Boeing’s July deliveries show slow recovery to pre-crisis output

Boeing Co.’s commercial aircraft deliveries are showing signs of stabilizing, with deliveries in July mirroring those in the same month a year earlier.

The planemaker delivered 43 planes in July, one less than the total in June and the same as in July 2023, according to Boeing’s monthly orders and deliveries release. Of the total, Boeing delivered 32 of its workhorse 737 family models, as well as six twin-aisle 787 Dreamliners. 

Still, handovers a year earlier were unusually low amid a series of issues including a supplier strike and logistical disruptions. Rival Airbus SE delivered 77 jets in July, it said last week.

The steady deliveries indicate that Boeing may be turning a corner as it works through one of the most tumultuous periods in its history. In January, a fuselage panel blew out of an almost-new 737 Max 9 airliner during flight, which investigators attributed to missing bolts in the segment. 

In the wake of the accident, the US Federal Aviation Administration capped production of the 737 Max at 38 aircraft a month, saying Boeing would need to prove it’s addressed the quality lapses at its factories before going higher. Production remains well below that limit as the planemaker slows assembly lines to allow better inspections, addresses quality issues from suppliers and retrains workers. 

Ramping up output of the 737 Max is key to bolstering finances in the second half of the year. The company burned through more than $1 billion each month in the first half of the year and Chief Financial Officer Brian West expects the cash burn to continue in the third quarter. 

Boeing also reported 72 net orders in July, several of which were announced at the Farnborough International Airshow.