Strike cuts Boeing jet deliveries to 4-year low

USA: Boeing Co. delivered just 14 jetliners in October—the lowest monthly total since November 2020—as operations were disrupted by a strike from its largest union.

At the height of the labor dispute, Boeing delivered only nine 737 Max jets, four 787 Dreamliners, and one 767 freighter. Meanwhile, the company recorded 63 gross aircraft orders for the month, with no cancellations.

After 33,000 hourly workers walked off the job on Sept. 13, Boeing was able to continue making some aircraft deliveries by using non-unionized employees in the Pacific Northwest and at its 787 Dreamliner factory in South Carolina. The planemaker delivered 24 of its jets from the start of the strike through Oct. 31, including 17 Max and six Dreamliner jets.

The 53-day work stoppage is the latest in a series of calamities and crises that have battered Boeing, enabling rival Airbus SE to expand its market lead even while battling supplier snarls of its own. The European planemaker delivered 62 airplanes in October, including 48 of its A320neo family of narrowbody jets.

With the strike over, Boeing is focused on retraining and re-certifying workers returning to its factories and nursing its supply chain back to health, important steps if it is to finally achieve steadily rising production rates after years of turmoil.

Boeing has delivered 305 jets this year through the end of October versus 559 aircraft for Airbus. The company has booked 378 gross orders so far this year, netting 141 new sales after cancellations and a US accounting provision for at-risk deals.

The US manufacturer remains on watch for a potential downgrade to junk status by S&P Global Ratings even after raising $24.3 billion in capital to bolster its liquidity. The ratings agency said it is concerned about a scenario where a longer-than-expected recovery in aircraft production and deliveries results in larger-than-expected cash outflows.

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