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Boeing ( BA ) delays 777X delivery to 2027

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Boeing ( BA ) has taken a total of $15 billion in charges on 777X

program

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Boeing's ( BA ) quarterly revenue rises 30%, surpassing Wall

Street

expectations

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Shares fall 1% in premarket trading

(Adds details and background on 777X program, analyst comment)

By Dan Catchpole and Shivansh Tiwary

Oct 29 (Reuters) - Boeing ( BA ) pushed the first

delivery of its long-delayed 777X jet program out to 2027 and

took a nearly $5 billion charge due to the delays, in another

series of setbacks for the aerospace giant.

The 777X was central to Boeing's ( BA ) long-term widebody

strategy, previously dominated by its iconic 747 and 777 jets.

But repeated certification and production delays have pushed

back deliveries by years, piling up charges of over $15 billion

and straining its finances, while giving an opening to rival

Airbus's competing A350 as international travel continues to

surge.

Last month, CEO Kelly Ortberg said the company was behind

schedule in certifying the jet, saying a "mountain of work"

needed to be done but did not mention further delay to first

delivery, which was slated for 2026, at the time.

He said, however, no new technical problems had been identified.

Including charges disclosed on Wednesday, Boeing ( BA ) has taken about

$15 billion in charges related to the 777X program. The latest

charge includes penalties owed to customers for late

deliveries.

Shares of the planemaker were down 1% in premarket trading.

Wall Street analysts had anticipated a sizeable charge to the

777X program.

Richard Aboulafia, managing director of AeroDynamic

Advisory, a U.S. boutique aerospace management consulting firm,

said the charge was more than the $2 billion to $4 billion he

expected. While he does not expect the charge to be financially

crippling to debt-laden Boeing ( BA ), "it does raise questions about

any more surprises to come."

However, the latest delay comes at a time when demand is

growing for international travel driving demand for the widebody

aircraft, which was not the case when the 777X was first held

up.

"Now it might be getting to a challenge," Aboulafia said.

"People start to lose patience and demand compensation."

The charge includes longer production costs and penalties

owed to customers, according to Boeing ( BA ).

YEARS OF QUALITY ISSUES, DELAYS

After years of grappling with quality issues and production

delays on its flagship 737 MAX, Boeing ( BA ) cautiously ramped up

monthly output in 2025.

Earlier this month, the company received the long-awaited

approval from the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration to

increase 737 MAX production to 42 jets per month, easing a cap

of 38 that had been in place since January 2024.

That cap was imposed following a mid-air panel blowout in

January 2024 on a nearly new aircraft.

Boeing ( BA ) delivered 55 jets in September, marking its strongest

performance for that month since 2018. This was a significant

jump from the 33 deliveries recorded a year earlier, when a

strike involving 33,000 factory workers in the Pacific Northwest

disrupted production.

Deliveries are closely watched by Wall Street, as

planemakers typically receive the bulk of their payments upon

handing over the jets to customers, making deliveries a key

indicator of revenue and cash flow.

Boeing ( BA ) reported a free cash flow of $238 million, turning

positive for the first time since 2023.

The planemaker posted an adjusted loss per share of $7.47

for the quarter through September, compared with analysts'

average expectations of a $4.59 loss, according to data compiled

by LSEG.

Its revenues for the quarter rose 30% to $23.27 billion,

above Wall Street expectations of $21.97 billion.