US aviation giant Boeing posted quarterly losses of $5.4 billion (roughly €4.6 billion) on Wednesday.

This was prompted in large part by a $5 billion penalty for pushing back the first delivery of its long-delayed 777X model until 2027. The loss includes compensation payable to customers facing delayed deliveries, Boeing said.

Delayed widebody a financial and an opportunity cost

Last month, CEO Kelly Ortberg had said the company was behind schedule in certifying the jet and that a "mountain of work" still needed to be done. But he had not announced further delays beyond the 2026 delivery date that was planned at the time.

The 777X is crucial to Boeing's long-term widebody strategy, aiming to take up the market share previously held by its larger 747s and 777s for busier, longer-distance and often international routes.

Repeated certification and production delays have pushed back deliveries since the plane's maiden flight in 2020, with Boeing racking up charges of $15 billion in the process, further straining its finances.

"While we are disappointed in the 777X schedule delay, the airplane continues to perform well in flight testing, and we remain focused on the work ahead to complete our development programs and stabilize our operations in order to fully recover our company's performance and restore trust with all of our stakeholders," Ortberg said.

The problems have opened the door to Boeing's European rival Airbus as it tries to boost sales for its new long-distance, high-capacity workhorse, the A350.

The timing is also far from ideal, with demand for international air travel rebounding in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and with airlines again keen to acquire new aircraft.

Shares dip slightly, but revenues offer investors some solace

The planemaker's shares were down roughly 1% in premarket trading. Wall Street analysts had already predicted bad news about the 777X before Wednesday's announcement. 

The company's revenues of $23.3 billion for the quarter did at least display a 30% jump on the previous year's figures and exceeded analyst expectations.

The airline also reported free cash flow of $238 million, the first time that figure has been positive since 2023.

Boeing is looking to rebound from its worst single-year performance on record in 2024, a net loss of $11.8 billion.

After years struggling with quality issues and production delays on its 737 MAX, punctuated by some major air crashes, near misses, and withdrawn certification, Boeing cautiously looked to increase monthly production in 2025. 

This followed the resolution of a costly machinists' strike running from September to November of 2024, involving more than 30,000 staff.

The 55 jets Boeing delivered in September was its strongest performance for that calendar month since 2018, and a significant jump on the 33 delivered the previous year.

Edited by: Sean Sinico