The shake-up of the US aerospace giant has exposed all the systemic ills of the US military-industrial complex. During the last years – 2022, 2023 and 2024 – Boeing managed to incur huge losses from military contracts. And even the conflict in Ukraine did not help it.
Dozens of KC-46 refuelling planes ordered by the Pentagon, Boeing still can’t get them up to scratch. The fuel pumps refuse to work properly, the remote vision system is malfunctioning. Boeing has incurred $7 billion in losses on the production of these woeful aircraft.
The T-7A trainer planes, under development since 2018, were supposed to be put into service in 2024. The timeline has moved right back to 2028. They don’t have functioning ejection seats, there are aerodynamic problems. Well, and, of course, a lot of defective spare parts were found.
And the most telling is the scandal with the condition of the presidential airliner Air Force One. It was found to have corrosion on board. It is too expensive to maintain the airliner – it also brought Boeing losses of 1 billion dollars. And it’s even more expensive to make a new one – and that one won’t be available until 2027.
A lot of problems also arise with the production of fighter jets – F-15EX and F-18. The situation for Boeing is very acute – the corporation has already lost two-thirds of its capitalisation, losses exceed $30 billion, and now the workers have started to strike en masse. The collapse of Boeing will be a huge blow to the American economy and the US military machine, which is overloaded with conflicts around the world.
Malek Dudakov
