Industry Airbus announces overhaul of its top management

Airbus has announced a series of Executives changes.

Tom Enders (59) has advised the Board that he does not wish to seek another term as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) beyond his current mandate which runs until the 2019 Annual Shareholders Meeting (April 2019).

Fabrice Bregier (56), Airbus Chief Operating Officer & President Airbus Commercial Aircraft has indicated to the Board that, as he does not intend to be part of the selection process for the CEO position in 2019, he will step down in February 2018 and pursue other interests.

“The privilege of serving this great company comes with a responsibility to support a smooth succession when the time is ripe. In 2019, I will have served all together 14 years at the helm of Airbus and EADS. It’s been a long and exciting journey but now is the time to initiate a leadership change. We need fresh minds for the 2020s. In the coming 16 months, I will work with the Board to ensure a smooth transition to the next CEO and a new generation of leaders; I will focus on our business challenges; and I will further progress and strengthen our ethics and compliance programmes,” said Tom Enders.

Guillaume Faury (49), currently CEO of Airbus Helicopters, will succeed Fabrice in his role as President Airbus Commercial Aircraft.

In the last months, Airbus had to deal with a corruption scandal in the UK and France as well as engine problems in the A320 Family fleet.