The just-settled machinists' strike and other manufacturing issues have set back delivery dates or other developmental milestones for a series of Boeing aircraft, including the latest 747 jumbo jet, the 777-F, the 787 and the 737.
In one way, the Boeing delays could not have come at a better time for airlines. Most of them announced in October that they would be pushing back plans for new aircraft, starting in Q4 and over the next couple of years, because of continuing concerns over the bottom line.
Most airlines suffered Q3 losses thanks to fuel-price volatility, and the carriers said they expected the global recession to cut down on demand. The airlines have trimmed capacity and put off introducing new aircraft into their fleets.
Southwest CEO Gary Kelly told analysts last month, "We haven't decided how many airplanes we'll actually add to the fleet next year, and it could be zero."
Continental CEO Lawrence Kellner told analysts the airline was being cautious about demand and realistic about how much money or credit could be available.
Boeing said it would be putting off the delivery of its 747-8 Intercontinental by a year, to 2011. Lufthansa has ordered 20 of the planes. The aircraft is Boeing's largest plane to date, with room for 467 passengers in a standard three-class layout, competing with the Airbus A380.
The 777F delivery date for Air France has slipped by about two months, into early 2009. And the much-awaited 787 was to have its first test flight by the end of this year. That's been pushed back, with no definite date scheduled.
While the 58-day machinists' strike certainly pushed back the schedule, the 787 test might have been delayed anyway, as Boeing also recently acknowledged that 3% of the 787's fasteners were incorrectly installed.
American recently announced an order for up to 100 of the aircraft, touting the 787's fuel efficiency and passenger comforts.
Boeing is trying to ascertain a new delivery schedule for its 737s; it had been building about 30 per month before the strike.
The manufacturer recently acknowledged a problem with 737 fasteners it had delivered since August 2007 that could cause corrosion problems.
Continental worked out an agreement to reschedule deliveries for 16 Boeing 737s originally scheduled to be delivered in 2009 and 2010. AirTran was set to take delivery of 22 Boeing 737-700s between 2009 and 2011; the airline has deferred those deliveries until 2013 to 2015.