The US State Department on Monday approved the sale of up to 36 AH-64E Apache helicopters, plus logistics and support, to South Korea in a deal worth $3.5 billion.

South Korea would also buy up to 76 GE T700 engines, two in each helicopter, plus four more spares. And each helicopter would get its own modernized AN/ASQ-170 target acquisition and target designation sight, according to the Defense Security Cooperation Agency.

In addition to the helicopters, South Korea also wants to buy hundreds of missiles to arm these helicopters, including 456 Hellfire missiles, six captive-air training missiles and 152 joint air-to-ground missiles.

The main suppliers for the planned sale to South Korea are Boeing and Lockheed Martin.

South Korea had already purchased 36 AH-64E Apaches in 2013 and completed the order in early 2017.

The planned sale, which still requires final approval from Congress, continues a record year for American foreign arms sales (FMS). The total has increased every year since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, which officials across the U.S. government have described as a spur for other countries to increase their defense spending.

Last week, the State Department approved the sale of F-15 fighter jets to Israel in a deal valued at nearly $19 billion. Monday’s sale of the helicopters would bring the State Department’s total revenue this fiscal year to over $100 billion – about double what it received two years ago.

To keep up with demand, the various parts of the American government that oversee such sales have sought to reform and speed up the process. Officials in Congress, the State Department and the Pentagon view this effort as a long-term project and are trying to implement recommendations released last year.

In addition to the sale of the helicopters themselves, the State Department also approved the Netherlands’ purchase of training and equipment for the CH-47 Chinook and AH-64 Apache worth $305 million.

This week, the U.S. and South Korean militaries began a series of military exercises known as Ulchi Freedom Shield. The drills are designed to help both countries prepare for a possible attack by North Korea, which continues to expand its nuclear weapons program and threaten its southern neighbor.