The 737 fuselage made by Spirit AeroSystems was delivered to Boeing's factory in Renton, Washington on 22 January, where it will be assembled into the first prototype of the US Air Force's E-7A Wedgetail airborne early warning and control jet.

Boeing commercial jet deliveries dropped last year by more than a third compared to 2023, as the aerospace giant wrestled with multiple major challenges. In data released Tuesday, Boeing (NYSE: BA) reported it delivered 348 airplanes to customers in 2024, down from 528 the year prior.

The smallest of these is the Boeing 737 MAX 7, which has yet to enter service and is still awaiting certification from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The jet is designed to replace the earlier Boeing 737-700,

A nascent recovery from Boeing’s troubles stalled in the fall when a 52-day Machinists union strike stopped almost all Boeing jet production in its Puget Sound assembly plants.