Key Points
- Boeing swung to a profit in the fourth quarter, with sales surging 57%.
- Commercial aircraft deliveries hit their highest level since 2018.
- The company’s order backlog reached a record $682 billion.
- The FAA has allowed Boeing to increase production of its 737 MAX to 42 jets a month.
Boeing is finally getting its business back on track. The aerospace giant swung to a profit in the fourth quarter, with its commercial aircraft deliveries hitting their highest level since 2018. The company’s overall order backlog also reached a record $682 billion, a sign that airlines are still hungry for new planes.
The fourth-quarter profit of $8.22 billion was largely due to the sale of its digital aviation business, which brought in about $9.6 billion. But the real story is the ramp-up in production. After years of struggling with quality-control issues and a massive strike, Boeing is finally starting to get its 737 MAX assembly line moving again.
The Federal Aviation Administration gave the company a vote of confidence in September, allowing it to boost production of the 737 MAX to 42 jets a month. This is a crucial step for Boeing as it tries to catch up with its European rival, Airbus, which has taken advantage of Boeing’s stumbles to grab a larger share of the market.
“We are making good progress and there’s a lot to be optimistic about as we start the year,” CEO Kelly Ortberg said in a letter to employees.
However, the company is not out of the woods yet. It’s still facing pressure to generate more cash, and it took another charge of $565 million on its troubled KC-46 refueling tanker program.
In a move to get a better handle on its manufacturing, Boeing recently reacquired a key supplier, Spirit AeroSystems. This will give the company more direct control over its 737 MAX production and help it address the persistent quality-control problems that have plagued it for years.
