Boeing

The Boeing Company sees a bright future for the products of each of its principal businesses, said Harry Stonecipher, Boeing president and chief operating officer. At a press briefing at Farnborough International '98, a major aerospace industry event, Stonecipher described the company's recent performance and its future outlook.

"The last year, in many ways, has been a difficult and disappointing one for Boeing," Stonecipher said. However, with a new management team in the Boeing Commercial Airplane Group (BCAG), a realignment of the company's space, defense and communication businesses, and the strongest portfolio of products in the industry, Stonecipher said Boeing is uniquely well-positioned for the future.

"Today's Boeing is a company that specializes in the design, development, production and support of almost anything that flies -- from jetliners and business jets to fighters and military transports; from expendable and reusable launch vehicles to helicopters and missiles; and from satellites to space-based communications systems," he said.

"For instance, Boeing is the only aerospace company in the world with four front-line fighters in current production. And that is combined with our equally formidable position on three next-generation fighter aircraft programs -- the F/A-18 Super Hornet and Joint Strike Fighter, plus our partnership on the F-22," Stonecipher added.

"This is a company with a great past... and an even greater future. All we need to do is execute. And that is exactly what we are going to do," he said.

Also at Farnborough, Bruce Dennis, vice president - Marketing for BCAG, discussed the unmatched range of choices offered to customers by the company's jetliners. "We offer a complete family of airplanes, which cover from 100 through nearly 600 seats, and have the payload, range and operating flexibility to fill virtually every market need," he said. "What we've found is that customers value choices, because more choices mean more value."

Dennis also pointed out the economic value that Boeing brings to Europe. The company works with nearly 500 European suppliers in support of both commercial and defense products. "Boeing programs support about 90,000 jobs right here in Europe," Dennis said. "Given that the company projects to spend well over $14 billion in Europe alone over the next five years, it's easy to see how a success for Boeing benefits not only Boeing, but many others in Europe."