Boeing (NYSE:BA) said Tuesday that it delivered 24 commercial planes in May, about half of the 50 jets it delivered during the same month last year, as it continues to operate a slower assembly line to complete outstanding work.
The company also said it is producing fewer MAX single-aisle jets to improve manufacturing quality, following a mid-air door plug blowout on a 737 MAX 9 jet on January 5, which led to increased regulatory scrutiny.
In May, Boeing delivered 19 MAX jets, three more than in April, but down 45% from the 35 jets delivered in the same month in 2023.
Analysts at Barclays estimate that Boeing has delivered 43 MAX jets so far in Q2, “including 10 deliveries out of storage.” In June alone, Boeing delivered 8 MAX aircraft, the investment bank believes.
“Analysts estimate that ~100 (down from ~450), or ~40% of the MAX aircraft that are still in inventory (~255), are aircraft that have been in storage since the grounding,” they added.
“Analysts estimate that many of these aircraft are for Chinese airlines and have now been parked for four years on average. Of the remaining aircraft that are in inventory, analysts estimate that ~55% are for North American airlines and ~30% are for Chinese airlines, with ~55% having been parked for more than a year.”