Boeing posts $355M loss amid ongoing safety concerns

Boeing posted a $355 Million (USD) loss on Wednesday (April 24), for the first three months of the year as it continues to deal with a quality issues stemming from a Jan. 5 flight during which a panel blew off one of its planes operated by Alaska Airlines.

The loss was not as severe as analysts had expected, the New York Times reports, and the result is smaller than the $425 million loss Boeing reported in the first quarter of last year.

The company’s operating cash flow and lower revenues are a cause for concern, however.

In a letter to employees that was made public, David Calhoun, president and CEO of Boeing, stressed that the company’s focus remains on actions the manufacturer is taking following that Alaska Airlines flight, which did not result in any causalities.

Boeing on Wednesday warned its investors and employees that it will have to scale down on its production further to deal with quality and safety issues on its production line. The company’s revenue fell $1.4 billion, or 8 per cent, to $16.6 billion, according to its results.

Boeing said it will make fewer 737 MAX jets than it originally planned for this year as it addresses its product issues. Production of its larger 787 Dreamliner will also be limited by supplier issues, the company said.

“We will take the time necessary to strengthen our quality and safety management systems, and this work will position us for a stronger and more stable future,” said Calhoun, who will leave his post by the end of this year.

Safety in the skies

The news comes after a whistleblower, earlier this month, spoke to the New York Times, alleging that Boeing cut corners when manufacturing its 777 and 787 Dreamliner jets, sparking a new investigation by The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

Sam Salehpour, a Boeing engineer, said the risks Boeing has taken to build its Dreamliners could lead to catastrophic consequences as the aircraft age with time.

Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner jets, which first entered service in 2011, could have 50-year lifespans – around 44,000 flights each, the company says.

But Salehpour’s complaint alleges Boeing failed to fill tiny gaps when joining separately manufactured parts of the fuselage, reports CNN.

The complaint isn’t entirely new – Boeing’s Dreamliners, for almost two years now, have faced scrutiny from the FAA. Deliveries of the aircraft were once halted due to quality investigations.

The FAA has twice probed the Dreamliner jet while Boeing maintained that its planes were and are safe to fly.

Salehpour’s latest complaint to the FAA, filed in January (but made public this month) is not specific to Boeing's newer 737 MAX that has already been grounded twice by U.S. authorities.

Boeing’s 737 MAX series is no stranger to controversy. Transport Canada grounded all Boeing 737 MAX aircraft in the country in March 2019 following two overseas crashes that left 346 passengers dead. The order that was lifted in January 2021.

More than five years of safety issues at Boeing has led to more than $31 billion in cumulative losses for the company.

Don't miss a single travel story: subscribe to PAX today!  Click here to follow PAX on Facebook.