Scandal hit Cobham brings in new finance boss

Under-fire military supplier Cobham tried to steady the ship today by poaching a new finance boss from rival defence contractor QinetiQ.

David Mellors, 45, will take over the finance department on January 1 and have a “key leadership role” helping boss Bob Murphy win back the confidence of the City.

The FTSE 250 group is seeking to put to rest a turbulent period after an accounting scandal, profits warning and a £500 million rights issue.

Mellors, who studied physics at Oxford, used to work at Logica and before that Rio Tinto.

Cobham’s current finance boss Simon Nicholls is due to leave this year.

He had signed up to join housebuilder Wolseley in January but the deal has fallen through.