You can measure success as a company in a lot of ways. For me, a measure of success for Boeing Commercial Airplanes right now is the plan we have in place for tomorrow, and the validation in the marketplace we're seeing today.

There are other measures, of course. This week when Boeing released its fourth quarter and full-year 2005 performance report we saw a lot of information to feel optimistic about.

One of the items that I'm sure is of interest to Boeing-watchers is the "guidance" provided in the report. And that outlook is for strong growth. In fact BCA airplane deliveries are forecast to grow 36%, from the 290 deliveries last year to approximately 395 airplanes in 2006.

And the expectation is for further growth in 2007 - deliveries in the range of 440 to 445 airplanes. That's an increase of more than 50% over two years!

A moving line and other "lean" manufacturing principles reduced 737 final assembly times by more than 50% and are now being applied to the 777 and 787 lines. Later this month the Renton factory will celebrate a major milestone: the delivery of the 5,000th 737 - the airplane at the head of the line in this photo.

And a word here about something near and dear to what I do every day: product strategy. The market clearly validated BCA's strategy last year. We captured a record 1,029 gross orders from more than 70 separate customers. And we achieved sales records for the 737, 777, and 787 programs.

In addition to the phenomenal demand for the 737, we continue to see outstanding customer interest in the 787. The Dreamliner has now captured 379 orders and commitments from 27 customers around the world. And with the launch of the 747-8, the 777 Freighter, and the 737-900ER programs, as well as the Boeing Converted Freighter (BCF), we're leading the industry in products and services.

Every year has its moments, and last year was a great ride. And we expect great things in 2006 and 2007 as well. We've set some pretty high goals for ourselves. Our global team is going to start the process of assembling the first 787 later this year. And along the way, in everything we do, we'll be carefully managing our supply chain, controlling costs and improving quality and productivity.

Our airplanes backlog grew 89% during 2005 - to more than $124 billion. And one of the great messages I heard this week is that we're going to prudently ramp up to deliver on that. We've got a great product lineup that will allow us to keep adding to that backlog. And leveraging this with increased productivity is going to lead to more good things.

Of course we'll also be focused on meeting our commitments to our customers and listening to their needs. It's all a matter of staying the course and executing our plans, as we aim for success in the years ahead.