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Plane Wars
Jun. 23rd, 2011 02:52 pm It's interesting living in Seattle and following the aircraft industry. There hasn't beent a lot of coverage of the Paris Airshow after the first few days, which is probably due to stuff like this.
People do like to witter on about how Airbus is subsidized. It is. So is Boeing. But there is something tangible about how Boeing has lost it's footing over the last decade. The 787 sold well, and it's was a good plane. But pilot friends are telling me the test planes are dogs to fly and the test program has been a nightmare. Not to mention the decision to try to screw WA State over taxes even more led them to decided to build the bits globally and just assemble in Washington - the costs of that decision alone must be more than the taxes they have saved themselves.
Then there's their decision to make fun of Airbus on the A380 and end up having to rush a larger version of the 747 to market when it turned out that certain intercontinental airlines really did need something larger than their hairy old 747-400s...
Now, it's sitting on their laurels, or getting distracted by the 787 which is impacting the market for the 737, which is currently getting hammered by the A320neo - and when I say hammered, I mean it. Airbus have announced record orders for the new jet, two there of.
Oh yeah, the Seattle PI did cover the Airbus successes over CHICAGO based Boeing :)
People do like to witter on about how Airbus is subsidized. It is. So is Boeing. But there is something tangible about how Boeing has lost it's footing over the last decade. The 787 sold well, and it's was a good plane. But pilot friends are telling me the test planes are dogs to fly and the test program has been a nightmare. Not to mention the decision to try to screw WA State over taxes even more led them to decided to build the bits globally and just assemble in Washington - the costs of that decision alone must be more than the taxes they have saved themselves.
Then there's their decision to make fun of Airbus on the A380 and end up having to rush a larger version of the 747 to market when it turned out that certain intercontinental airlines really did need something larger than their hairy old 747-400s...
Now, it's sitting on their laurels, or getting distracted by the 787 which is impacting the market for the 737, which is currently getting hammered by the A320neo - and when I say hammered, I mean it. Airbus have announced record orders for the new jet, two there of.
I do hope Boeing pull out of this. But given the vocal nature of some of their major supporters, who also tend to be more, shall we say, Libertarian too, I will sit here with a small amount of European schaudenfreude...
Oh yeah, the Seattle PI did cover the Airbus successes over CHICAGO based Boeing :)
