Hacker News new | ask | show | jobs
by Dalewyn 726 days ago
Yes, like Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, and now also SpaceX.

Nationalizing Boeing will only make the problem worse, because guess what: Nationalized companies won't fail, so there is absolutely no incentive to be good which is worse than the situation now.
2 comments
spcebar 726 days ago
The three companies you mentioned aren't in commercial aviation, which has been the bulk of discourse about the problems concerning Boeing. There is no other U.S. company in competition with Boeing for commercial aviation. And based on how Boeing has been behaving, it seems like they already feel no incentive to be good.
link
Dalewyn 726 days ago
>commercial aviation, which has been the bulk of discourse about the problems concerning Boeing.

Then you haven't been paying attention. Most of their problems have been in the military aviation sector, between problems and failures in the KC-46 Pegasus, V-2 Osprey, Air Force One version 2, F-15EX, and F/A-18 Super Hornet programmes among others.

Their failures in civilian aviation and space are all intrinsically linked with their military failures all likely having common causes, it's plaguing their entire company from top to bottom across all their markets.

link
ceejayoz 726 days ago
The KC-46 is a 767; AF1 is a 747. Lockheed and Grumman don't compete with those sorts of aircraft; Boeing at the very least holds a monopoly on US-made large airliners.
link
stetrain 726 days ago
Would the US actually let Boeing fail currently?
link
Dalewyn 726 days ago
If the failure is severe enough, ultimately yes. There is only so much bailing out that a capitalist free market country can provide.

No doubt the US government will bail out Boeing at least once, but I would expect that to be it. A one last chance point of no return. If Boeing ever gets to that point and still fails further, the US will have no choice but to have them fail.

On the plus side, it's not like Boeing going under is an actual national security threat. There is nothing wrong with relying on Airbus who will no doubt move into the newly vacant market spaces, we are all NATO allies aren't we? To say nothing of Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman who do a better job of military aviation anyway.

link
stetrain 726 days ago
Just a few years ago the US government imposed a 220% import tariff on imported Bombardier jets to protect domestic commercial airliner manufacturing:

https://www.corporatejetinvestor.com/news/us-government-impo...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CSeries_dumping_petition_by_Bo...

I'm also not sure "we'll probably only bail you out once" is a great position to take in motivating Boeing and its ownership and governance to make major changes to survive as a company.

link