Airbus shakes up international marketing unit amid fraud probe: sources

Airbus is shaking up its international marketing organization amid a UK investigation into suspected irregularities in the use of intermediaries to help it land new orders, three people familiar with the matter said. The move is part of a wider internal reorganization as CE Tom Enders tries to turn the group into a leaner and simpler company, but is also gaining top-level management attention in its own right as the company carries out a sweeping review of its sales practices, they said. Airbus has for years relied on sales teams in its planemaking unit backed up in some cases by a headquarters team of international marketers to sell jets to areas including parts of Asia and the Middle East. Like many exporters, it has also relied on a network of external consultants with local business knowledge, a practice which is legal but subject to international guidelines designed to ensure transparency and avoid a risk of corruption. <br/>