The fight between Boeing and Bombardier is much more than meets the eye.
The subsidies and government handouts that Bombardier has received are almost a pittance compared to the same kind of lolly that the U.S. government has bestowed upon Boeing.
Bombardier has received $5 billion in subsidies since 1966, and between the Canadian and Quebec governments, over $1.3 billion for the C-Series jet in 2017 alone.
Over the years, Boeing has received $70-billion in government subsidies of one kind or another, plus untold billions of dollars more in state and local subsidies.
It’s the nature of airline manufacturing worldwide: Airbus in France and Embraer in Brazil both benefit similarly.
But the regulators only look at specific instances, not history.
In this case, Canadians may end up holding the bag if this dispute is not resolved in Bombardier’s favour.
Bombardier shares are trading at $2.20 this morning.