Jaan Albrecht, who has been the chief executive of Austrian Airlines since November 2011, has accepted a position at SunExpress, a joint venture of Lufthansa and Turkish Airlines.

He will serve as chief executive of the airline, starting on June 1st, 2015.

The decision was taken at the supervisory board meeting of SunExpress earlier.

Albrecht will remain chief executive of Austrian Airlines until the end of May 2015.

The board will make a decision on his successor at a later date.

“The decision to ask Jaan Albrecht to assume a new position within the Lufthansa Group was not easy for us,” said Harry Hohmeister, chairman of the supervisory board of Austrian Airlines.

“After all, he led Austrian Airlines out of a crisis and achieved a turnaround.

“However, his good international contacts and his experience in different positions in the airline sector make him an ideal chief of SunExpress.”

Paul Schwaiger, the current managing director of SunExpress, will leave the company due to the expiration of his contract.

In order to ensure a smooth handover and a seamless transition, Paul Schwaiger will actively shape the change in the airline’s management and continue to support Albrecht until the middle of July 2015.

Albrecht added: “I will say it straight out.

“It is with a heavy heart that I will be leaving Vienna and Austrian Airlines at the end of May.

“But I am leaving with a good feeling about the situation because Austrian Airlines is well on track.

“At the same time, I am also happy to be able to contribute my experience once again to such an important international joint venture.”