BA, §1A diff (2019 → 2020)

Item 1A. Risk Factors An investment in our common stock or debt securities involves risks and uncertainties and our actual results and future trends may differ materially from our past or projected future performance. We urge investors to consider carefully the risk factors described below in evaluating the information contained in this report. Risks Related to COVID-19 We face significant risks related to the spread of the COVID-19 virus and developments surrounding the global pandemic have had, and will continue to have, significant effects on our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows. We also face significant risks related to the global economic downturn and severe reduction in commercial air traffic caused by the pandemic. These risks include materially reduced demand for our products and services, increased instability in our supply chain, and challenges to the ongoing viability of some of our customers. We may face similar risks in connection with any future public health crises, including resurgences in the spread of COVID-19. The COVID-19 pandemic has subjected our business, operations, financial performance, cash flows and financial condition to a number of risks, including, but not limited to those discussed below. Operations-related risks: As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, we are facing increased operational challenges from the need to protect employee health and safety. These challenges have included, and may in the future include production site shutdowns, and workplace disruptions and restrictions on the movement of people, raw materials and goods, both at our own facilities and those of our customers and suppliers. For example, during the second quarter of 2020, we temporarily suspended operations in Puget Sound, South Carolina, and Philadelphia, as well as at several other key production sites. We had not previously experienced a complete suspension of our operations at these production sites. While we have resumed operations at all of our production sites we cannot predict whether or where further production disruptions could be required or what the ongoing impact of COVID-19-related operating restrictions will be. For example, we continue to experience additional operating costs due to social distancing requirements and other factors related to COVID-19 restrictions. We cannot predict the impact that future production disruptions may have on our business, operations, financial performance and financial condition. We continue to monitor federal, state, and municipal health authorities for new or modified guidance and requirements concerning the COVID-19 pandemic, and we may be required to impose additional operational restrictions and/or suspend operations at key production sites based on these requirements and recommendations and/or workplace disruptions caused by COVID-19. Many of our suppliers also were required to suspend operations during the second quarter of 2020, and they may experience additional disruptions in 2021. Any such disruptions could have severe adverse impacts on our production costs, delivery schedule and/or ability to meet customer commitments. Any prolonged suspension of operations or delayed recovery in our operations, and/or any similar suspension of operations or delayed recovery at one or more of our key suppliers, or the failure of any of our key suppliers, would result in further challenges to our business, leading to a further material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows. Liquidity risks: The COVID-19 pandemic has also had a significant impact on our liquidity and overall debt levels. During the year ended December 31, 2020, net cash used by operating activities was $18.4 billion. At December 31, 2020, cash and short-term investments totaled $25.6 billion. Our debt balance totaled $63.6 billion at December 31, 2020, up from $27.3 billion at December 31, 2019. We expect negative operating cash flows in future quarters until deliveries begin to return to historical levels, and if the pace and scope of the recovery are worse than we currently contemplate, we may need to obtain additional financing in order to fund our operations and obligations. If we were to need to obtain additional financing, uncertainty related to COVID-19 and its impact on us and the aerospace industry, as well as continued uncertainty with respect to our credit rating could limit our access to credit markets and we may have difficulty obtaining financing on terms acceptable to us or at all. In addition, certain of our customers may also be unable to make timely payments to us. Factors that could limit our access to additional liquidity include further disruptions in the global capital markets and/or additional declines in our financial performance, outlook or credit ratings. The occurrence of any or all of these events could adversely affect our ability to fund our operations and/or meet outstanding debt obligations and contractual commitments. In addition, further downgrades in our credit ratings could adversely affect our cost of funds and related margins, liquidity, competitive position and access to capital markets, and a significant downgrade could have an adverse impact on our businesses. Customer-related risks: Commercial air traffic has fallen dramatically due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This trend has impacted passenger traffic most severely. Near-term cargo traffic has also fallen, but to a lesser extent as global trade has begun to recover. Most airlines have significantly reduced their capacity, and many could implement further reductions in the near future. Many airlines are also implementing significant reductions in staffing. These capacity changes are causing, and are expected to continue to cause, negative impacts to our customers’ revenue, earnings, and cash flow, and in some cases may threaten the future viability of some of our customers, potentially causing defaults within our customer financing portfolio, which was $2.0 billion as of December 31, 2020 and/or requiring us to remarket aircraft that have already been produced and/or are currently in backlog. If we are unable to successfully remarket these aircraft and/or the narrow-body and wide-body markets do not recover as soon as we are currently assuming, or if we are required to further reduce production rates and/or contract the accounting quantity on any of our commercial programs, we could experience material reductions in earnings and/or be required to recognize a reach-forward loss on one or more of our programs. For example, in the fourth quarter of 2020, we recognized a reach-forward loss on the 777X program in part due to impacts related to the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, if 737 MAX aircraft in one or more jurisdictions remain grounded for an extended period of time, we may experience additional reductions to backlog and/or significant order cancellations. Additionally, we may experience fewer new orders and increased cancellations across all of our commercial airplane programs as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and associated impacts on demand. Our customers may also lack sufficient liquidity to purchase new aircraft due to impacts from the pandemic. We are also observing a significant increase in the number of requests for payment deferrals, contract modifications, lease restructurings and similar actions, and these trends may lead to additional charges, impairments and other adverse financial impacts in our business over time. In addition, to the extent that customers have valid rights to cancel undelivered aircraft, we may be required to refund pre-delivery payments, putting additional constraints on our liquidity. In addition to the near-term impact, there is risk that the industry implements longer-term strategies involving reduced capacity, shifting route patterns, and mitigation strategies related to impacts from COVID-19 and the risk of future public health crises. In addition, airlines may experience reduced demand due to reluctance by the flying public to travel due to travel restrictions and/or social distancing requirements. As a result, there is significant uncertainty with respect to when commercial air traffic levels will begin to recover, and whether and at what point capacity will return to and/or exceed pre-COVID-19 levels. The COVID-19 pandemic also has increased, and its aftermath is also expected to continue to increase, uncertainty with respect to global trade volumes, which could put negative pressure on cargo traffic levels. Any of these factors would have a significant impact on the demand for both single-aisle and wide-body commercial aircraft, as well as for the services we provide to commercial airlines. In addition, a lengthy period of reduced industry-wide demand for commercial aircraft would put additional pressure on our suppliers, resulting in increased procurement costs and/or additional supply chain disruption. To the extent that the COVID-19 pandemic or its aftermath further impacts demand for our products and services or impairs the viability of some of our customers and/or suppliers, our financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows could be adversely affected, and those impacts could be material. Other risks: The magnitude and duration of the global COVID-19 pandemic is uncertain and continues to adversely affect our business and operating and financial results. For example, during the fourth quarter of 2020, due in part to the prolonged adverse impact of the pandemic on our earnings, we recorded an increase of $2.5 billion to the valuation allowance associated with deferred income tax assets. The pandemic also is expected to heighten many of the other risks described below. Further, the COVID-19 pandemic may also affect our operating and financial results in a manner that is not presently known to us or that we currently do not expect to present significant risks to our operations or financial results. Risks Related to Our Business and Operations We are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties related to the 737 MAX. These risks include uncertainties regarding the timing and conditions of 737 MAX regulatory approvals, in certain non-U.S. jurisdictions, lower than planned production rates and/or delivery rates, increased considerations to customers, increased supplier costs and supply chain health, changes to the assumptions and estimates made in our financial statements regarding the 737 program, and potential outcomes of various 737 MAX-related legal proceedings and government investigations. On March 13, 2019, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued an order to suspend operations of all 737 MAX aircraft in the U.S. and by U.S. aircraft operators following two fatal 737 MAX accidents. Non-U.S. civil aviation authorities issued directives to the same effect. Deliveries of the 737 MAX were suspended until December 2020. The grounding has reduced revenues, operating margins, and cash flows, and will continue to do so until production rates return to pre-grounding levels. In connection with the effort to return the 737 MAX to service, we developed software updates for the 737 MAX, together with an associated pilot training and supplementary education program. We continue to work with certain non-U.S. civil aviation authorities to complete remaining steps toward certification and readiness for return to service worldwide. Any delays in certification in one or more jurisdictions and/or the ramp-up of deliveries or other liabilities associated with the accidents or grounding could have a material adverse effect on our financial position, results of operations, and/or cash flows. In addition, multiple legal actions have been filed against us related to the 737 MAX. We also are fully cooperating with U.S. government investigations related to the accidents and the 737 MAX, including investigations by the Securities and Exchange Commission. In January 2021, we entered into a Deferred Prosecution Agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice that resolves the Department of Justice’s previously disclosed investigation into us regarding the evaluation of the 737 MAX airplane by the FAA. We expensed $744 in the fourth quarter of 2020 related to this agreement. Any further adverse impacts related to any such litigation or investigation could have a further material impact on our financial position, results of operations and/or cash flows. During 2019, we announced plans to reduce, and ultimately to suspend 737 production. Impacts related to these actions significantly increased costs to produce aircraft included in the current accounting quantity and have resulted in reduced 737 program and overall BCA segment operating margins. We have also made significant assumptions regarding estimated costs expected to be incurred in 2021 that should be included in program inventory and those estimated costs that will be expensed when incurred as abnormal production costs. If we are unable to return the 737 MAX aircraft to service in one or more jurisdictions or deliver 737 aircraft to customers on the schedule and/or at a pace consistent with our expectations, we will incur significant additional costs and/or delay the planned ramp-up of 737 production. These delays would also result in significant additional disruption to the 737 production system and further delay efforts to restore and/or implement previously planned increases in the 737 production rate. Cash flows continue to be negatively impacted by delayed payments from customers, higher costs and inventory levels, and payments made to customers in connection with disruption to their operations. In addition, we have experienced claims and assertions from customers in connection with the grounding, and we recorded an earnings charge of $8,259 million, net of insurance recoveries of $500 million, in 2019, in connection with an estimate of potential concessions and other considerations to customers for disruptions related to the grounding and associated delivery delays. Any further delays in regulatory approval of the 737 MAX in one or more jurisdictions, further disruptions to suppliers and/or the long-term health of the production system, supplier claims or assertions, or changes to estimated concessions or other considerations we expect to provide to customers could have a material adverse effect on our financial position, results of operations, and/or cash flows. In the event of unanticipated additional training requirements in one or more jurisdictions, delays in regulatory approval, and/or delays in our ability to resume deliveries to one or more customers, we may be required to take actions with longer-term impact, such as further changes to our production plans, employment reductions and/or the expenditure of significant resources to support our supply chain and/or customers. We have made significant estimates with respect to the 737 program regarding the number of units to be produced, the period during which those units are likely to be produced, and the units’ expected sales prices, production costs, program tooling and other non-recurring costs, and routine warranty costs. In addition to the estimated timing of the resumption of deliveries, we have made assumptions regarding outcomes of accident investigations and other government inquiries, timing of future 737 production rate increases, timing and sequence of future deliveries, supply chain health as we implement our production plans, as well as outcomes of negotiations with customers. Any changes in these estimates and/or assumptions with respect to the 737 program could have a material impact on our financial position, results of operations, and/or cash flows. For additional information, see our discussion under “Management’s Discussion and Analysis-Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates-737 MAX Grounding” on pages 55 - 56. In addition to the impact of COVID-19 described above, our Commercial Airplanes and Global Services businesses depend heavily on commercial airlines, and are subject to unique risks. Market conditions have a significant impact on demand for our commercial aircraft and related services. The commercial aircraft market is predominantly driven by long-term trends in airline passenger and cargo traffic. The principal factors underlying long-term traffic growth are sustained economic growth and political stability both in developed and emerging markets. Demand for our commercial aircraft is further influenced by airline profitability, availability of aircraft financing, world trade policies, government-to-government relations, technological advances, price and other competitive factors, fuel prices, terrorism, epidemics and environmental regulations. Traditionally, the airline industry has been cyclical and very competitive and has experienced significant profit swings and constant challenges to be more cost competitive. Significant deterioration in the global economic environment, the airline industry generally, or the financial stability of one or more of our major customers could result in fewer new orders for aircraft or services, or could cause customers to seek to postpone or cancel contractual orders and/or payments to us, which could result in lower revenues, profitability and cash flows and a reduction in our contractual backlog. In addition, because our commercial aircraft backlog consists of aircraft scheduled for delivery over a period of several years, any of these macroeconomic, industry or customer impacts could unexpectedly affect deliveries over a long period. We enter into firm fixed-price aircraft sales contracts with indexed price escalation clauses which could subject us to losses if we have cost overruns or if increases in our costs exceed the applicable escalation rate. Commercial aircraft sales contracts are often entered into years before the aircraft are delivered. In order to help account for economic fluctuations between the contract date and delivery date, aircraft pricing generally consists of a fixed amount as modified by price escalation formulas derived from labor, commodity and other price indices. Our revenue estimates are based on current expectations with respect to these escalation formulas, but the actual escalation amounts are outside of our control. Escalation factors can fluctuate significantly from period to period. Changes in escalation amounts can significantly impact revenues and operating margins in our Commercial Airplanes business. We derive a significant portion of our revenues from a limited number of commercial airlines. We can make no assurance that any customer will exercise purchase options, fulfill existing purchase commitments or purchase additional products or services from us. In addition, fleet decisions, airline consolidations or financial challenges involving any of our major commercial airline customers could significantly reduce our revenues and limit our opportunity to generate profits from those customers. Our Commercial Airplanes business depends on our ability to maintain a healthy production system, achieve planned production rate targets, successfully develop new aircraft or new derivative aircraft, and meet or exceed stringent performance and reliability standards. The commercial aircraft business is extremely complex, involving extensive coordination and integration with U.S and non-U.S. suppliers, highly-skilled labor from thousands of employees and other partners, and stringent regulatory requirements, including the risk of evolving standards for commercial aircraft certification, and performance and reliability standards. In addition, the introduction of new aircraft programs and/or derivatives, such as the 777X, involves increased risks associated with meeting development, testing, production, and certification schedules. The 737 program has also experienced significant disruption due to the grounding of the 737 MAX and associated suspension of 737 MAX production for part of 2020. As a result, our ability to deliver aircraft on time, satisfy regulatory and customer requirements, and achieve or maintain, as applicable, program profitability is subject to significant risks. For example, a number of our customers may have contractual remedies, including rights to reject individual airplane deliveries if the actual delivery date is significantly later than the contractual delivery date. Delays on the 737 MAX and 777X programs have resulted in, and may continue to result in, customers having the right to terminate orders and or substitute orders for other Boeing aircraft. We must minimize disruption caused by production changes and achieve productivity improvements in order to meet customer demand and maintain our profitability. We have previously announced plans to adjust production rates on several of our commercial aircraft programs. We continue to engage in significant ongoing development, testing and production of the 777X aircraft. In addition, we continue to seek opportunities to reduce the costs of building our aircraft, including working with our suppliers to reduce supplier costs, identifying and implementing productivity improvements, and optimizing how we manage inventory. If production rate changes at any of our commercial aircraft assembly facilities are delayed or create significant disruption to our production system, or if our suppliers cannot timely deliver components to us at the cost and rates necessary to achieve our targets, we may be unable to meet delivery schedules and/or the financial performance of one or more of our programs may suffer. Operational challenges impacting the production system for one or more of our commercial aircraft programs could result in production delays and/or failure to meet customer demand for new aircraft, either of which would negatively impact our revenues and operating margins. Our commercial aircraft production system is extremely complex. Operational issues, including delays or defects in supplier components, failure to meet internal performance plans, or delays or failures to achieve required regulatory approval, could result in significant out-of-sequence work and increased production costs, as well as delayed deliveries to customers, impacts to aircraft performance and/or increased warranty or fleet support costs. For example, in the fourth quarter of 2020, we expanded the scope of production inspections on the 787 program, and those inspections and associated rework are delaying scheduled deliveries and resulting in additional 787 aircraft in inventory. If our commercial airplanes fail to satisfy performance and reliability requirements, we could face additional costs and/or lower revenues. Developing and manufacturing commercial aircraft that meet or exceed our performance and reliability standards, as well as those of customers and regulatory agencies, can be costly and technologically challenging. These challenges are particularly significant with newer aircraft programs. Any failure of any Boeing aircraft to satisfy performance or reliability requirements could result in disruption to our operations, higher costs and/or lower revenues. Changes in levels of U.S. government defense spending or overall acquisition priorities could negatively impact our financial position and results of operations. We derive a substantial portion of our revenue from the U.S. government, primarily from defense related programs with the U.S. DoD. Levels of U.S. defense spending are very difficult to predict and may be impacted by numerous factors such as the evolving nature of the national security threat environment, U.S. national security strategy, U.S. foreign policy, the domestic political environment, macroeconomic conditions and the ability of the U.S. government to enact relevant legislation such as authorization and appropriations bills. Although FY21 appropriations have been enacted, long-term uncertainty remains with respect to overall levels of defense spending beyond FY21, and it is likely that U.S. government discretionary spending, including defense spending, will continue to be subject to pressure. In addition, the timeliness of future appropriations for government departments and agencies remains a recurrent risk. A lapse in appropriations for government department or agencies would result in a full or partial government shutdown, which could impact the Company’s operations. Alternatively, Congress may fund government departments and agencies with one or more Continuing Resolutions; however, this could restrict the execution of certain program activities and delay new programs or competitions. There continues to be uncertainty with respect to future acquisition priorities and program-level appropriations for the U.S. DoD and other government agencies (including NASA), including tension between modernization investments, sustainment investments, and investments in new technologies or emergent capabilities. Future investment priority changes or budget cuts, including changes associated with the authorizations and appropriations process could result in reductions, cancellations, and/or delays of existing contracts or programs, or future program opportunities. Any of these impacts could have a material effect on the results of the Company’s operations, financial position and/or cash flows. In addition, as a result of the significant ongoing uncertainty with respect to both U.S. defense spending and the evolving nature of the national security threat environment, we also expect the U.S. DoD to continue to emphasize affordability, innovation, cybersecurity, and delivery of technical data and software in its procurement processes. If we can no longer adjust successfully to these changing acquisition policies our revenues and market share could be impacted. Our ability to deliver products and services that satisfy customer requirements is heavily dependent on the performance and financial stability of our subcontractors and suppliers, as well as on the availability of raw materials and other components. We rely on other companies including U.S. and non-U.S. subcontractors and suppliers to provide and produce raw materials, integrated components and sub-assemblies, and production commodities and to perform some of the services that we provide to our customers. If one or more of our suppliers or subcontractors experiences financial difficulties, delivery delays or other performance problems, we may be unable to meet commitments to our customers or incur additional costs. In addition, if one or more of the raw materials on which we depend (such as aluminum, titanium or composites) becomes unavailable or is available only at very high prices, we may be unable to deliver one or more of our products in a timely fashion or at budgeted costs. In some instances, we depend upon a single source of supply. Any service disruption from one of these suppliers, either due to circumstances beyond the supplier’s control, such as geopolitical developments, or as a result of performance problems or financial difficulties, could have a material adverse effect on our ability to meet commitments to our customers or increase our operating costs. Competition within our markets and with respect to the products we sell may reduce our future contracts and sales. The markets in which we operate are highly competitive and one or more of our competitors may have more extensive or more specialized engineering, manufacturing and marketing capabilities than we do in some areas. In our Commercial Airplanes business, we anticipate increasing competition among non-U.S. aircraft manufacturers of commercial jet aircraft. In our BDS business, we anticipate that the effects of defense industry consolidation, shifting acquisition and budget priorities, and continued cost pressure at our U.S. DoD and non-U.S. customers will intensify competition for many of our BDS products. Our BGS segment faces competition from many of the same strong U.S. and non-U.S. competitors facing BCA and BDS. Furthermore, we are facing increased international competition and cross-border consolidation of competition. There can be no assurance that we will be able to compete successfully against our current or future competitors or that the competitive pressures we face will not result in reduced revenues and market share. We derive a significant portion of our revenues from non-U.S. sales and are subject to the risks of doing business in other countries. In 2020, non-U.S. customers, which includes foreign military sales (FMS), accounted for approximately 37% of our revenues. We expect that non-U.S. sales will continue to account for a significant portion of our revenues for the foreseeable future. As a result, we are subject to risks of doing business internationally, including: •changes in regulatory requirements; •changes in the global trade environment, including disputes with authorities in non-U.S. jurisdictions, including international trade authorities, that could impact sales and/or delivery of products and services outside the U.S. and/or impose costs on our customers in the form of tariffs, duties, or penalties attributable to the importation of Boeing products and services; •U.S. and non-U.S. government policies, including requirements to expend a portion of program funds locally and governmental industrial cooperation or participation requirements; •fluctuations in international currency exchange rates; •volatility in international political and economic environments and changes in non-U.S. national priorities and budgets, which can lead to delays or fluctuations in orders; •the complexity and necessity of using non-U.S. representatives and consultants; •the uncertainty of the ability of non-U.S. customers to finance purchases, including the availability of financing from the Export-Import Bank of the United States; •uncertainties and restrictions concerning the availability of funding credit or guarantees; •imposition of domestic and international taxes, export controls, tariffs, embargoes, sanctions and other trade restrictions; •the difficulty of management and operation of an enterprise spread over many countries; •compliance with a variety of non-U.S. laws, as well as U.S. laws affecting the activities of U.S. companies abroad; and •unforeseen developments and conditions, including terrorism, war, epidemics and international tensions and conflicts. While the impact of these factors is difficult to predict, any one or more of these factors could adversely affect our operations in the future. For example, since 2018, the U.S. and China have imposed tariffs on each other’s imports. China is a very significant market for commercial airplanes and represents a significant component of our commercial airplanes backlog. In addition, the U.S. and European Union (EU) have been engaged in two long-running disputes at the World Trade Organization (WTO) relating to large civil aircraft, including one that has resulted in the imposition of tariffs on certain of our products. Impacts from these or future potential tariffs, or deterioration in trade relations between the U.S. and one or more other countries, could have a material adverse impact on our revenues, operating earnings, and/or cash flows. We use estimates in accounting for many contracts and programs. Changes in our estimates could adversely affect our future financial results. Contract and program accounting require judgment relative to assessing risks, estimating revenues and costs and making assumptions for schedule and technical issues. Due to the size and nature of many of our contracts and programs, the estimation of total revenues and cost at completion is complicated and subject to many variables. Assumptions have to be made regarding the length of time to complete the contract or program because costs also include expected increases in wages and employee benefits, material prices and allocated fixed costs. Incentives or penalties related to performance on contracts are considered in estimating sales and profit rates, and are recorded when there is sufficient information for us to assess anticipated performance. Supplier claims and assertions are also assessed and considered in estimating costs and profit rates. Estimates of future award fees are also included in sales and profit rates. With respect to each of our commercial aircraft programs, inventoriable production costs (including overhead), program tooling and other non-recurring costs and routine warranty costs are accumulated and charged as cost of sales by program instead of by individual units or contracts. A program consists of the estimated number of units (accounting quantity) of a product to be produced in a continuing, long-term production effort for delivery under existing and anticipated contracts limited by the ability to make reasonably dependable estimates. To establish the relationship of sales to cost of sales, program accounting requires estimates of (a) the number of units to be produced and sold in a program, (b) the period over which the units can reasonably be expected to be produced and (c) the units’ expected sales prices, production costs, program tooling and other non-recurring costs, and routine warranty costs for the total program. Several factors determine accounting quantity, including firm orders, letters of intent from prospective customers and market studies. Changes to customer or model mix, production costs and rates, learning curve, changes to price escalation indices, costs of derivative aircraft, supplier performance, customer and supplier negotiations/settlements, supplier claims and/or certification issues can impact these estimates. In addition, on development programs such as the 777X, we are subject to risks with respect to the timing and conditions of aircraft certification, including potential gaps between when aircraft are certified in various jurisdictions, and our estimates with respect to timing of future certifications could have an impact on overall program status. Any such change in estimates relating to program accounting may adversely affect future financial performance. Because of the significance of the judgments and estimation processes described above, materially different sales and profit amounts could be recorded if we used different assumptions or if the underlying circumstances were to change. Changes in underlying assumptions, circumstances or estimates may adversely affect future period financial performance. For additional information on our accounting policies for recognizing sales and profits, see our discussion under “Management’s Discussion and Analysis - Critical Accounting Policies - Contract Accounting/Program Accounting” on pages 53 - 55 and Note 1 to our Consolidated Financial Statements on pages 68 - 81 of this Form 10-K. We may not realize the anticipated benefits of mergers, acquisitions, joint ventures/strategic alliances or divestitures. As part of our business strategy, we may merge with or acquire businesses and/or form joint ventures and strategic alliances. Whether we realize the anticipated benefits from these acquisitions and related activities depends, in part, upon our ability to integrate the operations of the acquired business, the performance of the underlying product and service portfolio, and the performance of the management team and other personnel of the acquired operations. Accordingly, our financial results could be adversely affected by unanticipated performance issues, legacy liabilities, transaction-related charges, amortization of expenses related to intangibles, charges for impairment of long-term assets, credit guarantees, partner performance and indemnifications. Consolidations of joint ventures could also impact our reported results of operations or financial position. While we believe that we have established appropriate and adequate procedures and processes to mitigate these risks, there is no assurance that these transactions will be successful. We also may make strategic divestitures from time to time. These transactions may result in continued financial involvement in the divested businesses, such as through guarantees or other financial arrangements, following the transaction. Nonperformance by those divested businesses could affect our future financial results through additional payment obligations, higher costs or asset write-downs. Risks Related to Our Contracts We conduct a significant portion of our business pursuant to U.S. government contracts, which are subject to unique risks. In 2020, 51% of our revenues were earned pursuant to U.S. government contracts, which include FMS through the U.S. government. Business conducted pursuant to such contracts is subject to extensive procurement regulations and other unique risks. Our sales to the U.S. government are subject to extensive procurement regulations, and changes to those regulations could increase our costs. New procurement regulations, or changes to existing requirements, could increase our compliance costs or otherwise have a material impact on the operating margins of our BDS and BGS businesses. These requirements may result in increased compliance costs, and we could be subject to additional costs in the form of withheld payments and/or reduced future business if we fail to comply with these requirements in the future. Compliance costs attributable to current and potential future procurement regulations such as these could negatively impact our financial condition and operating results. The U.S. government may modify, curtail or terminate one or more of our contracts. The U.S. government contracting party may modify, curtail or terminate its contracts and subcontracts with us, without prior notice and either at its convenience or for default based on performance. In addition, funding pursuant to our U.S. government contracts may be reduced or withheld as part of the U.S. Congressional appropriations process due to fiscal constraints, changes in U.S. national security strategy and/or priorities or other reasons. Further uncertainty with respect to ongoing programs could also result in the event that the U.S. government finances its operations through temporary funding measures such as “continuing resolutions” rather than full-year appropriations. Any loss or anticipated loss or reduction of expected funding and/or modification, curtailment, or termination of one or more large programs could have a material adverse effect on our earnings, cash flow and/or financial position. We are subject to U.S. government inquiries and investigations, including periodic audits of costs that we determine are reimbursable under U.S. government contracts. U.S. government agencies, including the Defense Contract Audit Agency and the Defense Contract Management Agency, routinely audit government contractors. These agencies review our performance under contracts, cost structure and compliance with applicable laws, regulations, and standards, as well as the adequacy of and our compliance with our internal control systems and policies. Any costs found to be misclassified or inaccurately allocated to a specific contract will be deemed non-reimbursable, and to the extent already reimbursed, must be refunded. Any inadequacies in our systems and policies could result in withholds on billed receivables, penalties and reduced future business. Furthermore, if any audit, inquiry or investigation uncovers improper or illegal activities, we could be subject to civil and criminal penalties and administrative sanctions, including termination of contracts, forfeiture of profits, suspension of payments, fines, and suspension or debarment from doing business with the U.S. government. We also could suffer reputational harm if allegations of impropriety were made against us, even if such allegations are later determined to be false. We enter into fixed-price contracts which could subject us to losses if we have cost overruns. Our BDS and BGS defense businesses generated approximately 69% and 72% of their 2020 revenues from fixed-price contracts. While fixed-price contracts enable us to benefit from performance improvements, cost reductions and efficiencies, they also subject us to the risk of reduced margins or incurring losses if we are unable to achieve estimated costs and revenues. If our estimated costs exceed our estimated price, we recognize reach-forward losses which can significantly affect our reported results. For example in 2020, we recorded additional reach-forward losses of $1,320 million on the KC-46A Tanker contract reflecting $551 million of costs associated with the agreement signed in April 2020 with the U.S. Air Force to develop and integrate a new Remote Vision System, and the remaining costs reflect production inefficiencies including impacts of COVID-19 disruption. New programs could also have risk for reach-forward loss upon contract award and during the period of contract performance. For example, in 2018, in connection with winning the T-7A Red Hawk and MQ-25 competitions, we recorded a loss of $400 million associated with options for 346 T-7A Red Hawk aircraft and a loss of $291 million related to the MQ-25 Engineering, Manufacturing and Development (EMD) contract. The long term nature of many of our contracts makes the process of estimating costs and revenues on fixed-price contracts inherently risky. Fixed-price contracts often contain price incentives and penalties tied to performance which can be difficult to estimate and have significant impacts on margins. In addition, some of our contracts have specific provisions relating to cost, schedule and performance. Fixed-price development contracts are generally subject to more uncertainty than fixed-price production contracts. Many of these development programs have highly complex designs. In addition, technical or quality issues that arise during development could lead to schedule delays and higher costs to complete, which could result in a material charge or otherwise adversely affect our financial condition. Examples of significant BDS fixed-price development contracts include Commercial Crew, KC-46A Tanker, T-7A Red Hawk, VC-25B Presidential Aircraft, MQ-25, and commercial and military satellites. We enter into cost-type contracts which also carry risks. Our BDS and BGS defense businesses generated approximately 31% and 28% of their 2020 revenues from cost-type contracting arrangements. Some of these are development programs that have complex design and technical challenges. These cost-type programs typically have award or incentive fees that are subject to uncertainty and may be earned over extended periods. In these cases the associated financial risks are primarily in reduced fees, lower profit rates or program cancellation if cost, schedule or technical performance issues arise. Programs whose contracts are primarily cost-type include Ground-based Midcourse Defense (GMD), Proprietary and SLS programs. We enter into contracts that include in-orbit incentive payments that subject us to risks. Contracts in the commercial satellite industry and certain government satellite contracts include in-orbit incentive payments. These in-orbit payments may be paid over time after final satellite acceptance or paid in full prior to final satellite acceptance. In both cases, the in-orbit incentive payment is at risk if the satellite does not perform to specifications for up to 15 years after acceptance. The net present value of in-orbit incentive fees we ultimately expect to realize is recognized as revenue in the construction period. If the satellite fails to meet contractual performance criteria, customers will not be obligated to continue making in-orbit payments and/or we may be required to provide refunds to the customer and incur significant charges. Risks Related to Cybersecurity and Business Disruptions Unauthorized access to our or our customers’ information and systems could negatively impact our business. We face certain security threats, including threats to the confidentiality, availability and integrity of our data and systems. We maintain an extensive network of technical security controls, policy enforcement mechanisms, monitoring systems and management oversight in order to address these threats. While these measures are designed to prevent, detect and respond to unauthorized activity in our systems, certain types of attacks, including cyber-attacks, could result in significant financial or information losses and/or reputational harm. In addition, we manage information and information technology systems for certain customers. Many of these customers face similar security threats. If we cannot prevent the unauthorized access, release and/or corruption of our customers’ confidential, classified or personally identifiable information, our reputation could be damaged, and/or we could face financial losses. Business disruptions could seriously affect our future sales and financial condition or increase our costs and expenses. Our business may be impacted by disruptions including threats to physical security, information technology or cyber-attacks or failures, damaging weather or other acts of nature and pandemics or other public health crises. Any of these disruptions could affect our internal operations or our ability to deliver products and services to our customers. Any significant production delays, or any destruction, manipulation or improper use of our data, information systems or networks could impact our sales, increase our expenses and/or have an adverse effect on the reputation of Boeing and of our products and services. Risks Related to Legal and Regulatory Matters The outcome of litigation and of government inquiries and investigations involving our business is unpredictable and an adverse decision in any such matter could have a material effect on our financial position and results of operations. We are involved in a number of litigation matters. These matters may divert financial and management resources that would otherwise be used to benefit our operations. No assurances can be given that the results of these matters will be favorable to us. An adverse resolution of any of these lawsuits, or future lawsuits, could have a material impact on our financial position and results of operations. In addition, we are subject to extensive regulation under the laws of the United States and its various states, as well as other jurisdictions in which we operate. As a result, we are sometimes subject to government inquiries and investigations of our business due, among other things, to our business relationships with the U.S. government, the heavily regulated nature of our industry, and in the case of environmental proceedings, our current or past ownership of certain property. Any such inquiry or investigation could potentially result in an adverse ruling against us, which could have a material impact on our financial position and results of operations. Our operations expose us to the risk of material environmental liabilities. We are subject to various U.S. federal, state, local and non-U.S. laws and regulations related to environmental protection, including the discharge, treatment, storage, disposal and remediation of hazardous substances and wastes. We could incur substantial costs, including cleanup costs, fines and civil or criminal sanctions, as well as third-party claims for property damage or personal injury, if we were to violate or become liable under environmental laws or regulations. In some cases, we may be subject to such costs due to environmental impacts attributable to our current or past manufacturing operations or the operations of companies we have acquired. In other cases, we may become subject to such costs due to an indemnification agreement between us and a third party relating to such environmental liabilities. In addition, new laws and regulations, more stringent enforcement of existing laws and regulations, the discovery of previously unknown contamination or the imposition of new remediation requirements could result in additional costs. For additional information relating to environmental contingencies, see Note 13 to our Consolidated Financial Statements. Risks Related to Financing and Liquidity We may be unable to obtain debt to fund our operations and contractual commitments at competitive rates, on commercially reasonable terms or in sufficient amounts. We depend, in part, upon the issuance of debt to fund our operations and contractual commitments. In addition, our debt balances have increased significantly since 2019, driven primarily by impacts related to the 737 MAX grounding and the COVID-19 pandemic, and we expect to continue to actively manage our liquidity. Our increased debt balance has also resulted in downgrades to our credit ratings. As of December 31, 2020, our debt totaled $63.6 billion of which approximately $20.4 billion of principal payments on outstanding debt become due over the next three years. In addition, as of December 31, 2020, our airplane financing commitments totaled $11,512 million. If we require additional funding in order to pay off existing debt, address further impacts to our business related to the 737 MAX, COVID-19, or broader market developments, fund outstanding financing commitments or meet other business requirements, our market liquidity may not be sufficient. These risks will be particularly acute if we are subject to further credit rating downgrades. A number of factors could cause us to incur increased borrowing costs and to have greater difficulty accessing public and private markets for debt. These factors include disruptions or declines in the global capital markets and/or a decline in our financial performance, outlook or credit ratings, including impacts described above related to the COVID-19 pandemic and/or associated changes in demand for our products and services. The occurrence of any or all of these events may adversely affect our ability to fund our operations and contractual or financing commitments. Substantial pension and other postretirement benefit obligations have a material impact on our earnings, shareholders’ equity and cash flows from operations, and could have significant adverse impacts in future periods. Many of our employees have earned benefits under defined benefit pension plans. Potential pension contributions include both mandatory amounts required under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act and discretionary contributions to improve the plans' funded status. The extent of future contributions depends heavily on market factors such as the discount rate and the actual return on plan assets. We estimate future contributions to these plans using assumptions with respect to these and other items. Changes to those assumptions could have a significant effect on future contributions as well as on our annual pension costs and/or result in a significant change to shareholders' equity. For U.S. government contracts, we allocate pension costs to individual contracts based on U.S. Cost Accounting Standards which can also affect contract profitability. We also provide other postretirement benefits to certain of our employees, consisting principally of health care coverage for eligible retirees and qualifying dependents. Our estimates of future costs associated with these benefits are also subject to assumptions, including estimates of the level of medical cost increases. For a discussion regarding how our financial statements can be affected by pension and other postretirement plan accounting policies, see “Management's Discussion and Analysis-Critical Accounting Policies-Pension Plans” on pages 57 - 58 of this Form 10-K. Although under Generally Accepted Accounting Principles in the United States of America (GAAP) the timing of periodic pension and other postretirement benefit expense and plan contributions are not directly related, the key economic factors that affect GAAP expense would also likely affect the amount of cash or stock we would contribute to our plans. Our insurance coverage may be inadequate to cover all significant risk exposures. We are exposed to liabilities that are unique to the products and services we provide. We maintain insurance for certain risks and, in some circumstances, we may receive indemnification from the U.S. government. The amount of our insurance coverage may not cover all claims or liabilities and we may be forced to bear substantial costs. For example, liabilities arising from the use of certain of our products, such as aircraft technologies, space systems, spacecraft, satellites, missile systems, weapons, cyber security, border security systems, anti-terrorism technologies, and/or air traffic management systems may not be insurable on commercially reasonable terms. While some of these products are shielded from liability within the U.S. under the SAFETY Act provisions of the 2002 Homeland Security Act, no such protection is available outside the U.S., potentially resulting in significant liabilities. The amount of insurance coverage we maintain may be inadequate to cover these or other claims or liabilities. A significant portion of our customer financing portfolio is concentrated among certain customers and in certain types of Boeing aircraft, which exposes us to concentration risks. A significant portion of our customer financing portfolio is concentrated among certain customers and in distinct geographic regions. Our portfolio is also concentrated by varying degrees across Boeing aircraft product types, most notably 717 and 747-8 aircraft, and among customers that we believe have less than investment-grade credit. If one or more customers holding a significant portion of our portfolio assets experiences financial difficulties or otherwise defaults on or does not renew its leases with us at their expiration, and we are unable to redeploy the aircraft on reasonable terms, or if the types of aircraft that are concentrated in our portfolio suffer greater than expected declines in value, our earnings, cash flows and/or financial position could be materially adversely affected. Risks Related to Labor Some of our and our suppliers’ workforces are represented by labor unions, which may lead to work stoppages. Approximately 47,000 employees, which constitute 33% of our total workforce, were union represented as of December 31, 2020. We experienced a work stoppage in 2008 when a labor strike halted commercial aircraft and certain BDS program production. We may experience additional work stoppages in the future, which could adversely affect our business. We cannot predict how stable our relationships, currently with 10 U.S. labor organizations and 12 non-U.S. labor organizations, will be or whether we will be able to meet the unions’ requirements without impacting our financial condition. The unions may also limit our flexibility in dealing with our workforce. Union actions at suppliers can also affect us. Work stoppages and instability in our union relationships could delay the production and/or development of our products, which could strain relationships with customers and cause a loss of revenues which would adversely affect our operations. Item 1B.