Co. reported a wider-than-expected loss at its main commercial airplane business as deliveries stagnated in the third quarter and the company ramped up spending to support future production increases.

The commercial airplane division, Boeing’s biggest by revenue, posted a $697 million loss in the period, compared with the $360.8 million deficit expected by analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. Still, the figure was a fraction of the loss reported a year earlier, when Boeing booked a $4.9 billion charge on its delayed 777-9 widebody jet program.

Earnings rose at the defense and space arm, partly assisted by the sale of a research laboratory that Boeing had co-owned for more than two decades, in addition to a surge in global defense spending that fueled higher volume.

The diverging earnings at Boeing’s commercial and defense units highlight the complex challenges that Chief Executive Officer Kelly Ortberg and his team face in turning around the US aerospace giant, whose financial health was beset by a series of quality and safety crises over the last decade, including several fatal crashes.

Boeing reiterated that it intends to start delivering its 777-9 widebody next year, putting it about six years behind schedule, and raise output on its cash-cow 737 Max single-aisle airliner.

“Looking ahead, expectations are rising, and they should,” Ortberg said in a message to employees Tuesday. “We have a stronger foundation than a year ago, but we also have more work to do to deliver on our backlog, strengthen our culture, and improve how we work every day.”Free cash flow for the third quarter was $464 million, beating analyst estimates of $325.1 million. The company overall reported a loss of 26 cents a share, wider than the estimated 21 cents. Total revenue rose 4% to $24.2 billion, beating estimates.

Since Ortberg arrived in 2024, the Arlington, Virginia-based planemaker has been working to repair its debt-laden balance sheet, restore trust with regulators and ramp up production of its mainstay commercial aircraft models.

The company said Tuesday it has access to $10 billion in undrawn credit facilities. Consolidated debt remained unchanged at $45.9 billion from the preceding three months.

The CEO has sold off a number of non-core assets, this quarter parting ways with HRL Laboratories. Wall Street has since turned more bullish on the manufacturer, though supply chain and production issues drag on its plans to ramp up output.

Engine delivery issues, in particular, tamped production rate increases on the 737 Max and the 787 Dreamliner. In September, Ortberg said Boeing hadn’t yet achieved the “engine delivery performance” needed to produce ten 787 jets per month, up from its current pace of eight.

The planemaker said Tuesday it’s still working to stabilize production of 737 Max jets at 47 a month.

Boeing’s third-quarter results come a day before rival Airbus SE is set to report its own financial performance. Airbus has pulled ahead of Boeing on aircraft deliveries, but the Franco-German planemaker hasn’t been immune to its own quality and supply hiccups this year.