The feeling of a lot of people in Seattle is that the McDonnell-Douglas merger ruined Boeing. What had been a company run by engineers became a company run by bean-counters, and that has led to a certain lack of innovation in design. For instance, the 737 first flew in 1967, designed to be an airliner that could service small, even primitive airfields, and should have been retired decades ago. Instead it's been through four generations and 13 different models.

(I'm a Boeing baby -- my parents met and married while both were employed at Boeing, and I'm really sad at what the company has become.)