Boeing picks Mandarin-speaking ex-White House adviser to lead China business

American aviation giant faces headwinds in China, where trade war and safety concerns have led airlines to consider rivals

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An estimated 1,855 Boeing planes are operating in China, where the company has done business for some 50 years. Photo: Reuters

Published: 7:30pm, 25 Oct 2025

Boeing has appointed a former White House adviser with China experience to head its business in the country as stiff headwinds test the American aircraft giant in its second-biggest market after the US.

Boeing announced on its website on Thursday that Landon Loomis would work as the company’s China president.

Boeing senior vice-president Brendan Nelson said in the statement that Loomis’ government experience and previous time in China would “continue to strengthen our long-standing partnership and influence” in the country.

Loomis once served on the executive committee of the US-China Aviation Cooperation Programme, the company statement said. The programme launched in 2004 to improve safety and capacity in Chinese civil aviation.

From 2017 to 2019, before joining Boeing, he worked as an aviation adviser to former US vice-president Mike Pence. His LinkedIn profile notes he has Chinese language skills.

An estimated 1,855 Boeing planes are operating in China, where the company has done business for some 50 years, but analysts said that the 2025 US-China trade war plus the aircraft firm’s safety mishaps in other countries had caused Chinese airlines to give the planemaker second thoughts.

After the US and China began rapidly escalating tariffs in April, at least three new Boeing 737 Max narrowbody jets were turned back to the US after landing in China for use by domestic airlines.

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