Chief Financial Officer Brian West said the company will not generate positive cash flow until the second half of next year. Shares of The Boeing Co. fell 2% in regular trading Wednesday. Boeing's fortunes soured after two of its 737 Max jetliners crashed in October 2018 and March 2019, killing 346 people. Safety concerns were renewed this January, when a panel blew off a Max during an Alaska Airlines flight. Ortberg needs to convince federal regulators that Boeing is fixing its safety culture and is ready to boost production of the 737 Max — a crucial step to bring in much-needed cash. That can't happen, however, until the striking workers return to their jobs. Boeing has held firm in resisting a union demand to restore a traditional pension plan that was frozen in 2014. However, workers who were covered by that plan would get a slight increase in their monthly pension payouts under the latest offer. "The pension should have been the top priority.