What's going on?

Boeing reported worse-than-expected quarterly results on Wednesday, as the aircraft maker�s Dreamliner continues to become the stuff of nightmares.

What does this mean?

Boeing�s been developing its 787 Dreamliner � essentially just a really efficient jumbo jet � for years now, and it�s been having production issue after production issue. No changes there then: the company still wasn�t able to deliver a single one to customers last quarter, and not even more deliveries of its 737 Max made up for the shortfall. That led Boeing to post a $4.3 billion loss last year � its third-straight annual loss.

Still, that�s a big improvement on Boeing�s $12 billion loss at the same time in 2020, and the company reckons things can only go up from here. It might be right: a group of airline execs said earlier this month they expect international travel to bounce back this spring, which should mean demand for Boeing�s aircraft finally takes off.

Why should I care?

Zooming out: Airbus is going big.
Boeing might be missing a business opportunity in the meantime: archrival Airbus announced earlier this week that it�ll be forming its own airline for cargo delivery � a segment that�s been in high demand during the pandemic (tweet this). The new airline will use Airbus�s Beluga aircraft � usually reserved for moving large aircraft parts � to fly freight for oil and gas companies, as well as for the world�s militaries.

The bigger picture: Wizz expects big bizzness.
It�s not just Boeing that needs travel to pick up: budget airline Wizz Air � which reckons the Omicron variant will keep passenger demand down until around March � just reported a bigger loss last quarter than the same time in 2020. Thing is, a lot of that was down to all the new workers, new planes, and new European bases it splurged on. That should help the airline carry 50% more passengers than it did before the pandemic by the time things have picked up this summer.