Boeing announced on Tuesday that it had received 82 orders for new aircraft in February, and completed 22 deliveries.
February also brought the cancellation or conversion of 51 aircraft orders, with net cancellations coming in at 31 jets.
A majority of these cancellations were made up of embattled Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, with WestJet, Copa Airlines, BOC Aviation and Jackson Square all cancelling MAX orders.
The results make February 2021 the first month in which the US planemaker’s new aircraft orders outpaced its cancellations since November 2019.
New orders included 25 737 MAX jets for United Airlines, 17 MAX planes for unidentified customers, and 27 KC-46 tankers for the US Air Force.
Meanwhile, Singapore Airlines converted one of its orders for 19 787-10 Dreamliners, for 11 777X jets instead. Both programs are seeing delays.
Boeing’s backlog now stands at 4,041 jets.
Boeing also saw an increase year-on-year for deliveries, up to 22 from 17 deliveries in 2020, notably just before the COVID-19 crisis hit the industry.
February deliveries included 18 MAX jets, one 777, one 767 freighter, one K6-42 Tanker to the US Air Force, and one P-8 jet to the US Navy.
Boeing saw no new deliveries of its 787 Dreamliner for the fourth month straight, as it continues to carry out defect inspections across the undelivered fleet.
Boeing has had a strong start to the year, and is gaining momentum in both orders and deliveries, likely off the back of its recently recertified 737 MAX, as well as steadily increasing air travel passenger figures in the US.
World of Aviation reported last month that Boeing was off to a surprisingly strong start to 2021 with its January results, in which it delivered 26 aircraft and received four new orders.
The US planemaker’s January results outperformed that of its European rival, Airbus, which delivered 21 aircraft in January and received no orders.
The feat was largely achieved as Boeing attempted to clear the backlog of its more than 400 parked 737 MAX jets, following its recertification.
As a result, Boeing delivered 21 of its embattled 737 MAX jets throughout January, most of which went to US-based carriers.
