ULTRA APPOINTS NEW GROUP FINANCE DIRECTOR

24 January 2013

Ultra Electronics Holdings plc

("Ultra" or "the Group")

ULTRA APPOINTS NEW GROUP FINANCE DIRECTOR

As previously announced in the Interim Management Statement on 16 November 2012, Paul Dean has been approached to take a Finance Director role outside of the defence and aerospace sector. Paul has agreed to become CFO of the Diamonds business of Rio Tinto plc and will leave Ultra on 31 March 2013. In accordance with paragraph 9.6.11 of the Listing Rules, Ultra is pleased to announce that Mary Waldner will succeed Paul as Group Finance Director and be appointed to the Board. The date that Mary will join Ultra is yet to be finalised, and a further announcement will be made in due course.

Mary is currently Director, Group Finance of QinetiQ Group plc. She was previously Group Financial Controller at 3i Group plc, following ten years at British Airways plc where she held a number of senior roles including Financial Controller (Commercial) and Manager, Corporate Planning and Reporting. After graduation Mary also worked for Vauxhall Motors Ltd and Coopers & Lybrand Management Consultancy Services. Mary graduated from Oxford University with an MA in Physics and is a member of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants 

There are no disclosures required in relation to paragraph 9.6.13 of the listing rules.

In the interim period, the function of Group Finance Director will be undertaken by Mark Nelson. Mark will not be appointed to the Board and will report directly to the Chief Executive. Mark was the Group Financial Controller until 2012, since when he has been the Finance Director for Ultra's Sonar and Undersea Systems Division.

Rakesh Sharma, Chief Executive of Ultra, commented:

"I am very pleased that Ultra has been able to appoint Mary Waldner to succeed Paul Dean. Mary has a broad range of experience in a number of sectors and an excellent track record of achievement. We look forward to welcoming Mary into the Group. The Board would like to take the opportunity to thank Paul for his contribution as an outstanding Group Finance Director over the past four years."

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Notes to Editors

Ultra Electronics is an internationally successful defence, security, transport and energy company with a long, consistent track record of development and growth. Ultra businesses constantly innovate to create solutions to customer requirements that are different from and better than those of the Group's competitors. The Group has about one hundred and eighty distinct market or technology niches within its twenty-nine businesses. The diversity of niches enables Ultra to contribute to a large number of platforms and programmes and provides resilience to the Group's financial performance.

 Ultra has world-leading positions in many of its niches and, as an independent, non-threatening partner, is able to support all of the main prime contractors with specialist capabilities and solutions. As a result of such positioning, Ultra's systems, equipment or services are often mission-critical to the successful operation of the platform to which they contribute. In turn, this mission-criticality secures Ultra's positions for the long-term which underpin the superior financial performance of the Group.

Ultra offers support to its customers through the design, delivery and support phases of a programme. The Group's businesses have a high degree of operational autonomy where the local management teams are empowered to devise and implement competitive strategies that reflect their expertise in their specific niches. The Group has a small head office and executive team that provide to the individual businesses the same agile, responsive support that they provide to customers as well as formulating Ultra's overarching, corporate strategy.

Across the Group's three divisions, the major market sectors in which Ultra operates are:

Defence: Ultra supplies advanced electronic and electrical systems and equipment to coalition defence forces around the world. The Group innovates to provide specialist capabilities that are superior to those available to the enemy. By focusing on delivering comparative military advantage, Ultra can gain market share and exploit the headroom for growth that is available in defence budgets worldwide.

Security and cyber: Ultra provides highly differentiated systems and capabilities to the broad security, intelligence and cyber market. Driven by the actions of rogue states, terrorist groups and organised crime, governments worldwide are focusing expenditure preferentially on addressing these threats. Ultra has highly specialised capabilities in secure communications, networks and high-grade cryptographic equipment, key management systems and surveillance and intelligence gathering systems.

Transport: Ultra provides specialist software, systems and equipment for use in mass passenger transport systems. This includes high integrity real-time controls for civil aircraft, advanced IT solutions for modern airports and trackside power equipment for transit rail systems. Demand in these areas, is driven by rising populations in affluent and developing regions of the world.

Energy: Countries around the world are addressing the strategic need to have secure access to increasing amounts of low carbon energy. Ultra has a range of safety critical sensors and controls used in existing and new build nuclear reactors. The Group has innovative portable energy sources powered by readily available propane gas. Ultra also has specialist sensors, derived from defence applications, which are highly effective in the underwater environment at hydrocarbon mapping.