Manufacturing & Supply Chain

In aircraft manufacturing, if suppliers want to bet on a winning horse, it looks like larger 737s and A320s are it.

The Tempest development concept leaves room for Japan to pursue its own fighter. Conceivable alternatives are the FCAS and indigenous development.

If parts of the industry are going back to square one or close to it with electric technology, Japanese newcomers may have opportunities.

Aerospace business growth continues to be driven by the two narrowbody leaders, and especially their larger variants.

Certification could come in 2019, but service return will not be until well into next year.

Veterans from the former L-3 Communications and Gabelli investment family are moving to piece together a publicly traded C4ISR giant. The timing may be perfect.

October 2019 may go down in history as a New Space turning point: the first publicly traded human spaceflight company and the first space holding company.

With Muilenburg’s demotion from chairman due to the MAX, a whole host of issues at Boeing now face a different cast of decision-makers and new conditions.

Due to moderate oil prices and the relatively low level of technology of weapons involved in the attack, the effect on A&D is likely to be muted for now.

Struggling with the A320-family production ramp-up and A321 delivery delays, Airbus bets on robots.

Infrastructure spending is a hot-button issue ahead of next year’s presidential election. The president may win the issue, for reasons important to A&D.

The defense electronics business could change dramatically, shaking up the Pentagon and industry alike. M&A deals are already rocking the landscape.

At best, the answer is a definite “maybe.” But the environment could be set to force a change.

Cowen & Co. analysts think offensive hypersonics alone could be $1.5-3 billion a year by the mid-2020s.

Embracing hybrid-electric aviation could boost the aerospace sector’s appeal, prolong the long-term 4-5% annual growth in air travel and stimulate the regional market.

Are you a stressed-out 737 supplier, stretched to your fiscal limits by the roller-coaster production rates? Call First Bank of Boeing now! Operators are standing by.

Lawmakers are saying defense contractors may make too much profit and that federal contractors should turn over their price and cost data.

Perhaps the aerospace industry should reconsider banking on Chinese growth—it might have to, and sooner than it thinks.

The Boeing 737 MAX is likely to be back up flying paying passengers long before the true cost of recent fatal accidents becomes clear on Boeing’s bottom line.

Boeing’s 737 production cut may turn out to be the extra time the supply chain needs—but now suppliers will have no excuse in a future rate hike.

If the Trump administration can talk with the Taliban and North Korea, surely it can work with the EU and Airbus to end the aircraft subsidy dispute at the WTO.

OEMs and Tier 1s must be vigilant about lower-tier suppliers and a possible working capital crunch they could face in coming years.

Perhaps the gods of capitalism demanded one real sacrifice on the altar of total shareholder return. If so, let us hope Arconic satiates them.

Being in the black is always a good thing in business, and being in black programs is a favorite place for many defense primes. But sometimes there is a price to pay, like now.

January was not kind for space businesses. If it is a bellwether for the rest of the year, 2019 might be a year of de-orbiting some expectations.