Boeing jet deliveries in 2024 drop to lowest since pandemic

Deliveries of new Boeing jets bounced back in December after a crippling labor strike that slowed production last fall, but the company's annual deliveries dropped in 2024 to the lowest level since the COVID-19 pandemic. The company said on Tuesday that it delivered 348 commercial jets last year, down from 528 the previous year. New orders for jets in 2024 dropped to less than half as many as Boeing recorded one year earlier. The company also recorded 569 gross orders and 377 net orders after cancellations and conversions. Production quality issues, stricter regulatory scrutiny, supply chain delays and a seven-week strike slowed the U.S. planemaker's assembly lines. The company has taken a cautious approach to resuming production in the wake of the strike, which ended Nov. 5. Its 737 lines restarted in early December, as Reuters first reported. The company delivered 30 jets in December, including 17 737 MAX and 9 787s. The monthly total was up from the 13 in November and 14 in October. For the year, Boeing delivered 260 737 MAX, 51 787s, 18 767s and 14 777s. Planemakers get most of their revenue when they deliver an airplane. New Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg told investors in October that he expects the company to continue to burn cash this year.<br/>