Richard Aboulafia, an analyst with the Teal Group, called the JSTARS replacement a "great idea in need of a champion."

"In terms of technology, it makes so much sense to recapitalize," Aboulafia said. "Anything that gets you from a four-engine obsolete jetliner to a modern twinjet just pays for itself very quickly, gives you a lot more operational flexibility too, and by the way it also presents a smaller target for the enemy."

According to Richard Aboulafia, an aerospace analyst with the research firm Teal Group Corp., "These coalition partners have already bought quite a bit of weapons from American weapons makers." He added in his interview with Hennigan: "After a campaign like this, they're likely to buy more."

Shifting 777X work to St. Louis will help Boeing reinforce its industrial and political presence in an area hit hard by the downturn in U.S. military spending, said Richard Aboulafia, analyst with the Virginia-based Teal Group.

He said the decision also reflected Boeing's desire to build more commercial parts in-house after it ran into quality and schedule problems with 787 parts made by outside suppliers. "This will reduce risk on commercial jet programs," he said.

The State Department officials acknowledged that the definition of maritime security will likely include aircraft. And for a US industrial base that is hoping for foreign sales to boost profits amid domestic budget cuts, Vietnam could represent a goldmine, said Richard Aboulafia of the Teal Group.

"There is a very high degree of inevitably that one day Vietnam will be a major US defense equipment market, and for quite a few years they've been heading in that direction," Aboulafia said. "Once again, the No. 1 promoter of the US cause, in terms of diplomacy, military cooperation and defense sales, is Beijing."

Foreign military sales of the A-29, like the LAS contract, is one possibility. But that market is relatively small, said Richard Aboulafia of the Teal Group, and unlikely to expand. "I don't know what would make this market go away," he said, noting the market tends to average 18 to 24 planes a year. "On the other hand, I can't think of anything that would drive it upwards."