Airplane Oligopoly and How it Affects Safety

The recent crashing of two Boeing 737 MAX aircraft has lead to the discussion of whether the airplane oligopoly is negatively impacting the safety of airplanes. This could potentially be the case, since oligopolies have a decreased competition and innovation, and the airplane manufacturing business is indeed an oligopoly. The two big players in the industry are Boeing and Airbus, with a combined 90% market share.
Boeing 737 MAX - Wikipedia

Safety in aircraft is vital, since any fault in the design or production can cause the deaths of hundreds of people. If there was a fault in the Boeing 737 MAX due to the state of oligopoly and possible shortcuts taken, then the recent crashes could have been preventable. With oligopolies, profits usually become the highest priority, and if there was a bribe or corner cut in the FAA approval process then the state of oligopoly has cost people their lives.

In the case of the Boeing 737 MAX, the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) is investigating to see what happened stating, "We continue to work toward a full understanding of all aspects of this accident." They are specifically investigating the automated flight control system and seeing if it follows the guidelines.

More big competitors in the industry could possibly have prevented these accidents by encouraging larger scale innovation and testing to beat competitors. As it stands, oligopoly in the aviation industry has already taken its toll.





https://www.ohio.com/opinion/20190401/other-views-lack-of-competition-in-aircraft-market-is-concern
http://the-japan-news.com/news/article/0005636698
https://www.faa.gov/news/updates/?newsId=93206&omniRss=news_updatesAoc&cid=101_N_U

Comments

  1. AnonymousApril 12, 2019 at 10:40 PM

    Great post! I was not aware that the airline industry was an oligopoly and how it could affect tons of lives because of the lack of caution in safety. Because the airplane companies have reduced competition with each other and are more focused on the profits, they also do not have to try to give customers their best effort. Airlines will not feel the need to satisfy customers; why should they? Since they have consolidated into a couple major companies, they have reduced service and "massively raised the cost" through "increased fares and skyrocketing fees." I have realized that this may also be the reason why I have heard many people near me complain about their recent flight experience. The airline companies have no competition to motivate them in providing the best service.
    https://splinternews.com/airlines-can-treat-you-like-garbage-because-they-are-an-1794192270

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. AustinApril 19, 2019 at 3:41 PM

      I agree. It seems like the air line companies have become all for profit and hardly consider anything else. The case with United for example shows that they always try to maximize their profit with unethical ways, and deal with it in the most disrespectful ways as well. Since the demand of air lines are relatively inelastic, the airline company have the ability to abuse the system,

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