Originally Posted by 2StgTurbine

Well, that's the real issue. The far-right will always say "But in a real free market, X wouldn't happen." So what's a real free market? No FAA oversight? How would Boeing get caught cutting corners if the federal government wasn't defining those corners? In a real free market, there wouldn't be an FAA to enforce or establish commercial airline standards. Anyone could start making a jet and sell it to anyone who felt like operating an airline. That company would have to establish a reputation of building quality safe aircraft to succeed. Except, in reality, their customers (the airlines) want an efficient airplane that is safe enough. As economic pressures build, the "safe enough" standard slips.

I think the 737MAX issue would have happened in free market anyway. Boeing was designing an airplane that was cheap for airlines to operate. It was in both Boeing's interest and the airlines for the 737MAX not to need additional training. Everyone was happy to look the other way. And the final argument for a real free market is that the public would punish these bad actors by not giving them business. The world is way too complicated for the general public to keep track of these issues. No one cares about the MAX anymore. At most, people might say, "Is this the plane that had the problem?" By that point, they bought their ticket and boarded the plane.