SEATTLE (Reuters) – Boeing Co is reducing its 787 widebody production to five jets monthly in mid-2021 from six, and delivered zero 787s to customers in November, as longer-haul travel demand remains weakened by the coronavirus pandemic, the U.S. planemaker’s Chief Financial Officer said on Friday.
Boeing’s Greg Smith also told a conference that there is no “normal profile” currently for jet pre-delivery payments or PDPs, which are tied to production rates. Boeing has been forced to cut production due to the 20-month grounding of its cash cow 737 MAX after fatal crashes and the pandemic downturn.
“I think we’ve got a couple years here where PDPs will be a little bumpy,” Smith said.
(Reporting by Eric M. Johnson in Seattle; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Nick Zieminski)
