Greaves joins EADS to spearhead profile campaign

Greaves, who had been with Lockheed since 2002, joined last week as UK vice-president of communications and PR.

His appointment plugs the gap left by Andrew Jeacock, who left in April after less than ten months in the role (PRWeek, 22 April).

Greaves, a lieutenant commander in the Royal Naval Reserve's media relations specialisation, does not have a position on the board of EADS.

He is responsible for internal and external reputation management, PR and public affairs in the UK.

CEO Robin Southwell took over from Sir Jeremy Blackham in July. In his previous role as CEO of AirTanker he led the successful bid for the UK's strategic refuelling aircraft contract.

EADS owns part of the high-profile Eurofighter project, 80 per cent of Airbus and a share of AirTanker.

The company is keen to raise its profile in the UK, where the locally bigger rival BAE Systems tends to have a higher status.
EADS employs 16,000 people in the UK and in 2004 derived around £1.8bn of its turnover from the country.

The company has recently been at the centre of media speculation amid reports that the Government is considering granting launch aid for Airbus's A350 passenger jet, large parts of which would be built in the UK.