by Tim Hepher

PARIS (Reuters) – Airbus is considering a management reshuffle to de facto reinstate a separate director for its commercial aviation division and free up executive chairman Guillaume Faury to focus on broader strategic priorities, people familiar with the matter said.

At present, Guillaume Faury combines the functions of general manager of the commercial aircraft division of Airbus, in the midst of post-COVID disruption, and executive chairman of the aerospace and defense group as a whole – a position to which he was confirmed last year.

According to the sources, a series of crises, notably problems in the supply chains, have prompted the world’s main aircraft manufacturer to change its plans: instead of preparing a potential succession, the possibility of reorganizing the management is now being examined in order to strengthen industrial control and allow Guillaume Faury to have more time for other priorities.

The timing of such a reorganization and the prerogatives of the new role remain uncertain and depend on the approval of the board, which is not guaranteed, the sources said. One of them pointed out that the decision was far from automatic.

Airbus said via a spokesperson it “does not comment on rumors or speculation regarding organizational or personnel changes.”

Any discussion of Airbus’ management structure is sensitive due to traditional internal disputes and, at times, tense industrial relations between the group’s founding countries which still have a stake in the capital: France, Germany and Spain.

Airbus says it has no longer been politicized since an agreement was reached ten years ago to limit government interference.

CLIMATE

But a new leadership structure is bound to draw comparisons to the era Fabrice Bregier, Airbus’ former commercial aviation boss, who left the group in 2018 after a power struggle with then-executive chairman Tom Enders.

The group intends not to leave room for organizational flaws like those seen in the past, but must find a balance with the need to give clear authority to a possible new director of its commercial aircraft division, said one of the sources. This could collide with the operation of Guillaume Faury, who is very involved in all activities, she added.

According to the sources, Airbus could opt for this new role for an executive considered loyal to Guillaume Faury, such as Bruno Even, director of the helicopter division. We do not know if Even, also French, would be interested in such a position.

This reorganization would bring Airbus closer to the model adopted by its American rival Boeing, where each division has its own boss.

While insiders felt it was relevant for Airbus to combine the role of executive chairman and commercial aviation boss in 2019, the COVID pandemic and war in Ukraine have since reshaped the strategic environment.

Analysts noted that the climate had calmed down at Airbus after years of internal wrangling. However, several executives of the group who are not part of the first circle of Guillaume Faury have left the company in recent years, leaving a void in terms of experience in the production of commercial aircraft.

After a sluggish start to the year, Airbus aircraft deliveries accelerated in May and June. The group, which is due to publish its half-year results on Wednesday, remains set on ambitious production targets.

(Report Tim Hepher; Jean Terzian)

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