US aircraft manufacturer Boeing is often credited for having catalyzed the ‘Jet Age’ by launching its popular 707 series in the late 1950s. Since then, it has become an industry juggernaut. Today, it forms one half of the powerful Airbus-Boeing manufacturing duopoly. These two companies have a dominant share in various different airliner markets. To date, each has produced numerous successful aircraft families, but what should we expect from Boeing going forward?
Where is Boeing at right now?
Boeing will be hoping that 2021 represents a more successful year that allows it to put the difficulties of 2020 to the back of its mind. Of course, the ongoing coronavirus pandemic heavily impacted almost every facet of the airline industry, and Boeing was not the only company to suffer. However, the timing of the global crisis was also far from ideal for the manufacturer.
Before the pandemic, Boeing had already been struggling with the fallout of the grounding of the Boeing 737 MAX. This came about in March 2019 after two similar fatal accidents involving the type within months of one another. The difficulties that arose from this situation were then compounded by the pandemic, resulting in a $12 billion loss for the company in 2020. Last year was also Boeing’s worst on record in terms of order cancellations.