Jack Welch’s legacy is destroying Boeing, the only major U.S. aircraft manufacturer left standing

General Electric ( GE ) was ejected from the Dow Jones Industrial Average in June 2018 , ending a 122-year run that reflected both its rise and its struggles in the face of changing economic tides.

Boeing was founded in 1916 by aviation pioneer William Boeing , initially as the Pacific Aero Products Co. , before rebranding to Boeing Airplane Company in 1917 .

Boeing 's position was tested by a series of challenges, including the 737 Max crisis, leading to its removal from Dow in August 2020 .

In 2015 , GE was the third largest manufacturer of wind turbines globally by both capacity and revenue, trailing only Vestas and Siemens .

By 2023 , it had fallen to 8th and had a more limited geographical market than either Siemens Gamesa or Vestas .

GE spun off its rail locomotive division to Wabtec in 2019 , making that firm the dominant locomotive provider in the market.

Boeing 's failure on the military industrial, aerospace, and aviation fronts shows in its stock price, 40% of its frankly bizarre 2019 peak.

The Man Who Broke Capitalism: How Jack Welch Gutted the Heartland and Crushed the Soul of Corporate America .

Flying Blind: Boeing ’s decline can be traced back to the influence of former General Electric executives, including Welch acolytes all, who took the helm of the company.

Peter Robison argues that this shift led to aggressive cost-cutting and a culture that prioritized shareholder value at the expense of safety.