ArianeGroup announces that its Board of Directors has appointed Christophe Bruneau as Chief Executive Officer, effective April 1, 2026. He will succeed Martin Sion, whose departure was announced on October 8, 2025.

He has been chosen after a thorough selection process conducted by the Board and following the recommendation of the Nominations and Remuneration Committee. With his expertise in the space and defense industries and his leadership qualities he has the required qualifications to continue and consolidate the development and the transformation underway at ArianeGroup.

Christophe Bruneau began his career in 1992 as Industrial Marketing Manager and then Deputy Director for European Affairs at Armines before joining the French Embassy in Germany as Science and Technology Attaché and Aerospace coordinator in 1995. He went on to work for MAN Technologie AG in Augsburg as Director of the Space business unit in 1999, followed by a position at Snecma (now Safran Aircraft Engines) in 2004 as Deputy General Manager of the Space engines division, based in France and in Germany. In 2007, he joined Europrop International Consortium as Program Director for the TP400 (engine for the A-400M airplane), based in Munich and Madrid. In 2012, he established and managed Aerospace Embedded Solutions (AES) in Munich, a joint venture between Sagem (now Safran Electronics & Defense) and MTU, before becoming Managing Director of Europrop International in 2016. Since 2020 he has been Executive Vice President and General Manager Military Engines Division at Safran Aircraft Engines. He is graduated from INSEEC business school in 1992 and studied at Ecole Centrale de Paris in 1993.

Matthieu Louvot, (appointed Airbus Helicopters CEO from next April, see AVIONEWS), Chairman of the Board of directors of ArianeGroup, said: “With his deep knowledge of the space and defense industries and expertise in industrial collaboration programs, especially in a French-German context, Christophe Bruneau is the ideal candidate to lead ArianeGroup”.

Christophe Bruneau said: “I will be fully committed to meeting the challenges of an industry of excellence in a rapidly changing world. Together with the management team, we will continue the company's transformation and build with all employees on the momentum already underway".