The Managing Director of Raytheon Australia, Mr. Ron Fisher, today announced his intention to retire from his current position at the end of August of this year.

He first joined Raytheon as International Country Manager in 1996 before becoming Managing Director of Raytheon Australia in 1999.

Under Fisher’s leadership, Raytheon Australia has become an industry leader in a broad range of systems integration, mission support and project management services in the fields of naval, aerospace and land systems to the Australian Defence Force, as well as base operations for the military, intelligence and scientific communities.

Over the past decade, he has established a strong reputation as one of the nation’s foremost defence industry players. Under Fisher’s leadership, Raytheon Australia has been reported as being the
fastest growing major player in Australia’s defence industry, doubling the company’s revenue and workforce over the last five years.

“My gratitude goes to each and every Raytheon Australia employee who commits themselves to integrating and supporting the systems that allow the members of the Australian Defence Force to defend our national interests,” Fisher noted.

Fisher also extended his gratitude to his leadership team and to customers who have placed their confidence in Raytheon Australia on a daily basis. Further, Fisher noted the strong commitment of the Raytheon Company leadership to support the growth of the Australian defence industry. “This support includes practical efforts which allow reach back to the global resources of Raytheon Company to transfer skills and expertise to the Australian workforce,” Fisher said.

It is a fitting commentary on Ron Fisher’s legacy that the company has chosen Michael Ward, Raytheon Australia’s General Manager of Strategy, to become the next Managing Director of Raytheon Australia effective 1 September 2009. Michael is a proven strategic thinker with an outstanding performance record across many assignments. As Raytheon Australia celebrates 10 years of business success, the company is energised to take advantage of the opportunities presented by the new Defence White Paper and Capability Plan.

“Ron is one of my closest business partners and has earned the reputation as the finest Managing Director in the Australian defence industry. As he moves to the next phase of his journey, we are going to have a smooth handoff to Mick, who we expect to be a fine Managing Director of Raytheon Australia. We will continue to benefit from Ron’s contributions as a strategic advisor to both Raytheon Australia and Raytheon Company,” said Dan Smith, President of Raytheon Integrated Defense Systems.

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With facilities located across the country, Raytheon Australia is a highly capable prime contractor with an engineering and technical workforce of 1300 backed by world-class management and
quality systems. This local presence is bolstered by strong relationships with small and medium sized enterprises and access to the global resources of Raytheon Company.

Raytheon Company, with 2008 sales of $23.2 billion, is a technology and innovation leader specialising in defence, homeland security and other government markets throughout the world. With a history of innovation spanning 87 years, Raytheon provides state-of-the-art electronics, mission systems integration and other capabilities in the areas of sensing; effects; and command, control, communications and intelligence systems, as well as a broad range of mission support services. With headquarters in Waltham, Mass., Raytheon employs 73,000 people worldwide.

Contact
Raytheon Australia
Gerry Wheeler
+61 439 501 327
gerard.wheeler@raytheon.com.au