38% of B777X firm orders are "soft"

Boeing said that just over a third of its firm orders for the B777X can be seen as "soft" and can't be counted anymore as firm due to accounting rules. 118 of the 309 orders have been moved to the so-called "ASC 606 adjustment" column. These adjustments are based on the contractual commitments issues (delays), but also the financial condition of the customers.

Currently, the official B777X-backlog is made up by All Nippon Airways (20), British Airways (18), Cathay Pacific (21), Emirates (115), Etihad (25), Lufthansa (20), Qatar Airways (60), Singapore Airlines (20) and Undisclosed (10). Just eight of these are for the B777-8 (all for Etihad), while the remaining 301 are for the B777-9.

According to several aviation analysts the uncertain orders are from Etihad Airways, which already said it was planning to take delivery of only six B777Xs instead of the 25 it has on order. Emirates is also said to be willing to downsize its order in favor of the B787, just like the airline did in 2019 when it decided to swap orders for 35 B777Xs to the B787. The last airline flagged as uncertain is presumably Cathay Pacific, which is severely impacted by the Corona-pandemic and already deferred delivery to 2025 onwards.

Last month, during it's annual results presentation, Boeing announced that the first delivery of the B777X has now been moved to 2023. This is due to a combination of delays with the aircraft itself, as well as deferrals by customers due to the current (passenger) aviation crisis.

Photo by Boeing.