Sarah Black-Smith

Sarah Black-Smith

Vice President of A330 and A350 Wing Production

Airbus

Sarah BlackSmith is a committed advocate for manufacturing excellence, employee engagement, and workplace diversity. She is the Vice President of A330 and A350 Wing Production at Airbus, a role she assumed in January 2026 after more than two decades with the Siemens group. Her career at Siemens included senior leadership positions such as Head of Manufacturing, Head of Factory Operations, and ultimately General Manager at Siemens Digital Industries. Sarah is a strong believer that digitalisation and technological advancement are essential to achieving the UK’s sustainability and productivity ambitions.

Across her career, Sarah has gained deep operational expertise through roles at Siemens factories in Congleton and Lincoln. She led Factory Operations at Siemens Digital Industries in Congleton from 2018, following her tenure as Head of Manufacturing. Prior to this, she held several operational management roles at Siemens Energy in Lincoln, where she consistently drove improvements in efficiency, quality, and performance.

Sarah graduated from Loughborough University in 2004 with a BEng (Hons) in Manufacturing Engineering and Management. She went on to earn an MSc in Operations Excellence from Cranfield University in 2016 and completed her Global MBA at Alliance Manchester Business School in 2023.

Passionate about people and collaboration, Sarah is dedicated to building strong relationships and championing the UK manufacturing sector. She regularly highlights the industry’s talent, innovation, and achievements on LinkedIn.

A vocal advocate for diversity, Sarah believes it is fundamental to unlocking the full potential of engineering and manufacturing. She champions greater representation across businesses and education, recognising that diverse perspectives fuel creativity, innovation, and longterm success.