Kelly Ortberg has had a real mess to clean up since he took charge of Boeing as CEO. Still, Q1 of 2026 shows signs of improvement, but still not what is needed to have Boeing return to profitability. The American aircraft manufacturer is still bleeding cash, just not as fast as in 2025.
In this post:
- Revenues grow, but profits are still MIA
- Commercial aircraft still bleeding money heavily
- Boeing’s large aircraft certification issues
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Revenues grow, but profits are still MIA
| Key Performance Indicator | Q1 2026 | Q1 2025 | Variation (Change) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total Revenue | $22,200 | $19,474 | +$2,726 (+14%) |
| Operating Cash Flow | -$179 | -$1,616 | +$1,437 (89% improvement) |
| CapEx (PP&E Spending) | -$1,275 | -$674 | ($601) (89% increase in cost) |
| Free Cash Flow | -$1,454 | -$2,290 | +$836 (37% improvement) |
| Commercial Deliveries | 143 Units | 130 Units | +13 Units (+10%) |
| Commercial Operating Margin | -6.10% | -9.20% | +3.1 percentage points |
| Global Services Margin | 18.20% | 17.90% | +0.3 percentage points |
| Total Debt (Billions) | $47.20 | $54.10 | -$6.9 (13% reduction) |
Let’s start off talking about the good news that comes out of Boeing’s Q1 of 2026 report.
First of all, revenues are growing by a significant margin over Q1 of 2025. Boeing saw its revenues grow by 14%, reaching $22 billion in the first quarter of 2026.
Additionally, the company is not bleeding money as it was last year; it has slowed down the net loss, and free cash flow is also up, compared to last year, by 37% or $836 million.
The other piece of good news is that the Boeing Defense and Global Services divisions are performing well and are able to cover up a chunk of Boeing’s commercial aircraft division losses.
Commercial aircraft still bleeding money heavily
| Segment | Q1 2026 Revenue | Q1 2025 Revenue | Revenue Variation | Q1 2026 Op. Margin | Q1 2025 Op. Margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Commercial Airplanes (BCA) | $9,200 | $8,140 | +13% | -6.10% | -9.20% |
| Defense, Space & Security (BDS) | $7,600 | $6,280 | +21% | 3.10% | 2.50% |
| Global Services (BGS) | $5,400 | $5,095 | +6% | 18.20% | 17.90% |
The bad news that comes out of the report is that the commercial aircraft division is still bleeding money heavily. It is actually the biggest loser within the Boeing ecosystem.
The speed at which it is losing money, however, is slowing down thankfully compared to Q1 of 2025. Revenues have grown thanks to an increase of aircraft output. Boeing delivered 143 aircraft, over 130 in Q1 of 2025. That has translated into a negative 6.10% operating margin, which has come down from 9.2% in Q1 of 2025.
Thankfully for Boeing, defense has performed well, with an increase in revenue of 21% and an operating margin that has increased by 0.6 percentage points to 3.1%. Also, global services has also increased its revenue by 6%, reaching 5.4 billion with an operating margin of 18.2%.
Boeing’s large aircraft certification issues
Boeing’s biggest problems, however, are not in the current production lines but outside of the production lines. Boeing is still trying to get certification over and done with for its Boeing 777X and 737 MAX 10 and MAX 7 programs. Particularly, the Boeing 777X is the key to Boeing’s potential success.
The wide-body aircraft has racked up a significant amount of orders, and it will only start bringing cash in when it actually starts being delivered to clients. So far, it has only brought in order deposits, and those do not move the needle the amount that Boeing needs it to move.
That also means that 2026 is not looking like a year that is going to deliver profitability to Boeing, as the Boeing 777X is expected only to have its first deliveries in 2027.