Boeing reclaims crown from Airbus for 2024 production freighter orders

Boeing emerged victorious over Airbus for production freighter orders in 2024, marking a reversal of what transpired in 2023, but the number of orders and deliveries of production freighters for the year represented another reversal as the cargo market improved while the manufacturers struggled to overcome production and delivery delays. 2024 saw net orders for forty-eight freighters, more than doubling 2023’s twenty-three, while deliveries — all Boeing freighters — dropped to twenty-three, almost half the number Boeing delivered in 2023. The output was the lowest number of freighter deliveries in at least ten years. The table below shows net jet freighter orders and deliveries during the past five years. Solid 777F sales The forty-eight freighters customers ordered in 2024 consisted of five A350Fs, thirty-five 777Fs and eight 767-300Fs. The number of 777Fs ordered equaled the 2022 total, bringing the five-year total for the type to 123. Notably, Boeing logged orders for eleven 777Fs in both June and September, a record for monthly orders for the type. Emirates was the largest known customer in 2024, finalizing two orders of five units each in June and September. The other known airline customers were Silk Way West Airlines , Turkish Airlines and National Airlines. Airbus and Starlux Airlines announced a deal for five A350Fs plus options for five more at the Singapore Airshow in February 2024. This constituted a significant win for the European manufacturer given the young airline does not have any freighters. Starlux subsequently announced in January that it had exercised those options . Despite Boeing’s dominance in overall freighter orders, the American planemaker did not sell any 777-8Fs in 2024 and the backlog for that program was tied with the A350F’s at fifty-five units each at the end of the year. [caption id="attachment_57148384" align="aligncenter" width="2048"] Starlux is entering the freighter market using A350Fs. (Courtesy/Airbus)[/caption] Unidentified customers accounted for about 42% of the freighter orders in 2024, including eight 767-300Fs that Boeing added to the backlog in December. It is unclear which customer or customers ordered the medium widebodies, but this was the first addition to the type’s orderbook in over two years . The resurgence of production freighter orders reflects the growing demand for widebody lift amid a lack of options as multiple factors slowed the production and delivery of all aircraft, including labor shortages, supply chain constraints, regulatory scrutiny and the Boeing strike that began Sept. 13 and lasted nearly two months. Dip in deliveries The twenty-three Boeing freighter deliveries in 2024 consisted of thirteen 777Fs and ten 767-300Fs. After a slow start to 2024, Boeing’s freighter deliveries picked up, particularly over the summer. Two new 777F customers — both shipping groups — received their aircraft in 2024. Boeing delivered one unit to MSC, which placed it on the AOC of Italy-based AlisCargo Airlines, the airline that MSC acquired and has since renamed MSC Air. MSC’s 777F is the first 777F registered in Italy . Maersk in July took delivery of the first of two 777Fs it had ordered, entering the large-widebody segment and adding to its fleet of 767 freighters. A second 777F followed in November. [caption id="attachment_57148385" align="aligncenter" width="2560"] Two new 777Fs joined the Maersk fleet in 2024. (Courtesy/Maersk)[/caption] The Boeing strike brought production of all Boeing aircraft to a standstill in September. However, the planemaker that month was still able to deliver a 767-300F that had already left the factory, along with another the following month. Boeing announced in December that it had resumed all commercial aircraft production with the return of its workers on Nov. 5. Mounting challenges Ramping up full-scale delivery of new freighters will depend on how quickly the issues that have plagued the industry over the past couple of years get resolved, but that may not happen until the end of the decade — for both Airbus and Boeing. Airbus said in November that it had finished modifying eight stations in Toulouse ahead of the prototype A350F’s final assembly . The planemaker still expects to deliver the first unit in 2026, the manufacturer said in November 2024. Meanwhile, Boeing’s new 777-8F will not enter into service until 2028 at the earliest , one year later than previously planned, new Chief Executive Robert “Kelly” Ortberg announced in October 2024. Additionally, Boeing will end the 767-300F program after the final delivery in 2027, he said. Given heightened regulatory scrutiny, it remains to be seen whether Boeing — and even Airbus — will be able to keep to the promised timelines as they work to overcome their respective challenges. In the meantime, Cargo Facts expects to see more orders for A350Fs, 777-8Fs and 777Fs as major carriers look to renew and expand their freighter fleets. At least one of those operators has already come to a decision and will be part of 2025’s orders: China Airlines, which said in December that it will buy four 777-8Fs in a deal with Boeing that also includes ten passenger 777-9s. Register now for Cargo Facts' essential regional events for industry stakeholders: Cargo Facts LATAM 2025 on Feb. 10-11 at the Pullman Sao Paulo Guarulhos Airport in Brazil; Cargo Facts Asia 2025 on March 24-26 at the W Shanghai in China; and Cargo Facts EMEA 2025 on May 6-8 at the Shangri-La Bosphorus in Turkey.

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