28th Jun 2011 16:00
28 June 2011: 16:00 BST Reckitt Benckiser Group plc Bart Becht Non-Executive Directorship Announcement Bart Becht, the retiring CEO of Reckitt Benckiser Group PLC (www.rb.com) is tobecome a non-executive director of ICON Aircraft Inc, the California basedlight sport aircraft manufacturer (www.iconaircraft.com), effective September2011. Becht will also be a key investor in this privately held start-up that isdeveloping the consumer-focused ICON A5 aircraft. Becht retires from RB on 1 September and will be succeeded by Rakesh Kapoor. ARB veteran, Kapoor has a track record in both developing and developed marketsand was most recently responsible for RB's global industry-leading innovationstrategies and category and Powerbrands global marketing.
Becht will remain a part-time advisor to the RB Board for a period of time to support the leadership transition.
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For further information, please contact:
Reckitt Benckiser +44 (0)1753 217800 Andraea Dawson-Shepherd SVP, Global Corporate Communication & Affairs
Joanna Speed Director, Investor Relations ======= ICONAircraft +1 424 201 3514 Amy Julian Marketing Coordinator [email protected] . NOTES TO EDITORS:About Reckitt Benckiser (RB)www.rb.com
Reckitt Benckiser (RB) is a world leader in household, health and personalcare, with operations in over 60 countries, sales in 200 countries and 2010 netrevenues of £8.5 billion. Listed on the London stock exchange it ranks in thetop 25 (equating roughly to position 175 in the Fortune 500) and since 2000 netrevenues have more than doubled and the market cap more than quadrupled. Todayit is the global No 1 or No 2 in the majority of its fast-growing categories,driven by an exceptional rate of innovation - typically about a third of netrevenue comes from innovations launched in the prior 3 years. It has a strongportfolio led by 19 global Powerbrands which are: Finish, Lysol, Dettol,Vanish, Woolite, Durex, Calgon, Airwick, Harpic, Bang, Mortein, Veet, Nurofen,Clearasil, Strepsils Gaviscon, Mucinex, Scholl and French's, and in 2010 theyaccounted for 69% of net revenue.RB people are at the heart of the company's success. They have an intense drivefor progress and action and a desire to outperform wherever they focus,including in CSR where the company has one of the most ambitious corporateresponsibility programmes in the industry through its Carbon 20 initiative. Thecompany employs about 27,000 people worldwide. For more information visitRB.COMAbout ICONAircraftwww.iconaircraft.comICON Aircraft is a consumer sport plane manufacturer founded by Kirk Hawkinsand Steen Strand while at Stanford University shortly after the FederalAviation Administration (FAA) enacted regulation changes in 2004 that createdthe new sport flying category. Kirk is an engineer, former U.S. Air Force F-16fighter pilot, and graduate of Stanford Business School. Steen, a formerinvestment banker and Harvard graduate, holds a Masters in Engineering fromStanford in Product Design and is a serial entrepreneur. A privately fundedcompany, ICON Aircraft's base of operations is in Southern California, which isa hotbed for automotive design and aerospace engineering.
About FAA Light Sport Aircraft and Sport Pilot Classifications
In 2004, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) created a new classificationof easy-to-fly and affordable two-person planes called Light Sport Aircraftthat enable a new classification of Sport Pilots to fly in uncontrolledairspace during the daytime and in good weather. The Sport Pilot Licensefocuses on the fundamentals of flying and requires a minimum of 20 hours ofin-flight training, which is half the time and cost of a traditional PrivatePilot License. The Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) described the newrules as "the biggest change in aviation in 50 years."
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