Cindy Fu

Japan Airlines has decided to switch and purchase its very first ever European manufacturer Airbus jets, instead of its traditional U.S. Boeing jets. This decision, made by the JAL on its own without any consultation from the government despite sinking into bankruptcy just three years ago. It only re-emerged through a government bailout.

This shows that competition can appear unexpectedly, even with a key partnership that you have built a relationship with for 50 years. It is of the companies’ best interest to do what will maximize efficiency. JAL switches to Airbus because it was well suited to their needs, but when the time comes, will the cost of training new pilots be too expensive for JAL, sending them to lose a big sum of money? The decision was made, and it definitely shocked US aircraft manufacturer Boeing, which must now look for a way to deal with the sudden lost. It is hard to forecast such decisions, but what should Boeing do? It could firstly re-invent its image by creating something positive to counteract the negativity around 787 jets.

Source:

“Japan Airlines chooses Airbus over Boeing for new jet order – Business – CBC News.” CBC.ca – Canadian News Sports Entertainment Kids Docs Radio TV. N.p., n.d. Web. 8 Oct. 2013. <http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/japan-airlines-chooses-airbus-over-boeing-for-new-jet-order-1.1928080>.