Boeing has seen major production cuts following strikes and safety issues.

Troubled aerospace giant Boeing says it delivered just 348 planes to customers last year, its lowest output since the pandemic.

Boeing ended the year with a backlog of 5,595 unfilled orders.

Scrutiny of the planemaker’s practices, as well as industrial operations, has hampered production at one of America’s largest manufacturers.

In contrast, its European rival Airbus has delivered 766 aircraft.

Boeing said “work continues” to improve its culture and “restore and deliver trust for our customers.”

The firm’s production was halted in 2024, primarily due to serious concerns over quality control at both its own facilities and a key supplier.

Later in the year, a labor strike in its Washington state heartland paralyzed two of its most important factories.

These factors combined helped bring its production down sharply from the 528 aircraft delivered in 2023.

Boeing’s year got off to a bad start. In January 2024, a panel mounted on an unused emergency exit door fell off a brand new 737 MAX shortly after takeoff.

The incident left a large hole in the side of the plane. Investigators later concluded that the panel had not been installed properly.

The case put the quality control standards of Boeing and its primary supplier, Spirit Aero Systems, under a harsh spotlight.

An audit by the US regulator, the Federal Aviation Administration, found “multiple incidents” where both companies failed to meet required standards.

Boeing had earlier planned to ramp up production of its best-selling plane, the 737 Max. Instead, its production was restricted by the FAA.

It has also faced severe public criticism for its apparent failure to improve safety standards following two previous 737 Max crashes five years ago.

The manufacturer has since faced increased scrutiny from the regulator, and is in the process of implementing a major safety and quality control improvement project.

While dealing with the fallout from the January incident, Boeing was also dealing with supply chain issues.

These have been affecting the entire industry since the Covid pandemic. A shortage of parts, including engines, slowed production of the 787 Dreamliner and 777 Freighter.

Boeing suffered another severe blow in September, when more than 33,000 workers in the US Northwest went on strike.

The dispute, which centered on pay and retirement provisions, was the first major walkout at the company since 2008.

It halted work at Boeing’s major factories in the Seattle area, paralyzing production of the 737, 777 and 767 freighters.

The strike ended in early November, but the standoff continued for several more weeks. The 737 MAX production line did not restart until mid-December.

Boeing’s troubles this year have also affected its future plans.

Delivery of its newest plane, the 777X, has been pushed back again from 2025 to 2026, having already been repeatedly delayed by problems with the plane and its engines.

The design, a major update to the long-haul 777, was originally slated to enter service in 2020.

Boeing’s problems, which have cost the company billions of dollars, have also created headaches for airlines.

Even before last year’s events, it was struggling to build aircraft fast enough and the company now has a large backlog of unfulfilled orders.

The 528 aircraft delivered in 2023 was well below the pre-Covid-era record of 806 set in 2018.

Airbus is in a fairly healthy position, but still fell far short of production targets last year, as it grappled with its supply chain problems. Its order backlog now exceeds 8,600.

With Airbus unable to make up for Boeing’s shortfall, airlines are struggling to get the planes they need.

In November, Ryanair chief executive Michael O’Leary described delays in getting hold of the new aircraft as a “pain in the rear”.

The airline has repeatedly warned that the lack of planes will affect its growth plans, and limit the number of passengers it can fly this summer.