The content of this article is written with authoritative information combined with personal opinions, and the specific information is repeated in the article and at the end of the article!
Due to the tariffs, China has suspended receiving Boeing aircraft since April 18 and has also returned three in a week.
Boeing President Kelly Altberg also confirmed the incident in an interview, but then he said that "give China one more chance" to let China take the planes or give them to other customers.
How did he say such "threatening" words?
The double whammy of finance and competition
Because of various air crashes, Boeing has fallen into a "dilemma", with a loss of $14 billion in 2024 alone, and this situation is continuing this year, which makes the company's leaders urgently want to sell a few planes to return to "blood".
However, aircraft accidents, delayed deliveries, and endless quality problems have made Boeing's brand smashed, and it can be said that it is very difficult to sell it.
To alleviate the enormous pressure caused by the shortage of funds, Boeing had to relentlessly sell assets to obtain funds, including a $10.55 billion digital aviation business.
Boeing is even considering selling its proud space exploration business, which has been working closely with the authorities and includes a difficult Starliner spacecraft project and a project to support the operation of the International Space Station.
The sale of the core business may bring in quick capital and temporarily alleviate the predicament, which is like a shot in the arm, but in the long run, it will undoubtedly weaken Boeing's key competitiveness, affect future technological innovation and market expansion, and eventually lead to its competitive disadvantage and gradual lag behind.
In recent years, European Airbus has gradually seized the Boeing market with comprehensive products and excellent reputation, like a seasoned hunter.
Airbus not only has a richer product range than Boeing, but also does a better job of after-sales service and customer relations, which has won the support of more airlines, so it has put a lot of pressure on Boeing.
Although some new companies are not large now, they rely on innovative and flexible sales methods to grab business from large companies little by little, and their strength should not be underestimated.
However, Boeing's troubles are not only due to the influence of external factors, but also to the concentrated outbreak of its own long-standing problems.
From the Alaska Airlines door disengagement incident, to the crash of 737-800 on Jeju Island in South Korea, to the failure of the starliner space mission thrusters, almost every once in a while, Boeing has a new safety issue, each time making the global aviation industry highly nervous.
These accidents have brought tragic casualties and property damage to many people, and at the same time, Boeing's reputation and position in the market have also been severely damaged, and the good image that it has built in the past has been greatly negatively affected.
Boeing's problems are not only serious safety accidents, but the continuous decline in product quality is also damaging the company's foundation like a chronic poison, and delivery delays and repeated aircraft repairs have become common problems for Boeing, causing great headaches for customers.
In the face of Boeing's problems, domestic airlines have also suspended the receipt of new Boeing aircraft, Xiamen Airlines has returned two Boeing planes to the United States, Air China has flown a Boeing 737 Max aircraft from the Zhoushan Boeing Completion Center to Seattle, and Juneyao Airlines has also postponed its plans to receive Boeing 787 aircraft, all of which are strong indicators of the attitude of Chinese airlines.
And most importantly, the price, in April 2025, after the United States imposed a 145% tariff on China, China's countermeasures increased the import tax rate to 125%-130%, and the cost of a single Boeing 737 MAX soared from $110 million to more than $230 million.
And there are not only Boeing aircraft in the world, so in an unfriendly tariff-friendly environment, Boeing aircraft will definitely not continue to choose, and in 2025, Boeing and China have 50 orders, and the follow-up may also be lost, and the minimum damage will be about 1.2 billion US dollars.
This is a very big blow to Boeing, which is very pinching you, but they are helpless, in an interview, Boeing President Kelly Altberg also said that it is because of the tariffs that caused the disappearance of Chinese orders.
But in order for Boeing to make a quick comeback, he is still willing to give China a chance, if China is really willing to accept these planes, otherwise he plans to sell the planes to other customers after waiting for a while.
Boeing President Kelly Altberg
As everyone knows, China is vigorously developing its own aircraft manufacturing industry, carefully cultivating its own aviation industry, domestic C919 large passenger aircraft began mass production and put into commercial operation, symbolizing that China's aviation industry has made a major breakthrough, like a butterfly out of the cocoon, fluttering wings and soaring.
C919 technology is becoming more and more mature, flight stability, maintenance cost is relatively low, has won the market's praise, but also more and more popular with passengers, which reduces the dependence of domestic airlines on foreign aircraft, so that China's aircraft manufacturing can develop independently, access to a very rare opportunity.
C919
Boeing said that China did not accept planes because of tariffs, which is actually a very good reason, like a piece of cloth used to cover up ugliness. Indeed, the Trump administration's protectionist policies have made Boeing's life less easy, costs have risen, and it has become more difficult to sell planes in China.
However, tariffs are not the main problem, they can only be regarded as minor troubles, and Boeing's own aircraft quality and management problems are the big problems, just like a disease that is difficult to cure, which is the key reason for its troubles in the Chinese market. These problems are more far-reaching than the impact of tariffs, and they are also things that Boeing needs to seriously face and solve.
Altberg claimed that "emerging markets such as India and Vietnam can fill the gap in China", and stressed that Boeing has $540 billion in orders, but the reality is that although Air India is interested in taking over the aircraft returned by China, it needs to recustomize the cabin configuration, the transaction cost is extremely high, and the price of Boeing aircraft has risen by 40% in recent years, making it difficult to resell.
Boeing is not only a civil aviation giant, but also the core of the U.S. military industry, China's suspension of receiving aircraft directly impacted its annual revenue of more than 20 billion US dollars, Boeing's stock price plummeted 18% in a single day, the U.S. government in order to contain China's development, at the expense of corporate interests, and Boeing was forced to become a "hostage" of the trade war.
epilogue
Boeing's "threat" is actually a helpless struggle under the trade war and technology game. China's independent innovation and supply chain resilience with C919 proves that "market advantage needs to be transformed into technological initiative".
C919
For Boeing, the loss of the Chinese market is not only a blow to revenue, but also a loss of voice in the global industrial chain; For China, this is a historical opportunity to move from a "follower" to a "rule-maker", leaving the United States with little time
Article sources:
The original article was published in Hunan Daily ---2025.04.24: "Boeing confirms: China has stopped receiving new aircraft"
The original article was published on China's State --- 2025.04.21: "News: Affected by tariffs, China has suspended the receipt of Boeing aircraft, and the 737 Max has been returned to the United States"