Boeing Becomes the Poor Relation in Duopoly With Airbus
On just about every metric, the European plane maker is trouncing its American rival.
An Airbus A380-800, top left, and a Boeing Co. 777-300ER passenger aircraft, operated by Emirates Airlines, at the 2023 Dubai Air Show.
Photographer: Christopher Pike/BloombergWhen Boeing Co. was building a seemingly unassailable position in commercial aviation in the 1960s and ‘70s, passengers’ faith in its relentless focus on quality inspired the slogan “ if it ain’t Boeing, I ain’t going.”
Following the latest calamity to befall the US aerospace giant — the in-flight blowout of a 737 Max door plug of a plane operated by Alaska Air Group Inc. that fortunately wasn’t fatal, unlike the two crashes involving 737 Max jets in 2018 and 2019 — aviation requires a new catchphrase that encapsulates Boeing’s shattered safety reputation and the ascendancy of its only serious rival. This nervous flier suggests “If it ain’t Airbus, the regular bus will do just fine.”