STORY: Boeing warned Thursday that it expects a fourth-quarter loss of about $4 billion.

That would be nearly triple Wall Street forecasts.

The glum outlook sent shares in the aerospace giant tumbling, down 3.5% in after-hours trade.

The loss would cap an awful year for Boeing.

Early in 2024, a midair blowout on one of its 737 Max jets revived concerns over the firm's manufacturing quality.

Regulators subsequently capped output of the planes, which are Boeing's best-selling product.

Later in the year, the company faced a crippling strike by West Coast factory workers.

That halted production of several models.

The company has also faced deep problems in its defense and space businesses.

That includes persistent and high-profile problems with its Starliner space capsule.

All told, that saw Boeing rack up nearly $8 billion in losses over the first nine months of 2024.

On Thursday, chief executive Kelly Ortberg said the firm faced "near-term challenges", but had taken big steps towards stability.

Besides ending the strike, he cited moves to raise more than $20 billion in new capital.

But Thursday's outlook suggests Boeing could post a full-year loss to rival a record set in 2020, when its deficit hit almost $12 billion.