One of my uncles was an engineer at Boeing and said he felt the Imperial system was a competitive advantage (30 years ago) when competing with BAE and other non

One of my uncles was an engineer at Boeing and said he felt the Imperial system was a competitive advantage (30 years ago) when competing with BAE and other non-US companies. He claimed the standard thicknesses of rolled sheet metal in the U.S. provided better graduations between thicknesses and led to lighter engines.