The Airbus-Boeing Duopoly Is Extremely Unbalanced
Paying bribes is deplorable; selling an unsafe aircraft is worse. Airbus’s lead over Boeing means it can afford to lift cash returns to investors.
Happier times.
Photographer: ERIC CABANIS/AFPWhenever it’s seemed like Airbus SE might steal a march on Boeing Co., something has come along to throw a spanner in the works. A decade ago Airbus was consistently delivering more planes than its arch-rival but its competitiveness was eroded by the strong euro and the nightmare of building the ill-fated A380 superjumbo.
Until the two recent fatal crashes involving the Boeing 737 Max, it seemed like a similar story. While both companies had brimming order books, Boeing’s cash flow was going through the roof and Airbus was bedeviled by production difficulties on new commercial aircraft and technical troubles involving the A400m military transporter. A long-running World Trade Organization dispute with Boeing tilted in the Americans’ favor. Worst of all, Airbus found itself under investigation by U.K., French and U.S. authorities over allegations it paid bribes to win aircraft orders and violated arms export laws.