Spanish executive Amparo Moraleda will become chair of Airbus on 1 October, making her the first person outside France or Germany to hold the aerospace giant's top governance role. The appointment was confirmed at a shareholder meeting in Amsterdam, where she will succeed René Obermann, who has led the company since 2020. A company spokesperson said the choice reflects Spain's significant industrial weight within Airbus, which employs around 14,000 people across eight Spanish sites — including its largest national facility in Getafe (a city just south of Madrid), home to roughly 10,000 workers and a final assembly line for the Eurofighter combat jet.