Boeing’s Q2 Backlog Hit a Record, but the Planemaker Still Lost Money

On July 28, 2026, Boeing reported second-quarter results that showed a company still climbing out of a long crisis. Revenue rose 8 percent to $24.6 billion, jet deliveries climbed 14 percent, and the total backlog reached a record $715 billion. Yet the company still posted a net loss of $428 million for the quarter.

That gap between a record order book and a quarterly loss is the whole story of Boeing right now. According to Boeing, its Commercial Airplanes unit delivered 171 jets in the quarter and booked 246 net orders, lifting that unit’s backlog alone to $597 billion.

The 737 program, Boeing’s cash engine, moved up to a production rate of 47 jets per month during the quarter. Boeing also said it activated low-rate initial production on a second 737 assembly line, the North Line, in July.

The company generated $1.4 billion in operating cash flow and $0.6 billion in free cash flow, a non-GAAP measure. For a manufacturer that burned through cash for years after the 737 MAX groundings and the pandemic, a positive free-cash-flow quarter is a meaningful marker.

Why a record backlog still comes with a loss

An order is not revenue. Boeing books most of the money from a jet only when it is handed over, so a swelling backlog signals future income, not current profit. In the meantime the company is still absorbing the cost of building aircraft it cannot yet deliver, plus charges on delayed programs.

Chief executive Kelly Ortberg struck a steadying tone. “Our operations are more stable and key certification programs remain on plan,” he said in the results statement.

On the earnings call, Ortberg said the 737 MAX 7 and MAX 10 should begin deliveries in 2027, and that Commercial Airplanes margins are not expected to recover fully until around 2030, according to reporting by Leeham News. That timeline matches the certification progress Boeing described earlier this month.

The programs behind the numbers

On the widebody side, Boeing said the 777X received FAA approval to begin certification flight testing under a Type Inspection Authorization during the quarter. First delivery of the long-delayed jet is still targeted for 2027.

The picture was weaker at Boeing Defense, Space and Security. Revenue there rose 13 percent to $7.5 billion, but the segment ran a slightly negative operating margin, dragged down by a $280 million charge on the VC-25B presidential aircraft program.

The commercial numbers land against a familiar backdrop: Boeing again trailed Airbus on deliveries in the first half of the year. Closing that gap depends on the same thing as Boeing’s profitability, which is turning a record order book into aircraft that actually leave the factory.

Boeing’s recovery is now less about surprises and more about execution: raising 737 output, clearing the certification backlog, and converting orders into deliveries. The quarter suggests that grind is underway, even if full profitability is still a few years off.