QinetiQ names outgoing Rolls-Royce director David Smith as CFO

LONDON (Reuters) - British defence group QinetiQ said on Tuesday it had appointed David Smith, Rolls-Royce's outgoing chief financial officer, to succeed David Mellors as its CFO in the new year.

Smith's departure from Rolls-Royce was announced last week, in the latest shake-up at the top of the FTSE-100 giant, Britain's most prominent engineering company which is in turnaround-mode.

The move puts Smith in charge of the finances of the 1 billion pound-market capitalised Qinetiq after he leaves aero-engine maker Rolls-Royce, worth 13 billion pounds, at an as yet unconfirmed date next year.

Qinetiq, which helped invent radar and night-vision goggles, said Smith had made an important contribution to restoring confidence in Rolls Royce, improving financial systems and delivering the early stages of its transformation.

Smith will earn a basic annual salary of 440,000 pounds plus a bonus at QinetiQ, compared to the 535,000 pounds salary he was on at Rolls-Royce.

Rolls-Royce named Stephen Daintith from Daily Mail and General Trust as its as new chief finance officer last week, while Qinetiq is due to lose its current CFO David Mellors to Cobham at the end of December.

(Reporting by Paul Sandle and Sarah Young; editing by Kate Holton)