Airbus appoints independent compliance review panel amid probes

PARIS (Reuters) - Europe's Airbus said on Monday it had appointed an independent review panel including a former German finance minister to monitor its compliance practices amid several ongoing corruption probes.

The three advisers, who include former German politician Theo Waigel, will report to Chief Executive Tom Enders and the board and take a "hard look" at the company's systems and culture, Airbus said in a statement.

Britain's Serious Fraud Office launched a bribery and fraud probe last year after Airbus notified it of discrepancies it had discovered in declarations it had made on the use of agents while applying for UK export credits for jetliners.

France followed suit with a similar investigation earlier this year. Airbus, which also faces a probe into fighter sales in Austria, where it strongly denies any wrongdoing, has said it will co-operate with all ongoing investigations.

(Reporting by Tim Hepher; Editing by Sudip Kar-Gupta)