The Most Important Thing We Build is Trust

By Allan E. Cook
Chief Executive Cobham plc

Our heritage goes back to 1934 when our founder and innovative aviation pioneer, Sir Alan Cobham, worked tirelessly to make flying popular. He had a dream that “one day there would be a landing ground in every major town”. Seventy years on that pioneering spirit continues across Cobham, and although there is not an airport in every town, we have made unbelievable progress in aviation.

Today, Cobham is a $2bn business employing 10,000 people on five continents producing innovative products that are at the heart of sophisticated military and civil systems around the world. From army tanks to refueling tankers, from commercial jets to commercial ships, we have earned a reputation for producing products and services that people trust with their lives and livelihoods.

A constant theme across the Group is that we have a deep understanding of how our equipment is used and never lose sight of what is important to our customers. 

This insight enables us to design and manufacture products that have the critical functionality end users want and minimize the logistical burden for organisations, who sometimes operate platforms for decades. Every year we invest $100m of our money into R&D – and this is increasing - to develop the technology that will continue to keep people safe, improve communications and enhance the performance of aerospace and defense platforms.

Our employees around the world are extremely proud to produce components, subsystems and services that save lives. I am always heartened to learn that our equipment has played a part in bringing a parent, child or loved one home safely. We often read that people have used their mobile phones to summon help, but they have limitations, with limited cell coverage in certain environments. I am encouraged that more and more people are choosing to carry our PLBs and EPIRBs as insurance for peace of mind. Our commitment to our customers is that, if you ever have to use our equipment, you can trust it to work.

The most important thing we build is trust.

Best Regards,
Allan

Allan E. Cook
Chief Executive
Cobham plc
Brook Road, Wimborne, Dorset, England