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By Karl Sinclair

Oct. 14, 2024, © Leeham News: As newly minted CEO Kelly Ortberg struggles to deal with striking workers from the International Aerospace Machinists (IAM) union in the Seattle and Portland (OR) areas, calls continued for the Boeing Company (BA) to shed one or more of the divisions that make up the corporate entity.

• Boeing 3Q2024 financial results to be released Oct. 23

Some point to the turnaround at General Electric, which has now become the standalone GE Aerospace (GE), after a series of divestitures and consolidations into three business units, with two being sold, as a model that Boeing should follow.

While the prospect seems to be rather straightforward, it is far more complex and intertwined than simply throwing up a for sale sign on the front door of an underperforming or unwanted business segment. It might be better to ride out the current storm as a whole and focus efforts on fixing what ails the patient, rather than cutting off a limb.