The Spanish top executive is setting a historic milestone in the European aerospace industry.
Spain Expat Press Editorial Team
by Marlon Gallego Bosbach
A significant leadership change is shaking the European industry: the Spanish engineer Amparo Moraleda is becoming the new global president of the aerospace and defence company Airbus. The transition marks not only a career milestone, but also a symbolic moment for the European economy – and for women in leadership positions.
The appointment will officially take effect on 1 October 2026. Moraleda, who has already served on the company’s board for years, thus returns to the top of one of Europe’s most important industrial companies – albeit in a non-executive role. Guillaume Faury will remain CEO.
A career full of firsts
Amparo Moraleda has been regarded for decades as one of Spain’s most influential executives. At just 37 years old, she became General Manager of IBM for Spain and Portugal – an early career breakthrough that propelled her into the international business elite.
Later, she held executive and board positions in some of the country’s largest companies, including Iberdrola and Airbus itself. With her new role, she now becomes global president of the group, which recorded revenues of €73 billion in 2025.
“I was my own harshest critic”
Moraleda says she has always pushed herself the hardest:
“The toughest standard I have ever been held to was my own.”
She describes her career as being shaped by discipline, ambition and high self-expectations – qualities that, in her own words, have accompanied her throughout every stage of her journey.
Women in leadership positions: “Power must be fought for”
Moraleda also takes a clear stance in the debate on female leadership. According to her, power is not granted within organisations but must be actively fought for – a message she states unequivocally.
“The biggest problem is not the lack of opportunity, but the lack of willingness to truly take on that power,” she explains. At the same time, she critically notes that women in the highest leadership positions of major European companies are still significantly underrepresented.
Across the Euro Stoxx 50, there is not a single female CEO, with only a few exceptions at board level.
Europe’s strategic challenges
In addition to issues of equality, Moraleda also looks at Europe’s geopolitical situation. Over past decades, the continent has become dependent in key areas – energy on Russia, industry on China, defence on the United States, and technology on global corporations.
Europe must therefore “wake up and take action,” she states firmly.
Airbus between record results and transformation
Airbus itself is at a historic financial high. The group generated revenue of €73 billion in 2025 and a profit of over €5 billion. Its market value stands at around €140 billion, with listings in France, Germany and Spain.
With Moraleda, a leader is now taking over the presidency for the first time who is neither from France nor Germany – a symbolic break with the company’s previous tradition.
Conclusion
With the appointment of Amparo Moraleda, a new chapter begins at Airbus – one that combines economic strength, European identity, and the growing demand for greater diversity in top leadership positions. Whether her words on power and leadership will resonate in the long term remains to be seen. What is certain, however, is that her appointment is already a signal far beyond the aerospace industry.
