Boeing Deliveries and Orders Fall in First Half

Boeing’s first half aircraft deliveries dropped 37 percent as the grounding of the 737 MAX continues to impact the company.

Total deliveries of commercial aircraft for the first six months were down from 378 in 2018 to 239 this year, with 737 deliveries slumping to 113 from 269.

For the second quarter 2019, just 24 737s were handed over to customers, none of them from the MAX family.

Other aircraft returned similar numbers to last year, but the 767 jumped from the previous year’s nine to 22 as Boeing ramped up production of the 767 tanker for the US Air Force.

The 737 MAX grounding continues after an additional problem was identified by the FAA during a simulator test of updated flight control software. US operators of the MAX series have removed them from their flight schedules until September at the earliest.

Boeing has already reduced 737 production to 42 per month but if the grounding and its inability to deliver continues, production may be trimmed further.

Year to date orders for Boeing aircraft were in negative territory for the first six months, with a total of minus 119 net orders to the end of June.

The 737 was the cause of the swing, with 180 cancellations or changes reflected in the numbers. All other aircraft models bar one reported positive order numbers, with the slow selling 747-8 failing to attract an offer during the period.