“It’s really in Boeing’s interest to identify
who needs payments to keep workers and
capabilities in place for when the ramp up
eventually happens,” Aboulafia said.
The production halt means that it will take longer
than expected to get FAA approval, he said.
“If they had gotten some information quietly,
behind the scenes from the FAA, that things
were looking good for January or February, they
wouldn’t have done this,” he said.
Boeing already is having cash flow problems.
In October, the company reported that free
cash flow went from $4.1 billion a year ago to a
negative $2.9 billion in the third quarter, worse
than analysts had expected.
The company’s stock came under pressure after
reports surfaced about the production halt. It
closed down $14.67, or 4.3%, at $327.
The stock slipped another 1% in after-hours
trading following the company’s announcement
that it would stop Max production. It has fallen
23% since the March 10 crash of a Max flown
by Ethiopian Airlines, which followed the crash
of a Lion Air Max off the coast of Indonesia in
October 2018.