Write a short memo, management homework help

Read the following scenario. Write a short memo to Mr. Zhuanglong Jin, the chairman of
Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC). In your memo, briefly describe why he
should or should not continue with his plans for entering the commercial airliner business. Your
memo should not be more than 2 pages, double-spaced, Times New Roman font size 12.

Since the 1990s the global market for full-sized commercial airliners has been dominated by two
companies – Airbus, a European firm, and Boeing, its American competitor. But in theory, at least, airlines
will soon have a wider choice of planes. On November 2nd COMAC, a Chinese state-owned planemaker,
revealed its C919 plane, a competitor to Airbus’s A320 and Boeing’s 737, the two most popular airliners
in the skies. COMAC says the C919 plans to have its maiden flight next year—two years later than first
scheduled—and enter service around 2019.

The Chinese are not the only ones who think they can break the duopoly. After several delays, Irkut, part
of Russia’s state-owned United Aircraft Corporation (UAC), hopes to launch its MC-21 aircraft, another
potential rival to the 737 and A320, into service in 2017.

Many aviation analysts remain skeptical about whether the Chinese and the Russians, even with generous
government financial support, will ever be able to compete against Airbus and Boeing. The C919 will need
mostly Western-designed equipment—including its engines, until China succeeds in making world-class
commercial-airliner engines and equipment. Analysts predict that when it flies, its fuel efficiency will lag
behind that of the newest versions of the Boeing 737 and Airbus A320.

Although the Russians and the Chinese may well be fairly good at designing aircraft, they have little
experience in creating the complex production systems and supply chains needed to build them to the
extremely high standards of reliability and safety that airlines expect. Without first improving their safety
record, they are “not a near-term risk” of Boeing or Airbus, says Jason Gurksy, an aerospace-industry
analyst at Citigroup.