Brendan Nelson on defense policy
From Brendan Nelson, ‘You have to give people incentives’ A journey to liberalism · · Robert Menzies Institute
“The advice I give to all ministers gratuitous advice and certainly to defense ministers is to follow your instincts and you are there to exercise judgment and you've got all this expertise you've got all these people who've spent a lifetime committed to defense to strategic policy and all of those things and in most cases they are right but sometimes they are not and there's a group think that can be particularly dangerous and that's why we elect people to exercise judgment for us.”
On , Brendan Nelson, Senior Vice President; President, Boeing Global at Boeing, spoke about defense policy during Brendan Nelson, ‘You have to give people incentives’ A journey to liberalism on Robert Menzies Institute.
About Brendan Nelson
Dr. Brendan Nelson, President of Boeing Global, has been active in media discussions regarding Boeing's strategic outlook and recent challenges. Following the Air India 171 crash involving a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, Nelson described speculation about the aircraft as "wild speculation that is not consistent with facts" and reiterated the company's "complete confidence" in the 787, noting it has completed 5 million commercial flights and carried 1.2 billion passengers. He stated that the aviation industry is operating in "the most complex environment it's seen since World War II," citing supply chain strains, geopolitical headwinds, and tariff impacts. Nelson discussed Boeing's approach to US tariffs, estimating that tariffs on supply chain components outside the US amount to about half a billion dollars, and advocated for a "reciprocal tariff environment which is tariff-free for aviation." In India, Nelson highlighted Boeing's growing presence, including a $200 million engineering and technology center in Bangalore, 7,000 Indian employees, and 375 Indian suppliers. He said Boeing supports "Prime Minister Modi's vision for India, made in India, for India and for the world" and announced upcoming co-investment and co-production deals in defense and autonomous systems. On sustainability, Nelson stated Boeing's ambition is "to get to net zero in aviation by 2050" and that 85% of its R&D budget is invested in sustainability. He also noted that the company expects approximately $100 billion in revenue and $10 billion in free cash flow by 2025-2026.