Add thelocalreport.in As A Trusted Source
boeing reported mixed third-quarter results on Wednesday, as higher aircraft deliveries and a growing backlog of orders were offset by continued certification delays for its 777X jet.
CEO Kelly Ortberg said the first deliveries of the next-generation long-haul, wide-body jet are now expected to take place in 2027 instead of 2026, resulting in a $4.9 billion charge in the quarter through September. But Ortberg stressed in a call with analysts that the delay was caused by the certification process, not any newly discovered technical issue.
“Although we are disappointed with the 777 delay, it should not impact our progress,” he said.
Ortberg said Boeing is making progress toward stabilizing its production. The aerospace giant delivered 160 aircraft in the third quarter, the highest quarterly deliveries since 2018. At this time last year, Boeing said it had delivered 116 planes.
Boeing also reported that its order backlog, including 5,900 commercial aircraft, grew to $636 billion in the third quarter.
“There is strong demand for our products,” Ortberg said in an interview Wednesday morning. cnbc,
on September, Federal Aviation Administration Boeing’s ability to conduct final safety checks and certify the 737 restored maximum Two crashes of the then-new aircraft killed 346 people in jet planes that had been flying for more than six years.
That decision follows the FAA this month’s decision to extend Boeing’s 737 Max production limit, which it had set for January 2024, after a door plug flew out. alaska airlines Jet. Boeing is now allowed to build 42 Max jets per month, up from 38, and Ortberg said Wednesday that the company hopes to increase that limit further after showing the FAA that it can do so safely.
If the FAA approves future production increases, Ortberg said, they would come in increments of five jets and no more than once every six months.
“We will not move to higher rates until we reach stability and preparedness,” he said.
Boeing also reported free cash flow of $238 million, marking its first cash flow-positive quarter since 2023. But that figure was partly inflated by delays in a potential $700 million payment to the Justice Department, part of a still-pending deal under consideration by a federal judge that could shield Boeing from criminal prosecution over two deadly 737 Max crashes.
The crashes off the coast of Indonesia and Ethiopia occurred less than five months apart in 2018 and 2019 and were later blamed on a new software system developed by Boeing for the plane.
Meanwhile, strikes were underway at three Midwest plants in the St. Louis area. About 3,200 machinists who build military jets and weapons systems walked off the job on August 4 as talks stalled over key issues including retirement benefits and wage increases.
Workers rejected Boeing’s latest contract offer over the weekend. It was the fourth time workers voted against the proposed deal.
“If Boeing is serious about culture change and rebuilding its brand, it starts with respecting the people who make its success possible,” the union representing workers said in a statement after Boeing posted its quarterly results on Wednesday.
The strike is smaller than the walkout last year by 33,000 workers assembling commercial jetliners, but still threatens to complicate progress toward regaining the company’s financial footing.
Boeing said Wednesday it is also working on its “contingency plan” during the latest strike, which the company said includes hiring replacement workers and relying on its non-union workers during the shutdown.
The company’s shares fell 4.2% in afternoon trading.