Airbus has confirmed the departure of Paul Eremenko at the end of 2017. Marc Fontaine, in his current role as Digital Transformation Officer, will take over as acting Chief Technology Officer.
Marc Fontaine already reports to Chief Executive Officer Tom Enders. A permanent solution is expected to be announced in the near future.
“I am grateful to Paul for his service to Airbus. He initiated a challenging transformation of our approach to research, technology and innovation with, for instance, more open innovation and partnerships, the introduction of new methodologies, demonstrators and innovation centres,” said Tom Enders. “Airbus will continue to pursue the directions Paul pioneered to generate greater value in our processes, products and services, and ultimately for our customers. We wish Paul every success in his future endeavours.”
Eremenko has moved to United Technologies to become Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, effective January 1, 2018. Eremenko succeeds J. Michael McQuade, who will retire next year.
Reporting to UTC Chairman and CEO Greg Hayes, Eremenko will provide strategic leadership for the company's research, engineering and development activities in the global aerospace and building systems industries. He will also oversee the United Technologies Research Center.
"Paul is a transformative leader with deep experience in aerospace and commercial technologies, and a record of disruptive innovation," said Greg Hayes, Chairman and CEO. "Paul will continue our proud history of engineering, research and development excellence while accelerating purposeful innovation for the benefit of our customers."
Prior to Airbus, Eremenko served as the founding CEO of A^3 by Airbus Group and held leadership roles at Google, Motorola Mobility and DARPA, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.
McQuade will remain with UTC through early 2018. "We are grateful to Michael for his outstanding service, including his contributions to UTC's innovation leadership in the aerospace and building industries," said Hayes. "We have also benefitted from Michael's commitment to science and technology education as we build a diverse pipeline of talent for today and the future.