Posted on 04/27/2022 12:41:02 PM PDT by CodeToad
The company revealed that it has lost $660 million outfitting the next presidential jets—so far.
Boeing should have rejected then-President Donald Trump’s proposed terms to build two new Air Force One aircraft, the company’s CEO said Wednesday.
Dave Calhoun spoke Wednesday on the company’s quarterly earnings call, just hours after Boeing disclosed that it has lost $660 million transforming two 747 airliners into flying White Houses.
“Air Force One I'm just going to call a very unique moment, a very unique negotiation, a very unique set of risks that Boeing probably shouldn't have taken,” Calhoun said. “But we are where we are, and we're going to deliver great airplanes.”
Then-President Trump, an aviation enthusiast, took a keen interest in the new presidential jets, involving himself in everything from contract negotiations to the plane’s color scheme. As part of the deal, Boeing signed a fixed-price contract that required the company, not taxpayers, to pay for any cost overruns during the complicated conversion of the two airliners.
In February 2018, the Air Force signed a nearly $4 billion deal with Boeing to convert two 747-8 airliners into a VIP configuration with conference rooms, sleeping quarters, communications gear, and amenities that allow the president to work as if he were at the White House. Along with other costs related to building the planes—for instance, a new hangar complex at Joint Base Andrews just outside of Washington—the Air Force One program is expected to cost taxpayers $5.3 billion.
When the deal was finalized, the White House claimed Trump’s negotiations saved taxpayers $1.4 billion. Boeing’s struggles to build the new planes might in fact save taxpayers more than that when the planes are finally delivered.
(Excerpt) Read more at defenseone.com ...
They negotiated away cost overruns on a multi year contract.
Exactly my point.
Yeah, but this may be just the opening salvo of Boeing getting three times as much money as they agreed to from Biden.
Trump had leverage because he knew the truth about Boeing: its business model relies on special privileges and subsidies from the US government that Trump could endanger. Moreover, Airbus would have gladly provided a winning money-losing bid for Air Force One just to tout the award as proof that its airliners are the best in the world.
“ Trump made a great deal for the taxpayers”
Should have been the headline
But they didn’t have to kick back to Trump. That saved some bucks.
🤣
Obama One?
Or is that racisis?
Boeing AF1’s should be a known quantity for Boeing.
True enough and the DOD has elevated the practice to an art form.
20 years ago, Boeing had a habit of hiring at $65/hr and then laying people off for 8 months, rinse, repeat. It’s a wonder anyone bothered to work there. Other companies hired for less, but worked their people all year long. Boeing did that for years.
“The Art of The Deal?”
The Deep State will bail out Boeing with “change orders” that really are not.
The core competency of all federal contractors IS strategic incompetence.
And the government is a full blown enabler. And most of the time that’s exactly what is intended.
THE ART OF THE DEAL
BOEING & others depend on contract changes over everything.
NOT this time.
Prolly right about that. a few well placed “donations” and the contract issue will be resolved in Boeing’s favor. Its how DC works and Boeing knows well how to play the game.
Maybe with government contracts, but not on the ones I was involved with. The only wiggle room I allowed was a bit of fudging on length of time the CO would add to the completion schedule.
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