The first drop in turnover in almost two years (-8 percent), a third fewer aircraft delivered (83) than last year and the cash flow shrinking by just under 4 billion dollars to absorb the damage from a loose door. It should be clear: Boeing has had a bad quarter, as it became clear on Wednesday when the results were presented. But there was cautious optimism on Wall Street around the aircraft manufacturer, which has been stumbling from crisis to crisis for years. Analysts had predicted bigger losses.
That fear was understandable. Since the beginning of this year, Boeing has been under strict supervision by the American regulator, after a door panel of an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 Max 9 came loose in full flight (at an altitude of 5 kilometers). After the two fatal crashes involving a Boeing 737 Max aircraft in 2018 and 2019, the shadow of which still hangs over the company, a new disaster was barely avoided.
The investigation into the incident, which is being conducted not only by regulators but also by American parliamentarians, has put the spotlight on a poor safety culture at the company in recent months. Whistleblowers testified how warnings were ignored. Within the company, retaliation was taken in 2022 against engineers who raised concerns, the union said after its own investigation.
In order to pay more attention to quality and safety, Boeing has had to reduce aircraft production. “We are turning over every stone,” CEO Dave Calhoun wrote in a letter to employees. This means that the company is experiencing “difficult moments”, according to Calhoun, but “safety and quality must and will come before everything else”, the CEO said in an attempt to regain the trust of customers, their passengers and investors, after the share has already fallen by more than a third this year.
Due to the slowdown in production (to less than 38 aircraft per month), deliveries have to be postponed and the company has already had to pay $443 million in compensation to airlines that had to ground their 737 Max 9 aircraft. These measures alone cost United Airlines $200 million, the company said earlier. But Boeing was able to partly compensate for the damage the company suffered in commercial aircraft with the better results of its defense department.
Calhoun announced at the end of March that he will leave the company by the end of this year, and other top managers have already resigned. It is not yet known who will succeed him, but many see Stephanie Pope – who took over the commercial aircraft department at the beginning of this year – as a major contender. Pope has already managed to charm Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary. The Irishman, usually more sparing with compliments than insults, sees “how all signals are becoming optimistic,” he said in London on Wednesday, after several conversations with Pope. “For the first time, deliveries are expected earlier instead of being postponed again and again,” it said.
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