re: B-747 development
I am somehow reticent Boeing "bet the company and won" multiple times. What if the recent bribe scandal involving Boeing and US Military has deep roots? What may appear as a genuine effort to build a new aircraft by using internal resources, can be very well a fully subsidized government effort. The money doesn't have to go directly to the new design. The government can pay twice as much for existing contracts and keep Boeing afloat while it's doing new development.