Boeing’s Qatar order may offer delayed benefit to Spokane
A year after Boeing Co. went through a deep executive shakeup and prolonged existential crisis, the U.S. planemaker just rode to its biggest aircraft order for wide-body jets on Wednesday, propelled by a powerful endorsement from President Donald Trump.
Chief Executive Officer Kelly Ortberg signed an accord for as many as 210 widebody aircraft from Qatar Airways, including the 787 Dreamliner and the larger 777X model, at a ceremony witnessed by Trump and the Emir of Qatar on Wednesday.
The White House said the deal had a value of $96 billion, though customers typically negotiate steep discounts on major deals, according to Bloomberg News.
The announcement in the marble-clad halls of the Qatari Royal Court gave each of the parties in attendance a big win: Trump is on a mission to the Persian Gulf to pull in trillions of dollars of commercial accords to showcase his dealmaking skills.
Qatar and its namesake airline get to cement their relationship with the U.S. by backing the country’s biggest exporter. And Boeing walks away with an order that extends its dominance in a region that’s been a major buyer of its most expensive jets.
Wednesday’s order will see Qatar buying 130 of Boeing’s 787 Dreamliners, and 30 of the company’s 777X aircraft, with an option to buy an additional 50 wide-body aircraft of either type, according to people familiar with the accord.
In a news release, Boeing said the deal for the airplanes assembled in South Carolina would support 400,000 jobs.
But the framework of the deals, if completed, could eventually be a boon for Spokane-area companies that have contracts to build parts that end up in Boeing airplanes, said Mark Norton, executive director of the Northwest I90 Manufacturing Alliance.
“First of all, it’s another win that we have been seeing lately from Boeing,” Norton said. “The new culture at Boeing is starting to take hold. I think for local manufacturers, it’s positive. Obviously, there will be some business that will translate into the local supply chain.”
But Rick Taylor, chief operating officer for Liberty Lake-based Altek, Inc., said the deal, as stated, is for Qatar to purchase airplanes for which local manufacturers don’t have contracts.
For example, Altek manufactures plastic-injection molds for panels and parts used in walls and seats of the Boeing 737 Max aircraft.
“The work I do for the 777s and 787s is so miniscule. I don’t know of anybody else working on those two platforms in this region,” Taylor said. “It’s unfortunate, but it will have very little impact for us.”
Ortberg, the Boeing CEO, accompanied Trump on his tour to the region, including his first stop in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, where Boeing also won a smaller $4.8 billion commitment for aircraft from the country’s sovereign wealth fund.
Trump congratulated Ortberg after the deal was signed, making a point how the accord marked a record and would help secure jobs at home.
The two men’s relationship hasn’t always been easy. Trump has openly faulted Boeing for being late providing two new Air Force Once presidential jets.
Ortberg has said Boeing has found ways to accelerate the program, which is years behind schedule.
The issue of the delayed presidential plane hung over Trump’s trip, after he confirmed that he was considering accepting a Qatari-owned Boeing 747-8 that’s been decked out as a private plane.
Trump said the aircraft would be gifted to the U.S. Defense Department and could be used as a stopgap solution while Boeing builds out the new Air Force One planes, though the idea has been controversially received in both political camps back at home.
Ortberg came out of retirement last year to help turn around Boeing, which fell into a deep crisis following a near-catastrophic accident at the start of 2024 that exposed hair-raising sloppiness at its factories and at a key supplier.
Since taking over, he’s helped Boeing overcome a debilitating strike by workers, repaired the company’s battered balance sheet with a fresh round of financing and set Boeing on a path to increase output of its all-important 737 model.
Investors cheered on the accord in Doha, with Boeing shares rising to their highest in 15 months.
The historic order lauded by Trump – in the wake of a trade thaw with China – has fueled investor confidence in Boeing’s stock and bonds, more than recovering the losses the planemaker suffered in the wake of the President’s so-called “Liberation Day” trade broadside.
It’s also a reminder of the planemaker’s exposure, both good and bad, to the mercurial president and his whipsawing policies on trade.
Boeing shares have risen 50% after hitting an early April nadir of $128.88 as tariffs and counter-tariffs squeezed suppliers and prompted China to retaliate by halting imports of the U.S.-made jets. With the gains during Wednesday’s trading session, the company’s stock is at the highest price since February 2024.
“Boeing is starting to recapture operational momentum after an extended strike and door-plug blowout hamstrung performance last year for its more than $50 billion of bonds,” Matthew Geudtner, a Bloomberg Intelligence credit analyst, told clients Wednesday.
“Thawing trade tensions, ample liquidity to withstand near-term cash burn, and evidence of gains in production and delivery cadence can help sustain performance for the OEM’s bonds, which have outpaced peers this year.”
Norton, of the local manufacturing alliance, said the good news from the Boeing-Qatar deal is that it could accelerate the company’s move to look beyond its current aircraft.
Norton also helped spearhead the effort that resulted in a $48 million grant earlier this year from the U.S. Department of Commerce to establish an aerospace tech hub in Airway Heights. The new contract should boost that effort, he said.
“It will reinforce Boeing’s strengthening position,” Norton said. “That gives them more incentive to design a next-generation aircraft. That’s going to benefit the tech hub.”
Reporting by Bloomberg’s Leen Al-Rashdan and Julie Johnsson.
Spokesman-Review reporter Thomas Clouse contributed to this report.