Boeing Unconcerned About Slip To #2 In Market Share

Phil Condit, CEO of Boeing, has expressed a lack of concern about Boeing possibly slipping to #2 in the race for global aircraft market share. Normally, I'm not one to agree with accepting a decline in market share, but in this case, I think that Mr. Condit has it right.

He states that Boeing is more concerned with profitability than it is with market share. In the battle with Airbus, that is a good thing.

Airbus has never truly been upfront with their finances. Most, but not all, of the early sales they won over Boeing were bought. They aircraft were sold under cost, pure and simple. Since those early "victories" they've been able to sell through a combination of using the "family" approach and more buying of market share.

For Boeing to even try to compete with Airbus in the market share arena would be corporate suicide. Airbus has no concern with making profits. Boeing has to have that concern.

The two companies have very different goals. Boeing is company concerned with making profits for the shareholders. Airbus always has been, and likely always will be, a political concern. It is more concerned with the glorification of the French and German aerospace industries, technology industries and workforces than it is with making a single Euro.

I think Boeing has made some mistakes along the way. I think that they have dithered too long on a 747 stretch. I think that they mishandled the 757. Boeing is by no means a perfectly run corporation. In fact, I have even said once or twice that I think that they are being mismanaged.

But this call by Condit is the right one. He knows that Airbus is not playing by the same rules as Boeing, and doesn't have to. Condit has to look out for the best interests of Boeing and in this case that meant giving up market share leadership to Airbus.