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by carabiner 1323 days ago
Puff piece as we head into the weekend. Not a bad summary of decades old concepts, but Boeing won't touch these things due to shareholder conservatism even though they are fundamentally better than the tube with wings. If there were a SpaceX of commercial jets, this is what they would build.
1 comments
ozzythecat 1323 days ago
I was going to call it a puff piece, but as far as Boeing is concerned:

> Boeing won't touch these things due to shareholder conservatism

My spouse worked for Boeing. My son currently works for Boeing. Change is the slowest and most difficult thing to bring about at Boeing. It’s part of Boeing’s DNA.

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carabiner 1323 days ago
Exactly. I worked for Boeing as an intern and the entire industry is like this. It's basically 90% of aerospace, outside of the startups, is like IBM, Oracle. These companies have extraordinary history (facilities from WW2! god damn museums with their products! rise and fall tied with global geopolitics, seeing armed security and international VIP's at the guarded entrances) but will never innovate unless put up against a wall.

At my university, wind tunnels had a black curtain that could be used to conceal the test section contents. During the Cold War, they used it to prevent casual onlookers from witnessing confidential design work for the govt.

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keepquestioning 1323 days ago
Tell them to work for Boom Aerospace.
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