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Comment by jqpabc123 | Hacker News Reader

Eventually, Boeing management will probably decide it is cheaper to just buy planes from Airbus with the word "Boeing" conspicuously engraved on various components.

American management style is to focus on marketing as the source of all revenue to be exalted. Engineering, design and manufacturing are expenses to be minimized and controlled.

Right now, Boeing management is looking hard to find reasonable manufacturing scapegoats and when they do, heads will roll. Clearly, management had no involvement.

Gives you that warm, fuzzy and safe feeling doesn't it?

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> Boeing management is looking hard to find reasonable manufacturing scapegoats

Bit like when the two planes fell out of the sky and the third world pilots were blamed / strongly hinted at as being inferior

There was some truth to that. The 737 MAX is a hot aircraft (a light airframe with new powerful engines) that could quickly get away from you. Most US pilots come from the military and are typically top notch. Third world pilots to be quite honest, don't measure up in all areas.

Why would an airline buy an Airbus, or a Boeing branded Airbus with Boeing markup?

Because they have no choice. There are currently 2 aircraft companies in the world that make commercial jets: Boeing and Airbus (we'll ignore Comac for now). If Airbus somehow bought up all of Boeing's manufacturing facilities and capability, leaving Boeing as just a re-badger, then airlines would have no choice but to buy an Airbus that either has an Airbus badge or a Boeing badge.

> Why would an airline buy an Airbus

Because they're the best planes available?

> or a Boeing branded Airbus with Boeing markup?

Because the Boeing markup is less than the US import tariff?

People do strange things, like buying John-Deere-badged excavators manufactured by Hitachi, or JD-badged dozers manufactured by Liebherr.

Or JD-badged lawnmowers built by MTD.

They’re already buying an Airbus branded Bombardier with an Airbus markup so why not?

In a word ---- marketing.

For the same reason people currently buy "American" autos (and planes) built from parts sourced around the world.

In American management culture, marketing is the knee jerk solution to any problem and the holy grail from which all revenue is gifted. They are true believers in the "magic" of being able to "game" people into making decisions based on something other than logic.

This same culture explains how/why the internet we have today is built around privacy invasion and (wait for it) ... marketing.

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