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Annual report details trends and changes in Boeing's military aircraft production

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Annual report details trends and changes in Boeing's military aircraft production
Policy
Webp a3
CEO Kelly Ortberg | Boeing

Boeing remains a key supplier of military aircraft for the United States and its allies, producing a range of fighter jets, militarized commercial aircraft, and helicopters. Although Boeing did not secure contracts for the F-22 Raptor or F-35 Lightning II—both awarded to Lockheed Martin—it has recently been selected to develop the sixth-generation F-47 for the U.S. Air Force.

Boeing’s main business is commercial aviation, but it also manufactures military versions of its airliners and is a major producer of military helicopters. Its current fighter jet production includes the F/A-18 Super Hornet and the F-15 Eagle family, both inherited from McDonnell Douglas. Production numbers show that in 2022, Boeing delivered 14 Super Hornets; in 2023, 22; in 2024, 11; and by mid-2025, nine units. The company expects Super Hornet production to end by 2027 after final orders are fulfilled.

The Navy placed what is believed to be its last order for Super Hornets with a $1.4 billion contract for 17 Block III aircraft in March 2024. As future naval needs focus on longer-range platforms like the F-35C and upcoming F/A-XX programs, the demand for new Super Hornets is decreasing.

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For the F-15EX II Eagle program, Boeing plans to increase output to two aircraft per month by late 2026. Deliveries were reported as follows: 12 Eagles in 2022, nine in 2023, fourteen in 2024, and four through mid-2025. As of March 2024, there were reportedly ninety Eagles at various stages of production. Israel placed an additional order for twenty-five Eagles with deliveries expected starting in 2031.

Boeing also produces militarized versions of commercial planes such as the KC-46A Pegasus tanker (based on the Boeing 767) and P-8 Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft (based on the Boeing 737). The KC-46A has faced competition from Airbus’ MRTT but continues deliveries primarily to U.S., Japanese, and Israeli customers. From 2022 through mid-2025, annual KC-46A deliveries decreased from fifteen to five units as outstanding orders declined.

P-8 Poseidon deliveries have similarly tapered off: twelve delivered in 2022; eleven in 2023; four in 2024; two by mid-year in 2025.

In addition to fixed-wing aircraft, Boeing manufactures three types of military helicopters: AH-64 Apache attack helicopters (both new builds and remanufactured), CH-47 Chinook heavy-lift helicopters (new builds and renewed), and MH-139 Grey Wolf multirole helicopters built under license from Leonardo’s AW139 design.

Helicopter delivery figures vary due to ongoing remanufacturing efforts that extend operational life spans:

– New AH-64 Apaches: twenty-five delivered in 2022; twenty in 2023; sixteen in 2024; six by mid-year in 2025.

– Remanufactured Apaches: fifty delivered in 2022; fifty-seven in 2023; thirty-four in 2024; twenty-one by mid-year.

– New CH-47 Chinooks: nineteen delivered in 2022; eleven each year thereafter through early June.

– Renewed Chinooks: consistently nine per year between ‘22–‘24 with seven more delivered during first half of ’25.

– MH‑139 Grey Wolf: four delivered during ‘22 followed by fluctuating numbers up until five at mid‑year ’25.

Looking ahead at upcoming projects:

The T‑7 Red Hawk advanced jet trainer—developed jointly with Saab—is slated for serial production beginning around ’26 after initial test units were handed over during ’24.

Another anticipated program is MQ‑25 Stingray—a carrier-based aerial refueling drone developed for Navy CBARS requirements—with first serial units expected late ’26.

Finally—the highly classified sixth-generation F‑47 fighter will enter low-rate production possibly as soon as ‘27 following successful flight demonstrations since ’20.

While overall manned combat aircraft output may decline amid shifting defense priorities toward unmanned systems—including potential expansion into land-based variants derived from existing naval UAVs—Boeing’s portfolio remains diversified across fixed-wing jets and rotary-wing platforms.

Industry consolidation over recent decades has left Boeing alongside Northrop Grumman (producer of B‑21 Raider) and Lockheed Martin (maker of F‑35/F‑16) among only three U.S.-based firms capable of designing modern fighters independently from concept through manufacture.

“Following the post-Cold War series of US aerospace mergers, Boeing was left as one of the big three US aerospace defense companies able to design and produce advanced military fighter jets from start to finish,” according to information provided about industry structure.

Until winning the contract for next-generation fighters like F‑47—and potentially contending against Northrop Grumman alone if reports about Lockheed Martin’s elimination from certain Navy programs hold—Boeing’s future role within national defense aviation was uncertain. Now positioned for continued involvement pending congressional funding decisions on emerging platforms such as E‑7 Wedgetail or further tanker procurement initiatives—the scope and scale of annual military output may fluctuate but remain substantial.

Organizations Included in this History
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