Boeing's (NYSE: BA) most important business is Boeing commercial airplanes (BCA), which will likely stay that way for the foreseeable future. However, in an election year, investors will understand the concept of the swing factor, and in Boeing's case, its defense segment, Boeing Defense, Space Security (BDS), is hugely important. Here's why.

To understand the full importance of BDS, it's essential to go back to the investor day presentation in November 2022, when management set a target of $10 billion in free cash flow (FCF) within the 2025/2026 time frame. At the time, management forecast $3 billion to $5 billion in FCF for 2023 (the actual figure came in at $4.4 billion),  which would grow to $10 billion.

Boeing outlined the following targets (see table below) for increasing FCF to reach $10 billion in 2025/2026.

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Source Fool.com