Boeing Q1 & Diplomacy

Boeing cut its quarterly loss as jet deliveries rose, but its next big sales win may depend as much on Washington as on factory output. (boeing.com, usnews.com) The company reported first-quarter revenue of $22.2 billion on April 22, up 14% from a year earlier, with a net loss of $7 million, improved from a $31 million loss in the first quarter of 2025. Boeing said the quarter included 143 commercial airplane deliveries and free cash flow of negative $1.5 billion. (boeing.com) Boeing’s backlog reached a record $695 billion, including more than 6,100 commercial airplanes. First-quarter deliveries included 114 of its 737 jets, plus 15 787s, 8 777s and 6 767s. (boeing.com, boeing.com) Chief executive Kelly Ortberg said Boeing is producing 737 Max jets at 42 a month and expects to raise that to 47 a month this summer. He told CNBC, “All systems are go,” after the company spent more than a year under tighter Federal Aviation Administration oversight. (cnbc.com, usatoday.com) That production target sits at the center of Boeing’s recovery because the 737 is its biggest commercial program and the main source of cash from airline handovers. Ortberg said on the earnings call that Boeing still expects free cash flow to turn positive in the second half of 2026. (cnbc.com, boeing.com) The China piece is less about engineering than diplomacy. Ortberg told Reuters the company has reached what he called “a good solution” with Chinese airlines on access to spare parts, but said the Trump administration is still key to closing a large order. (usnews.com) That puts geopolitics back in the middle of the jet business. Boeing can build planes and line up delivery slots, but Chinese airline purchases can still hinge on trade relations and government-to-government ties. (usnews.com) Boeing has spent the past two years trying to stabilize production after the January 2024 Alaska Airlines door-plug blowout brought new scrutiny from regulators and customers. The Federal Aviation Administration capped 737 output at 38 a month in 2024 before allowing Boeing to move up to 42 in October 2025. (cnbc.com, usatoday.com) Ortberg, who took over in August 2024, has tied Boeing’s comeback to steadier factories, fewer defects and more predictable deliveries. The first quarter numbers show progress on those measures, but the China order he is chasing would test whether Boeing’s rebound now runs through both Renton and the White House. (cnbc.com, usnews.com)