In recent months, EADS conducted a strategy review, which has paved
the way for two important Board decisions.
Firstly, the Group plans to integrate Airbus Military, Astrium and
Cassidian into one Defence and Space Division.
Secondly, the Group will enhance integration and cohesion by
renaming the Group and its Divisions using the globally recognised Airbus
brand.
The Airbus Group will consist of three Divisions:
- ? Airbus, responsible for all commercial aircraft activities;
- ? Airbus Defence & Space, home to the Group’s defence and space activities including Military Transport Aircraft;
- ? Airbus Helicopters, comprising all commercial and military helicopter activities.
The company is predicting that this structural change will provide
optimised market access, cost and market synergies and improved competitiveness
overall.
Airbus Helicopters, with its civil and military products, will
remain unchanged.
Implementation is planned to start step-by-step on 1 January 2014
and will be completed in the second half of 2014. It is designed to support the
Group’s Flightpath 2015 for improved shareholder returns.
Several regulatory milestones, works council consultations and other
approval procedures have to be accomplished before the changes can come into
full effect.
Airbus Defence & Space will be a division with around 45,000
employees and an annual turnover of about € 14 billion and will be
headquartered in Munich, Germany.
The chief executive officer of Airbus Defence & Space will be Bernhard
Gerwert and it will consist of four business segments – Military Aircraft,
headed by Domingo Ureña-Raso, Space Systems, headed by François Auque, Communication,
Intelligence & Security Systems, headed by Evert Dudok and Equipment,
headed by Thomas Müller. Julian Whitehead will be the Division’s Chief
Financial Officer.