Lufthansa’s chairman & CEO declines contract renewal

Lufthansa Group’s chairman of the executive board and CEO has announced he will leave the airline after 15 years at the group.

Christoph Franz has declined for his contract to be renewed at the German-based airline group and will leave his position when his current contract expires on 31 May 2014.

He will pursue his career in a “different direction” according to Lufthansa’s chairman of the supervisory board Wolfgang Mayrhuber.

Franz said: “After a total of nearly 15 years in the Lufthansa Group, this was not an easy decision for me to make”, said Christoph Franz. “I am proud of Lufthansa and its people, and it gives me great pleasure to work for this company. However, for professional reasons I have decided to call time on my activities for the Lufthansa Group once I have completed my contract in May 2014. By then, the SCORE programme and important investment decisions will have laid the groundwork for the Lufthansa Group to continue its successful development. This is a suitable time for a management handover.”

Mayrhuber added: “I regret Christoph Franz’s decision to develop his career in a different direction, but I respect his decision. I think I can speak for all the members of the Supervisory Board when I assure Christoph Franz today of our thanks and recognition for his great commitment. Under Franz’s leadership, Lufthansa Group has built on its position as a leading European aviation group. His forward-looking decisions form the basis for our company to continue its successful development.”

Franz joined Deutsche Lufthansa AG in 1990 and after working with then-CEO Jurgen Weber to turnaround the airline, moved to Deutsche Bahn where he held several executive roles for nine years. In mid-2004 Franz became CEO of Swiss International Air Line and led the carrier into its integration into the Lufthansa Group, which he joined as deputy chairman in June 2009. He has been in his currently role since 1 January 2011.