Martin Sion

Chief Executive Officer (CEO)

After graduating from the École Centrale de Paris and a spell at Sandia National Laboratories in the United States, Martin Sion joined Société Européenne de Propulsion (SEP) in 1990, where he held various engineering positions. In 2005, he became head of the Technical Department of Snecma’s Space Engines Division. He was subsequently appointed head of the Improvement Strategy Department at Snecma (now Safran Aircraft Engines) and, in 2009, head of the “Build-up and Equipment” Industrial Excellence Centre. From 2010 to 2013, he headed the company’s Space Engines division. He then joined Aircelle (now Safran Nacelles) in 2013 as CEO, and in 2015, he was appointed Chairman of Safran Electronics & Defense. Martin Sion has been a member of ArianeGroup’s Board of Directors since 2020, and became the company’s CEO in 2023.

Philippe Clar

Executive Vice-President Defence Programmes

After graduating as an engineer from École Nationale Supérieure de l’Aéronautique (ENSAE, now ISAE-SUPAERO) and two years of research at Stanford University in the USA, Philippe Clar began his career at Astrium where he held various technical positions on programmes (Ariane, ATV, ARD), and then management positions in the advanced projects (1998) and business development departments. In 2002, he was appointed head of the missile defence programme, and in 2006 he took charge of the new generation ballistic missile programme. In 2011, he became advisor to the CEO of Astrium Space Transportation for European launcher sector restructuring. In 2013, he was appointed head of Space System Defence Programmes at Airbus Defence and Space, before joining ArianeGroup as head of Defence Programmes in 2016.

Frank Huiban

Executive Vice-President Civil Programmes

A graduate of École Polytechnique and École des Mines in Paris, Franck Huiban began his career in industry at Elf Atochem, and then Alcatel in China, before joining the French Nuclear Safety Authority (ASN) in 2001. As an expert in risk management, he became advisor to the French ecology and transport ministers. He joined EADS in 2008 as advisor to the Group’s CEO and went on to become sales director at Astrium Space Transportation in 2010, and then Airbus Defence and Space. In 2014, he was involved in the creation of ArianeGroup and the launch of the Ariane 6 programme, before leading the company’s transformation plan. He became head of launcher programmes in 2019 and has been in charge of ArianeGroup’s civil programmes since 2021.

Stéphane Israël

Arianespace Chief Executive Officer (CEO)

A graduate of École Normale Supérieure (ENS) and École Nationale d'Administration (ENA), Stéphane Israël spent six years at the Cour des Comptes (French Court of Accounts) where he led missions in French space policy and Ariane launchers. He joined Airbus in 2007 as advisor to the CEO, and subsequently held various management positions in the company’s space division. From 2008 to 2010, he was responsible for Management Control and the Project Management Office (PMO) of Defence programmes at Astrium Space Transportation before taking charge of Astrium Services’ Business Development for the Copernicus programme in 2010. He became Chief of Staff to the French Minister for Industry and Innovation in 2012, before being appointed as Chairman and CEO of Arianespace in 2013, and then as CEO in 2017. He is a member of the Executive Committee of ArianeGroup where he was in charge of civil programmes from 2017 to 2021.

Hervé Gilibert

Chief Technical Officer (CTO)

A graduate of École Polytechnique and École Nationale Supérieure de l’Aéronautique (ENSAE, now ISAE-SUPAERO), Hervé Gilibert started out at Aérospatiale as a ballistic missile guidance and control system design engineer. After working on various defence system preliminary designs and then leading the team in charge of those activities, in 1998 he led the programme to upgrade the Air Operations Command and Control System on behalf of the French Defence Procurement and Technology Agency (DGA) and the French Air Force. From 2002 to 2010, he was responsible for the Ariane 5 development programmes at Astrium Space Transportation and became Chief Technical and Quality Officer in 2011. He then headed up the Space System Technical Directorate at Airbus Defence and Space. At the end of 2014, he joined ArianeGroup as Chief Technical and Quality Officer. Since 2021, his role as CTO has included managing the engineering and design office teams who design and implement ArianeGroup’s civil and military launch systems.

Jens Franzeck

Chief Industrial Officer (CIO)

Dr Jens Franzeck graduated as an engineer from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology and holds a PhD in process engineering from the University of Stuttgart. He began his career as an R&D engineer at Mercedes-Benz, and in 1998 he joined the Daimler-Benz Group’s aerospace division, DASA. In 2002, he became head of Cabin Procurements for Airbus’ Commercial Aircraft Division, taking responsibility for the long-haul aircraft programme (cabin and fuselage) in 2005. In 2009, he went on to manage the Ariane 5 operations programme at Astrium, and then production and testing for Airbus Defence and Space’s space activities in 2014. The following year, he took charge of the A400M military transport aircraft operations, and then managed engineering integration in 2017, before becoming head of physical design engineering in 2020. He joined ArianeGroup as Chief Industrial Officer in 2024.

Stéphane Nogatchewsky

Chief Procurement Officer (CPO)

Stéphane Nogatchewsky holds a PhD in Management Sciences from the University of Paris-Dauphine, an Executive MBA from Warwick Business School (UK) and a Master’s degree from ESSEC business school. He began his career in the automotive industry, holding various positions in Procurements at Valeo, notably in Germany. He joined Rolls-Royce Aerospace in 2001, where he managed the operational performance of strategic suppliers before leading aircraft engine sales campaigns. In 2008, he became head of industrial strategy at Safran Landing System, and then head of industrial development, before being appointed as director of management systems. In 2016, he became Vice-President of internal audit for the Safran Group. He has been Chief Procurement Officer at ArianeGroup since 2021.

Gilles Fonblanc

General Secretary

Gilles Fonblanc graduated as an engineer from École Nationale Supérieure de Chimie et Physique in Bordeaux (Enscbp, now Ensmac) and holds a PhD in Organic Chemistry. He joined SNPE in 1986, working in missile and launcher propulsion. In 1999, he became head of R&T at SNPE Matériaux Énergétiques (SME), and from 2002 onwards he was successively head of the Materials & Pyrotechnics unit, then of Defence and Space Propulsion (2007), and Strategic Propulsion (2012) at Safran Herakles. At the same time, he was CEO of Pyroalliance from 2005 to 2017. He joined ArianeGroup in 2016 as Director of Sites and Security. He has been General Secretary since 2019, with responsibility for site management, security, cyber-defence, legal, export control, compliance, audit and HSE. He is also CEO of ArianeGroup SAS.

Pierre Godart

Chief Financial Officer (CFO)

Pierre Godart is a French–German national who holds a degree in Business Administration (Diplom-Kaufmann) from the WHU – Otto Beisheim School of Management in Germany. He joined the DASA Group in 1992 and after holding a number of positions in the helicopter division, he became Chief Financial Officer of LFK GmbH (Lenkflugkörpersysteme), a subsidiary specialising in guided missiles. In 2006 he was appointed Chief Financial Officer of the Military Air Systems unit, responsible for military combat and transport aircraft within the EADS Group’s Defence Division. In 2011 he became Head of Finance and Management Control for the Defence Division’s programmes and operations. He joined the Astrium Space Division in 2013 as CFO. Since 2015 he has been ArianeGroup’s Chief Financial Officer, Executive Vice-President of ArianeGroup Holding and CEO of ArianeGroup GmbH.

Sarah-Pearl Bokobza

Chief Communication Officer

Sarah-Pearl Bokobza, 52, joined ArianeGroup as Chief Communication Officer in 2024. She had previously been Group Head of Communications and Marketing for A2MAC1, world leader in competitive analysis for the automotive sector, a post she held from 2021. With over 20 years’ experience in communication in both the private and public sectors, she has worked in all areas of communication – internal, external, influence, social media, crisis communication and branding. From government ministries to international business, she has considerable experience of operating in evolving environments and complex organisations.

Akilles Loudière

Chief Quality, Performance & Digital Officer

A graduate of École Polytechnique and Télécom ParisTech, Akilles Loudière began his career in 2005 at Lucent Technologies before joining the French Ministry for Industry where he was adviser to the Minister from 2010 to 2012. A French–German national, he worked at the European Commission from 2012 to 2014, then joined automotive supplier Forvia where he held various positions in continuous improvement, supply chain and production before becoming Chief Sales Officer of the Volkswagen business unit. In 2018 he joined Safran as CEO of Safran Cabin Germany. He has been ArianeGroup’s Chief Transformation & Digital Officer since 2021.

Cécilia Matissart

Chief Strategy & Innovation Officer (CSO)

Holding a postgraduate diploma in Banking and Finance from the University Paris II (Assas), Cécilia Matissart began her career in the Capital Markets department at Crédit National, with responsibility for creating and structuring financial transactions. En 1997 she joined the equity issues department of Natixis Capital, before moving to the Banque Populaire group, where she was in charge of financial communications for Natixis Banques Populaires. In 2006 she became Head of Investor Relations for Natixis. She joined the French Financial Markets Authority (AMF) in 2009 as Head of the Banking, Insurance & Bond Department in Issuer Services. In 2008, she became Vice President of Financial Communication for Safran Group, before joining ArianeGroup in 2023 as Chief Strategy & Innovation Officer.

Cornelia Thieme

Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO)

After graduating in Business Economics from the University of Applied Sciences in Bremen and in business, administration and finance from the École Supérieure de Commerce in Toulouse, Cornelia Thieme joined Airbus Germany, before moving to Airbus Industrie, where she managed the consortium’s resources. In 1997, she became head of HR for the design office at DASA, then in 2001, as part of the Airbus creation project team, she organised and managed the senior executives’ compensation system. In 2007, she became head of Organisational Development and Compensation and Benefits at Airbus (now Airbus Commercial Aircraft), before taking charge of Human Resources at Astrium Services in 2013. When Airbus Defence and Space was founded, she was responsible for HR and transformation for Connected Intelligence and also took charge of HR in the UK in 2018. She joined ArianeGroup in early 2024.