SEATTLE (Reuters) - Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg has tapped Ann Schmidt to be chief communications and brand officer. It is the latest executive appointment since Ortberg took over as chief executive in August. He announced her appointment on Monday in a memo to employees viewed by Reuters. Schmidt has been the interim head of communications since her predecessor, Brian Besanceney, retired on Oct. 1. In the past five years, several crises - two fatal crashes, safety and quality lapses, criminal investigations, huge financial losses and a seven-week-long strike - have tarnished the company's legacy.

(Reporting by Dan Catchpole in Seattle; Editing by Rod Nickel)