in 1916 when Boeing began its journey as an Aero Products Company. At first, they supplied military aircraft to meet the needs of World War I. They were also ferrying mail on the side since it was quite profitable (View Highlight)
in 1934 , the Airmail Act took force and prevented companies from manufacturing planes and delivering mail at the same (View Highlight)
Meanwhile, Airbus emerged on the other side of the ocean. In 1970, folks in Germany, France, Britain, and Spain realized that they didn’t have enough money individually to challenge the US monopoly brought on by Boeing. So they pooled their resources and teamed up to launch Airbus. It was a pan-European effort. (View Highlight)
These aren’t mass-produced. Airbus and Boeing wait for orders and then start putting the planes together. They also need to set up massive manufacturing facilities to meet the growing needs of commercial aviation. (View Highlight)
it’s always a better bet to go with an old dog as opposed to a newcomer. Especially since people’s lives are at stake every time an aircraft takes to the skies.
So it’s damn impossible for you to get a presale if you don’t already have a proven jet. (View Highlight)
Note: Why is it hard for a new company to break the duopoly
But to be fair, not all this money came from their own coffers. Governments in the US and the EU have doled out plenty of subsidies to Boeing and Airbus too. They wanted their own companies to do well. And the World Trade Organization even had to look into these subsidies and make sure it wasn’t in contravention of international trade practices. (View Highlight)
After more than 10 years of working on the project and with billions of dollars of financial support, China’s very own passenger jet, manufactured by aerospace company COMAC, is ready to take to the skies. And considering the Chinese aviation market is set to become the world’s largest within the next decade, maybe they could make a dent. (View Highlight)
