FACC presents LEONARDO Team Award: Focus on global innovation and exceptional team spirit

At the FACC Christmas party in Upper Austria last weekend, the spotlight was on the people who drive technological progress in international aviation every day: the FACC crew.

For the tenth time, the company presented the LEONARDO Team Award to teams that are actively shaping the future of aviation and aerospace with their innovative strength, courage, and exceptional cooperation. Since 2014, more than 200 projects have been submitted – a sign of how strongly FACC is committed to a culture in which ideas are given space and talent can grow worldwide.

Team Croatia wins LEONARDO 2025 – growth in action and cultural diversity

The LEONARDO 2025 award went to the Team Croatia, which became one of the company's most dynamic international hubs in just four years after the site opened. With over 500 employees from several countries, the site demonstrates how effective a team can be when expertise, diversity, and shared passion come together. It produces innovative lightweight components for modern passenger aircraft and business jets – technologies that play a decisive role in FACC's global success. The Croatia team thus represents one of FACC's key strengths: empowering people worldwide to develop their potential and shape future technologies together.

“Winning the FACC LEONARDO 2025 award is proof of what is possible when people from different nations pursue a common goal. We show that growth, diversity, and excellence go hand in hand – a huge thank you to our great team!” emphasize FACC Croatia COO Edvin Brcic and FACC Croatia CFO Matija Feric.

CREW-LEONARDO Audience Award: Team Embraer as a model for international cooperation

With the CREW-LEONARDO award, presented for the first time, the FACC crew honored a team that stands for partnership, reliability, and excellent project performance: Team Embraer. The long-standing cooperation with Embraer – including its inclusion in the global Supplier Advisory Council and the Supplier of the Year – Outstanding Collaboration award – shows how important human relationships and trust are in the international high-tech environment. Team Embraer represents an essential message from FACC: Success comes when teams take responsibility, strengthen each other, and work across borders toward a common goal.

"The CREW-LEONARDO is a great sign of appreciation for our colleagues. Our cooperation with Embraer is based on many years of trust and the shared conviction that success can only be achieved through genuine, cross-border partnership. That is pure FACC team spirit!" says Thomas Peinelt, Program Manager Embraer.

“Our global crew makes the difference” – corporate culture as a driver of Innovation

CEO Robert Machtlinger emphasized the role of the FACC crew as the heart of the company: "Our employees from over 50 nations contribute not only technical expertise, but also a unique diversity of perspectives and experiences. This mix creates the innovative power that makes us visible in almost every aircraft in the world today. LEONARDO shows that true innovation arises where people are committed, courageous, and work together."

Ten years of LEONARDO

Since its establishment in 2014, LEONARDO has become a symbol of the culture of continuous innovation at FACC. Many award-winning projects of the past have become technological milestones. Every year, the award demonstrates that at FACC, any idea from any team at any location can become an innovation that changes aviation worldwide.