Swiss gets new CEO in group realignment

Swiss has announced the appointment of a new chief executive as part of a broader realignment of the Lufthansa Group.
Thomas Klühr, currently a member of the executive board of Lufthansa German Airlines, will succeed Harry Hohmeister as chief executive of Swiss in February 2016, with the position of chief operating officer also integrated into the role.
In turn Hohmeister will take charge of the newly-created position of hub management in January 2016, where he will help create a more unified commercial management of Lufthansa, Swiss and Austrian Airlines.
Current chief operating officer Rainer Hiltebrand will in future be responsible for developing the groupwide training of flying personnel.
The aim of the realignment is to intermesh the group’s various commercial, operational and administrative elements far more closely throughout all its business segments. This will include managing its airlines using unified processes.
Lufthansa said the business goal of the realignment is to add some €500m a year to the Lufthansa Group’s earnings results, through the cost and revenue synergies.
Earlier this year, the airline also announced that Ashwin Bhat would succeed Oliver Evans as its new head of cargo.