The Boeing Company BA recently reported delivery figures of its commercial and defense operations for the third quarter of 2021. The figures reflect a massive improvement of 203.6% in commercial shipments from the previous year’s tally while defense shipments remained unchanged year over year.Combining both segments, Boeing’s total deliveries in the third quarter were 122 units compared with 65 units delivered in the year-ago period.Q3 Commercial Deliveries DetailsBoeing reported commercial deliveries of 85 airplanes in third-quarter 2021, which increased significantly from the prior-year tally of 28, primarily driven by solid 737 deliveries and to some extent, improved deliveries for 767 jets.Shipments of the 737 totaled 66 compared with only 3 in the year-ago period. The company delivered 11 767 jets during the quarter compared with 6 767 jets sold in the year-earlier period. Shipments of the 777 model totaled 6 compared with 5 in the previous year’s third quarter whereas the delivery figure for 747 reached two at the end of September 2021 from last year’s tally of one.However, the aerospace giant delivered none of its 787 Dreamliner jets in the third quarter of 2021 compared with the 13 jets it supplied in the last year’s September quarter.Factors Behind Delivery FiguresEver since Boeing’s 737 Max got the flight approval from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) last November, the jet major has ramped up its delivery rate for the same.Moreover, with the air traffic statistics having improved over the past few months, led by a smooth rollout of the coronavirus vaccines, the airlines got encouragement to hike their flight routes, thereby boosting their delivery intake rates as well.However, quality flaws in 787 Dreamliner caused a temporary halt in the delivery flow of this product line during the third quarter. Until the FAA approves Boeing's proposals for inspecting the 787 fleet with a view to ensure that the quality issues on each jet are fixed, there will be no deliveries for the Dreamliner jets.Boeing vs. AirbusIt is imperative to mention in this context that Boeing’s arch rival Airbus SE EADSY delivered a total of 127 commercial aircraft in the third quarter of 2021.Considering the 85 commercial aircraft deliveries made by Boeing, the European aircraft giant remained quite a step ahead in terms of commercial deliveries during the third quarter.A Brief Look at Defense DeliveriesIn its defense and space business, Boeing’s deliveries totaled 37 in third-quarter 2021, which came in line with the prior-year period’s tally.We now wait to see how other prominent combat jet manufacturers like Lockheed Martin LMT and Embraer ERJ report their delivery numbers for the third quarter.Price MovementBoeing’s share price has gained 36.9% in the past year against the industry’s decline of 9.4%.Image Source: Zacks Investment ResearchZacks RankBoeing currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. Zacks Names "Single Best Pick to Double" From thousands of stocks, 5 Zacks experts each have chosen their favorite to skyrocket +100% or more in months to come. From those 5, Director of Research Sheraz Mian hand-picks one to have the most explosive upside of all. You know this company from its past glory days, but few would expect that it's poised for a monster turnaround. Fresh from a successful repositioning and flush with A-list celeb endorsements, it could rival or surpass other recent Zacks' Stocks Set to Double like Boston Beer Company which shot up +143.0% in a little more than 9 months and Nvidia which boomed +175.9% in one year.Free: See Our Top Stock and 4 Runners Up >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report The Boeing Company (BA): Free Stock Analysis Report Lockheed Martin Corporation (LMT): Free Stock Analysis Report EmbraerEmpresa Brasileira de Aeronautica (ERJ): Free Stock Analysis Report Airbus Group (EADSY): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research