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Introduction:
Boeing (named after its founder William Boeing), founded in the early 1900s, had to struggle
through its early years. However the World War II (1939-45) saw a big jump in its production
when it produced B-17 and B-29 bombers for the US Air Force. It entered the commercial
segment around the same time and produced the first jet airliner 707 in the late 1950s. The first
jumbo jet, Boeing 737 went into production by the end of the 1960s. It also produced rockets for
the Apollo space programs.
Until 1970, the global civilian aircraft industry market was dominated by three American giants,
Boeing, Lockheed Martin and McDonnell Douglas. In 1970, to counter the American monopoly
of the aircraft industry, European countries launched the Airbus consortium. The consortium
initially involved French and German companies, but later, British and Spanish companies came
aboard. The European governments subsidized the company arguing that it was an infant industry
and needed to be supported till it established itself in the market. Its A-320 (introduced in 1984)
soon became its flagship product and continued to be one for more than a decade and a half.
From being considered as a nuisance value, Airbus, by 2003, had become a market leader,
commanding a little more than 50% of the market share.
Since 1970, the two companies, Airbus and Boeing, supported by their respective governments,
took their battle to every corner of the world to capture greater share of the market. This often
resulted in quarrels over trade practices adopted by the two players. Both the US and European
governments accused each other of supporting the respective companies to drive the other out of
business.
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