affect his airline. “Let’s talk about airplanes and not politics,” he said. “I think this is a question you need to put to the politicians...As you know our main lifeline is flying over Iranian airspace.”