Boeing Takes $280 Million Hit as Air Force One Delivery Slips Four Years

The aerospace giant's second-quarter loss came in worse than analysts expected after the VC-25B presidential aircraft program absorbed a fresh $280 million charge and pushed its delivery timeline to the right by four years.

Boeing reported a second-quarter loss larger than Wall Street had forecast, with the Air Force One program cited as a primary contributor.
The VC-25B contract, covering two new presidential aircraft, now carries cumulative program charges that have become a recurring earnings drag.
Delivery of the two planes has been pushed back four years from prior projections.
The $280 million second-quarter charge is the latest in a series of hits Boeing has taken on the fixed-price contract, which was originally signed in 2018.
Boeing did not detail in its earnings release what specific technical or production issues drove the latest delay.

Boeing reported a second-quarter loss on Tuesday that exceeded analyst expectations, with the company absorbing a $280 million charge tied to the VC-25B program — the pair of 747-8 aircraft being built to serve as the next Air Force One.

The program's delivery schedule has slipped four years beyond prior projections, the company disclosed alongside its quarterly results. Boeing did not specify in its earnings materials which production or engineering problems drove the revised timeline.

The VC-25B contract was structured as a fixed-price agreement when Boeing won it in 2018, valued at approximately $3.9 billion for both aircraft. Fixed-price government contracts transfer cost-overrun risk to the contractor; Boeing has been absorbing that risk, quarter by quarter, ever since.

Tuesday's $280 million charge brings the program's cumulative losses well into the billions. The two planes remain undelivered. The original contract price has not changed.

Boeing's quarterly filing did not name a new target delivery date.