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Introduction

April 4, 2016, © Leeham Co.: Boeing should forget about competing with Airbus for market share.

The Airbus A320neo. Airbus has won the single-aisle battle between the neo and Boeing 737 MAX. Boeing needs to refocus its goal. Photo via Google images.

Airbus already has won the neo/MAX battle. This is a battleground Boeing will not retake for the lives of these airplanes.

Airbus has led Boeing in wide-body, passenger airplane sales for most of the past several years. (Boeing smashes Airbus in wide-body cargo aircraft sales.) This sector will remain competitive.

Instead, Boeing should concentrate on profit margin and roll the dice on a clean-sheet, new single-aisle airplane as its best hope of recovering the dominance it long held over Airbus.

Summary

• Airbus has won the single-aisle competition with the A320neo family. Boeing has no hope of catching up in the next 10 years.
• Airbus is competitive in wide-body sales (excluding freighters). This is the new battleground.
• Boeing should “maintain” 737 market share and focus on margin across the 7-Series instead.
• Boeing’s hope to regain the leadership in the single-aisle sector is the next generation aircraft.