Boeing Co.'s (BA) chief financial officer on Wednesday ♚said the company would spend significantly more ca🍸sh in the first quarter than expected as it seeks to revive its reputation during a federal investigation of its safety standards.

Brian West told attendees of a Bank of America conference in London that he expected cash outflow to be between $4 billion and $4.5 billion in the first quarter, more than the company had previously forecast. He said that difference was unlikely to be made up for in the rest of the year, putting full-year 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:free cash flow in the low-single-digit billions.

The higher outflows, West said, will delay the company’s goal of achieving annual 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:cash flow of $10 billion sometime in 2025 or 2026.

West also said he expects Boeing’s commercial unit to report first-quarter operating margins of approximately negative 20%. Margins would improve throughout the year, he said, but would likely remain☂ negative for the full year. 

Boeing had decided to constrain 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:737 MAX production to fewer than 38 planes a m🍃onth, West said, “and we’ll feel 🐠the impact of that over the next several months."

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in January 澳洲幸运5官方🌱开奖结果体彩网:barred Boeing from expanding productioꦑn of the 737 MAX amid an investigation of its safety practices following an incident Jan. 5 in which a Boeing 737-9 MAX operated by Alaska Airlines lost part of its fuselage shortly after takeoff.

On the topic of Boeing’s 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:possible acquisition of supplier Spirit AeroSystems Holdings Inc. (SPR), which was spun off from Boeing in 2005, West said both companies felt the a🔴cquisition would be “what’s best ♒for safety and for quality for the aerospace industry.” He also insisted that any acquisition would be funded by cash and debt, not equity.

Boeing shares were up 2.4% at $185.52 as of 1:51 p.m. ET Wednesday, b𓄧ut they have lost more than 26% of their value since the start of the year. Spirit Ae🍷roSystems shares rose 6.7%.