The FAA will perform a final inspection of the 787 and retain the power to clear each new plane.
Boeing deliveries remained sluggish in the first quarter of 2022, mainly due to the grounding of the 787 Dreamliner by the FAA.Deliveries of jets are crucial for Boeing and other manufacturers because that’s when customers pay the bulk of the plane’s price.
February orders
As of February, Boeing landed orders for another 37 commercial jets, including deals for 32 737 Max and for five first-generation 777 Freighters.
February deliveries
They delivered 20 narrowbody 737 MAXs from its Renton assembly plant in February, including the 50th delivery of a MAX to Ireland’s Ryanair. In addition, Boeing delivered two widebody freighters from its Everett plant: a 747-8F for UPS and a 777F for DHL. This amounts to a total of 22 deliveries in February, its fewest since August.
Boeing delivered just 22 airplanes and won 37 net orders.
There were no deliveries of the 767 in its military tanker or freighter models, and also none for the 787-passenger jet. Boeing still awaits approval from the Federal Aviation Administration for fixes to a series of manufacturing defects on the 787.
The manufacturing defect in 787
The 787 addresses a series of tiny imperfections on the carbon-fiber jet frames that will require labor-intensive fix involving the doors of over 110 aircraft in the system. The deliveries of 787 are halted since June. Boeing has addressed the issue as a series of manufacturing flaws that have required fixes and more in-depth inspections. Meanwhile, Boeing also confirmed that they won’t rush when it comes to 787 deliveries. The risk of customers switching over to their rival counterparts always lingers, however, Boeing hopes that the power of the product will get them through. Stan Deal, president and chief executive officer of Boeing Commercial Airplanes said, “We are in talks with all the affected airlines and we don’t expect to lose their orders.” Meanwhile, he declined to comment when will the deliveries commence.
The FAA stand
The FAA has been adamant about its stand on the 787. The FAA confirmed in a statement that once deliveries of 787s resume, it will perform final inspections and retain the power to clear each new plane until it is confident that Boeing’s quality control and manufacturing “consistently produce 787s that meet FAA design standards. It also said Boeing must have a plan for handling planes that need reworking. This will allow the agency to confirm the effectiveness of measures Boeing has undertaken to improve the 787-manufacturing process
For years, the FAA has relied on Boeing employees to certify the airworthiness of planes by deputizing some company employees to act on behalf of the agency. The practice came under intense criticism after two deadly crashes involving Boeing 737 Max jets and revelations that FAA officials knew little about the key flight control systems implicated in the crashes.
The 787, a larger plane than the 737, has been plagued by production flaws such as unacceptable gaps between fuselage panels. Deliveries were stopped briefly in late 2020, then again in May 2021, and have not resumed.
On a positive note …
The FAA finalized three safety directives for some grounded Boeing 777 planes with Pratt & Whitney 4000 engines that will allow them to return to service.
The Losses
Boeing has more than 100 undelivered 787s. The halt in shipments has deprived Boeing of the cash that airlines pay when they receive new planes. Boeing in January recorded USD 5.5 billion in total costs for the 787 Dreamliner, wiping away any near-term profit for the marquee wide-body jet. The 787 program’s profits have been erased as Boeing pays airlines for the service they’ve lost because of delivery disruptions.
Boeing has meanwhile burned through more than $31 billion during a nearly three-year-long slump marked by the grounding of its 737 Max, the Covid-19 pandemic, and a spate of quality lapses.
The Predictions
The industry has received mixed signals about the demand for planes. Especially long-range ones. Boeing has said publicly that it sees a full recovery in air traffic by the end of 2024, however, it sent a message to a supplier that 787 parts production rates may not reach pre-pandemic levels until around 2026 or 2027.
Overall, Boeing’s projections for commercial market recovery remain unchanged. As per their predictions, passenger traffic will return to 2019 levels between 2023 and 2024.
The Conclusion
The pace of Boeing jet deliveries, already slowed by lack of access to the Chinese market, is being hit by supply chain glitches. Some airplanes cannot be completed for want of items.
Boeing’s orders for customers in Russia are still in its backlog, despite the fact that Airbus said they would no longer supply parts or service aircraft there. Boeing’s deliveries to Russia have been suspended, however.
Boeing has 85 airplanes on order by Russian airlines or by lessors that are slated to go to Russian airlines.
Boeing Chief Financial Officer Brian West said last month on the quarterly earnings call the company is building MAXs at a rate of 27 jets per month. In addition to the newly built jets, it aims each month to clear out batches of the 335 formerly grounded MAXs still parked since the airplane was allowed to return to service.
Yet, despite the expectation that some previously parked jets might be delivered in addition to those being built each month, the rate of deliveries remains much lower than the production rate.
