Boeing delivered 44 planes in November, a dip from the past five months but higher than its usual November rate, the company said Tuesday.

Over the past five years – which have been marked by the fallout from two fatal 737 MAX crashes, the COVID-19 pandemic and a near-catastrophic panel blowout on an Alaska Airlines 737 MAX – Boeing has delivered an average of 39 planes each November.

In November 2024, Boeing delivered just 13 planes following a machinists' strike at its Puget Sound-area factories.

This year, the company has been on a march to increase production rates in its commercial factories, raising its monthly delivery totals from 45 in January to 53 in October. In June, in its highest monthly total so far this year, Boeing delivered 60 planes.

Monthly delivery rates are not equivalent to the number of planes Boeing is producing and rolling out of its factory each month; delivery totals include some aircraft that have been sitting in storage mostly complete. But the delivery rate can indicate how quickly Boeing is moving planes through its factory lines.

In October, the Federal Aviation Administration lifted a production cap on Boeing’s 737 MAX, allowing the manufacturer to raise monthly production from 38 to 42 and signaling a vote of confidence in Boeing’s ability to safely build at a faster clip.

Of the 44 planes Boeing delivered in November, 32 were 737 MAXs produced in Renton and six were 787 Dreamliners made in Boeing’s South Carolina factory.

Boeing also delivered two 777 freighters and four 767s, one to UPS, one to FedEx and two to its defense division.

With 537 planes delivered from Jan. 1 through the end of November, Boeing marked its highest year-to-date delivery count since 2018.

That year, which saw the first of two fatal 737 MAX crashes that would later ground the planemaker’s most popular jet, Boeing delivered 704 airplanes through the end of November.

Airbus, Boeing’s main commercial rival, still outpaced Boeing in November with 72 deliveries. But after two issues with its popular A320 narrowbody family, the main competitor to Boeing’s 737 MAX, the company lowered its delivery expectations for the year.

Amid the busy Thanksgiving travel season, Airbus identified a software issue affecting its A320 family and ordered operators to briefly ground their fleet until they had performed a software update.

Days later, Airbus said it was inspecting fuselage panels on the same family of planes after finding a quality issue.

The company lowered its expected deliveries for the year from 820 to 790. It delivered 657 planes in the first 11 months of the year.

Meanwhile, Airbus booked 75 gross orders in November.

Boeing booked 164 gross orders last month, including 74 for the 777X, 43 for the 737 MAX, 30 for the 787 Dreamliner and two for the 777 freighter.

Of those, Emirates placed a high-profile order for 65 777X planes at the Dubai Air Show, increasing its stake in the yet-to-be certified plane. Gulf Air placed an order for 15 787s, Uzbekistan Airways ordered eight Dreamliners and Etihad Airways ordered six.

Boeing also won a $2.47 billion contract with the U.S. Air Force to convert 15 767s to KC-46 Pegasus tankers.

Last month, Boeing had 38 order cancellations, docking its order books for the MAX, the 787 and the 777X.

Adjusting for cancellations as well as for strict accounting principles that move orders from Boeing’s backlog to a reserve and back again, Boeing booked 152 net orders in November.

In the first 11 months of the year, Boeing booked 1,000 gross orders. Adjusting for cancellations and accounting principles, Boeing booked 999 net orders.

Boeing’s commercial backlog increased from 5,911 at the end of October to 6,019 a month later.

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