Bazinga! Boeing's Max Production Reaches Warp Speed (Relatively Speaking)

A Modicum of Progress?

Greetings sentient beings! Sheldon Cooper here ready to dissect the recent news regarding Boeing's airplane deliveries. Apparently they managed to cobble together a grand total of 60 airplanes last month. Sixty! One might even call it… 'significant'. Of course as my Meemaw would say 'Bless their hearts,' because 60 is only 'significant' when you're grading on a curve that's been flattened by a rogue steamroller named 'Manufacturing Mishaps'.

The 737 Max: Still Flying (Mostly)

Forty two of these metal birds were the infamous 737 Maxes. Yes *those* 737 Maxes. The ones that make me clutch my Purell and calculate the probability of catastrophic failure before boarding. One can only hope that Southwest Alaska and United are prepared to offer complimentary therapy to their passengers. It's not rocket science but it *is* airplane science and I have a higher IQ than most aerospace engineers (allegedly).

CEO Ortberg's Optimistic Pronouncements (With a Grain of Salt)

CEO Kelly Ortberg a name that sounds suspiciously like a Star Trek character claims they've made 'progress' in improving production rates and quality. Progress you say? As I learned from my near Nobel Prize winning string theory research it is a relative term. Is it progress towards a functional safe mode of transportation? Or progress toward another headline grabbing incident? Only time (and rigorous statistical analysis) will tell. Bazinga!

Second Quarter Success? Questionable at Best

Boeing delivered 150 airplanes in the second quarter. A vast improvement since the twin catastrophes of the 737 MAX planes between October 2018 and March 2019. It is to note that two crashes of Max planes five months apart grounded the jets and sparked a multiyear crisis at the top U.S. exporter. But can we truly call it a 'success' when the bar is set so ridiculously low? It's like claiming victory in a limbo contest when the pole is lying on the floor. Penny would understand that analogy; Leonard you're on your own.

The FAA's Speed Bump (and Boeing's Impatience)

Boeing in its infinite wisdom wants to crank out 42 of these potential airborne death traps per month. However the FAA bless their bureaucratic hearts has imposed a limit. A limit set *after* a door plug decided to audition for Cirque du Soleil mid flight. Apparently even governmental agencies understand the concept of 'too much too soon.' Sheldon Cooper advocates for a careful calculation of risks and benefits because a jet without a door sounds like a bad approximation of string theory...

Orders Cancellations and the Existential Void

Boeing booked 116 gross orders but only 70 net orders. Cancellations accounting adjustments... it's enough to make a physicist reach for a bottle of Blanton's (not that I would ever condone such behavior of course). Their backlog is a staggering 5,953. But let's face it are those orders truly solid or are they merely theoretical constructs in the ever expanding universe of corporate finance? The truth as Spock would say is illogical. Now if you'll excuse me I have to go recalibrate my flux capacitor.