Boeing President Kelly Ortberg has announced that the company would lay off 17,000 workers worldwide in the near future. In an email sent to all employees, the company stated, "Our business is in a difficult position, and it is hard to overstate the challenges we face together. Beyond navigating our current environment, restoring our company requires tough decisions and we will have to make structural changes to ensure we can stay competitive and deliver for our customers over the long term." The reduction will include senior executives, managers, and employees, and is expected to delay contracts for both new and existing aircraft deliveries. The decision is likely to impact Israel in both the civilian and military sectors. El Al has made heavy use of Boeing jets since its founding and was negotiating for dozens more just a few months ago. Boeing also supplies a portion of the larger airliners that the IAF uses to carry out its aerial refueling maneuvers, a crucial link in Israel's long-range strike capacity, and is one of many aerospace and defense contractors that regularly bids for Israeli manufacturing or service tenders in several fields. The decision to lay off 10 percent of Boeing's worldwide workforce comes after 33,000 Boeing workers in Washington and Oregon went on strike a month ago and shut down production of the company's 737 jets over a pay dispute. The two sides have yet to resolve the impasse. Related articles: ‘Company took shortcuts when fixing 787 aircraft’’ US-Israel defense chiefs conclude working meeting Watch: Airplane's wheel falls off seconds after takeoff As Iran nuclear talks continues, Israel buys 4 refueling tankers In addition, Boeing has experienced a number of serious safety incidents, with parts of its aircraft breaking off, some during flight. Former senior Boeing employees have testified that the company has been lax in safety standards and has installed inappropriate parts on some of its aircraft. The string of crises has led to a plunge in the value of Boeing stock, which fell a further 1.6 percent shortly after the announcement of the planned mass layoffs at the company.
