Boeing Jet Cancellations Pass 1,000 Mark This Year

By Doug Cameron

Boeing Co. said more than 1,000 jetliner orders have been canceled this year because of the pandemic-driven travel slump and delays in returning the 737 MAX to service.

The aerospace giant's backlog of aircraft orders has shrunk by a fifth since the start of the year. Some customers have warned of more cancellations, even as regulators near a decision on allowing the return of the plane to flight after being grounded in March last year.

Boeing passed the 1,000-cancellation mark as it announced a second successive month without new orders from airlines or leasing companies, while plane deliveries to carriers remain depressed because of weak demand.

The company continues to produce more planes than it's delivering, pressuring a balance sheet that's already carrying more than $60 billion in debt. Undelivered planes continue to pile up, even though Boeing has cut production and shed more than 20,000 jobs this year. The company handed over just five passenger jets in October--four 787 Dreamliners and a 777--alongside eight cargo and military aircraft.

Boeing ended October with orders for 4,275 jets, down from 5,430 at the end of last year. Most of the losses in orders have been for the MAX, with the one-year anniversary of the plane's grounding in March 2019 triggering clauses allowing customers to start canceling deals without penalty.

The company said orders for another 13 MAX jets were canceled in October, while deals for another 25 are no longer classified as certain because of questions over the ability of customers to pay for the jets.

Write to Doug Cameron at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 10, 2020 11:14 ET (16:14 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.