Topping projections of a $1.4 billion loss on account of the strike by its machinist union, Boeing has so far incurred a loss of around $3 billion in cash in the last quarter. 

The second-largest commercial-plane maker in the world saw $3 billion in cash evaporate last quarter as a strike by machinists brought to a grinding halt virtually all aircraft production, and hit the company's revenues. It has also cleaned out around 35 cents per share off the company's third-quarter earnings, according to Boeing's chief financial officer James Bell. 

That means the strike has thus far cost Boeing around 1.4 cents per share for every single day since it began on 6 September, till the end of the last quarter. Boeing's profit fell 38 per cent, higher than analyst's expectations.

27,000 machinists from Boeing's facilities in Oregon and Kansas have struck work in protest of Boeing's contract offer with their core disagreement hinging around the company's plans to shift more jobs to non-union and foreign companies. (See: Boeing's strike costs the company $1.4 billion)

Boeing's revenues are determined by deliveries, which have come to a standstill ever since the machinists stopped working on Boeing's planes. However, the company is still well capitalized enough to manage the strike as well as help its customers finance planes if need be. 

Boeing has lost 51 per cent of its market value this year. Its net income dropped to $695 million, or 96 cents a share, from $1.11 billion, or $1.44, a year earlier. Revenue fell 7.4 per cent to $15.3 billion, Boeing said in a statement. A number of analysts had projected around $14.7 billion.

The machinists strike is now in its seventh week, and has further delayed Boeing's 787 Dreamliner programme. The 787 programme is seen as key by Boeing, as it is pinning its hopes on the Dreamliner  to help it regain the number one spot from French rival Airbus SAS. 

Boeing's commercial backlog has risen to $276 billion as of 30 September, from the earlier $275 billion at the end of June, as airlines placed orders for new planes which burn less fuel in the wake of the high jet fuel prices on account of the spike in oil prices. Jet fuel prices had averaged 61 per cent higher in this quarter compared to a year earlier. 

A report by Bloomberg said that the backlog created would take Boeing's striking machinists over seven years to fill once they come back to work. The machinists assemble and paint planes made by Boeing. 

A round of fresh talks is scheduled to begin with the striking members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers at a federal mediator's office in Washington DC this week. Final negotiations are set to commence next week with the Society of Professional Engineering Employees in Aerospace, another union that has threatened to strike that represents 21,000 workers at Boeing.

Boeing's suppliers are also feeling the pressure from the machinists strike, as the company leverages an extensive supply chain for manufacturing its planes. Boeing has outsourced its avionics, communication equipment, seats, landing equipment and even toilet seats to suppliers. 

Recent announcements about earnings have shown that the machinists strike at Boeing is having a ripple effect across the entire aerospace industry. Titanium-fastener supplier Allegheny Technologies Inc. has said that it was entering a period of short-term uncertainty as the Boeing strike enters its seventh week. Allegheny's customers supply to Boeing, and have hesitated on new purchases on account of the stoppage of work at Boeing, the company's CEO Patrick Hassey said on a call to analysts.

The aviation industry has around 230,000 aircraft-manufacturing jobs, and accounts for around $420 billion to $700 billion in terms of annual sales, says data from the Aerospace Industries Association. It also represents around three to four per cent of the annual gross domestic product (GDP) of the US. 

Last week, Eaton Corp, Honeywell International and Cytec Industries also gave relatively conservative outlooks, in part on account of the machinists strike at Boeing. Better diversified companies such as United Technologies Corp. and Rockwell Collins are able to better absorb the impact of the strike.