Boeing reports Q3 loss of $6.2 billion on strike, defense contract woes

Company's results were dented by $3b in one-time cost hits to its 777X and 767 programs

New York: Boeing reported a whopping $6.2 billion quarterly loss Wednesday as a nearly six-week labor strike weighed on its commercial plane division and costly problems dragged down its defense and space business.

The embattled aviation giant, which has been under scrutiny from regulators following safety problems, reported a one per cent decline in revenues to $17.8 billion.

Shares were little change early Wednesday following results that had been telegraphed to the market on October 11, when newly installed Chief Executive Kelly Ortberg announced the company was cutting 10 per cent of its workforce.

The company's results were dented by $3 billion in one-time cost hits to its 777X and 767 programs, as well as the drag from the ongoing strike by the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM).

About 33,000 IAM workers in the US Pacific Northwest walked off the job on September 13. The union is slated to vote on a new contract that could end the stoppage later Wednesday.

In its defense and space business, Boeing's results were battered by $2 billion in costs for a number of programs, including the KC-46A Pegasus Air Force refueling aircraft that has featured as a problem in prior quarters.

Ortberg, in a message to employees, said a turnaround would require a "fundamental culture change" as well as steps to stabilize finances, improve operations and devise a future vision for the company.

"It will take time to return Boeing to its former legacy, but with the right focus and culture, we can be an iconic company and aerospace leader once again," Ortberg said in a news release.

Ortberg was scheduled to face Wall Street analysts later Wednesday in his first conference call since joining the company in early August.