For the last 50 years, the United States has been the leading supplier of LCA to the world. Changes in the structure of the global LCA industry and its market may ultimately affect the U.S. industry's continued dominance, as competition increases and aspiring producers seek to enter the market. The ongoing restructuring of the Airbus business operations could, if successful, significantly lower its cost of doing business and enhance its competitive position visà-vis Boeing. The two major Russian producers - Ilyushin and Tupolev - have a long history of LCA design and production for their domestic and former Soviet bloc markets, and are interested in expanding to other export markets. Currently, the principal markets for LCA are the United States, Western Europe, and the Asia-Pacific region.

Covers: structure of the global large civil aircraft industry and the market, determinants of competitiveness, government policies influencing competitiveness, overview and comparison of R&D, Western European government budgets, aircraft agreements, and more. Glossary and bibliography. 30 charts, tables and graphs.

This book provides a state-of-the-art overview of the changes and development of the civil international aircraft/aviation industry. It offers a fully up-to-date account of the international developments and structure in the aircraft and aviation industries from a number of perspectives, which include economic, geographical, political and technological points of view. The aircraft industry is characterized by very complex, high technology products produced in relatively small quantities. The high-technology requirements necessitate a high level of R&D. In no other industry is it more of inter-dependence and cross-fertilisation of advanced technology. Consequently, most of the world’s large aircraft companies and technology leaders have been located in Europe and North America. During the last few decades many developing countries have tried to build up an internationally competitive aircraft industry. The authors study a number of important issues including the political economy of the aircraft industry, globalization in this industry, innovation, newly industrializing economies and the aircraft industry. This book also explores regional and large aircraft, transformation of the aviation industry in Central and Eastern Europe, including engines, airlines, airports and airline safety. It will be of great value to students and to researchers seeking information on the aircraft industry and its development in different regions.

Covers: structure of the global large civil aircraft industry and the market, determinants of competitiveness, government policies influencing competitiveness, overview and comparison of R&D, Western European government budgets, aircraft agreements, and more. Glossary and bibliography. 30 charts, tables and graphs.