Boeing employees assemble 787s inside their main assembly building on their campus in North Charleston, South Carolina, U.S., May 30, 2023. Gavin McIntyre/Pool via REUTERS

Dec 2 (Reuters) - Boeing expects higher deliveries for its 737 and 787 jets next year, its finance chief said on Tuesday, sending shares of the planemaker up about 6% in morning trading.

The U.S. planemaker has been trying to change its image and win a narrow-body race for orders with Airbus after a more than five-year corporate crisis disrupted production and sent it deeply into debt.

"When you now fast forward to 2026, we're going to be increasing our deliveries," Boeing CFO Jay Malave said while speaking at a UBS conference.

The higher plane deliveries, coupled with improvements from its defense and space unit, are expected to be Boeing's primary drivers for better margins in 2026, Malave added.

He also expects Boeing's 737-10 narrow-body jet to be certified later in the year, adding that he was confident the planemaker would deliver on its annual $10 billion free cash flow target. Boeing's shares have risen nearly 5% so far this year.

The company has, however, historically lagged well behind Airbus, in part due to the success of the European planemaker's A321neo jets and as a series of safety and industrial mishaps from its 737 series hit its reputation.

(Reporting by Nathan Gomes in Bengaluru; Editing by Leroy Leo)